Deane Beman facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Deane Beman
2nd Commissioner of the PGA Tour
In office January 1, 1974 – January 1, 1994
Preceded by	Joseph Dey
Succeeded by	Tim Finchem
Deane Beman Personal information Full name Deane R. Beman Born (1938-04-22) April 22, 1938 (age 87) Washington, D.C., U.S. Height 5 ft 7.5 in (1.71 m) Weight 150 lb (68 kg; 11 st) Nationality  United States Career College University of Maryland Turned professional 1967 Former tour(s) PGA Tour Champions Tour Professional wins 6 Number of wins by tour PGA Tour 4 Other 2 Best results in Major Championships The Masters Tournament T19: 1969 U.S. Open T2: 1969 The Open Championship T13: 1967 PGA Championship T36: 1972 U.S. Amateur Won: 1960, 1963 British Amateur Won: 1959 Achievements and awards World Golf Hall of Fame 2000 PGA Tour Lifetime Achievement Award 2007

Deane R. Beman, born on April 22, 1938, is an American who was a professional golfer and a very important leader in the world of golf. He was the second person to be the Commissioner of the PGA Tour, which is a big organization for professional golf. He held this job for 20 years, from 1974 to 1994.

Deane Beman's Early Life and College Golf

Deane Beman was born in Washington, D.C.. He went to the University of Maryland. There, he was a fantastic golfer for the school's team, the Terrapins. He was even named an All-American twice, which means he was one of the best college golfers in the country.

Deane Beman's Amateur Golf Career

After college, Deane Beman worked in the insurance business. But he was also a very talented amateur golfer. He played in the U.S. Open when he was just 17 years old in 1955.

He played in the famous Masters Tournament fourteen times. He won the U.S. Amateur tournament twice, in 1960 and 1963. He also won the British Amateur in 1959. These were huge wins for an amateur golfer!

Deane Beman's Professional Golf Career

In 1967, when he was 29, Deane Beman became a professional golfer. He won four times on the PGA Tour between 1969 and 1973. In the 1969 U.S. Open, he was in the lead for two rounds and finished just one shot away from a playoff.

Even though he wasn't known for hitting the ball super far, he was very good at his short game, which means he was great around the green. Injuries eventually made it harder for him to play. He decided to stop playing professionally and became the Commissioner of the PGA Tour.

Deane Beman as PGA Tour Commissioner

Deane Beman became the second Commissioner of the PGA Tour in 1974, taking over from Joe Dey. This was a very important job in professional golf. He helped create The Players Championship, which is now one of the biggest tournaments in golf.

He also started the Tournament Players Club (TPC) network, which are special golf courses built for tournaments. Beman changed the PGA Tour into a non-profit organization. He also made sure that professional golfers had pension plans for their retirement.

Under his leadership, the PGA Tour made it a rule that all tournaments had to support a charity. This meant that golf tournaments helped raise money for good causes. The amount of money given to charities grew from less than $1 million in 1974 to over $30 million by 1994!

He also created the Senior PGA Tour in 1980, which is now called the PGA Tour Champions. This tour is for golfers aged 50 and older. In 1990, he started the Ben Hogan Tour, which is now the Korn Ferry Tour. This tour helps new golfers develop their skills before joining the main PGA Tour.

In 1983, he expanded the number of players who could keep their tour cards. This meant more golfers could play on the PGA Tour each year. In 1994, the Presidents Cup was created. This is a big international golf competition.

During his time as Commissioner, the PGA Tour grew a lot. Its value went from $400,000 in 1974 to an amazing $260 million in 1994. He was replaced by Tim Finchem, who continued to lead the Tour for over 22 years.

Deane Beman's Senior Golf Career

After leaving his role as Commissioner in June 1994, Deane Beman started playing golf again. He played in 69 senior events until 2005. In 2003, he even helped design a golf course called Cannon Ridge Golf Club.

A book about his 20 years as Commissioner, called Deane Beman: Golf's Driving Force, was published in 2011.

Awards and Honors for Deane Beman

• In 2000, Deane Beman was honored by being inducted into the World Golf Hall of Fame.
• In 2007, he received the seventh PGA Tour Lifetime Achievement Award. This award recognizes people who have made a huge difference in golf.

Deane Beman's Amateur Wins

• 1959 British Amateur
• 1960 U.S. Amateur, Eastern Amateur, Trans-Mississippi Amateur
• 1961 Eastern Amateur
• 1963 U.S. Amateur, Eastern Amateur
• 1964 Eastern Amateur, Porter Cup

Deane Beman's Professional Wins (6)

PGA Tour Wins (4)

No.	Date	Tournament	Winning score	To par	Margin of victory	Runner(s)-up
1	May 11, 1969	Texas Open Invitational	70-69-70-65=274	−10	Playoff	Jack McGowan
2	Jul 12, 1970	Greater Milwaukee Open	68-71-68-69=276	−12	3 strokes	Don Massengale
3	Oct 1, 1972	Quad Cities Open	72-69-71-67=279	−15	1 stroke	Tom Watson
4	Jul 15, 1973	Shrine-Robinson Open Golf Classic	69-68-67-67=271	−13	1 stroke	Bob Dickson, Bunky Henry

PGA Tour playoff record (1–1)

No.	Year	Tournament	Opponent	Result
1	1968	Bob Hope Desert Classic	Arnold Palmer	Lost to par on second extra hole
2	1969	Texas Open Invitational	Jack McGowan	Won with birdie on first extra hole

Other Wins (2)

• 1966 Maryland Open (as an amateur)
• 1971 Quad Cities Open (not an official PGA Tour event)

Major Amateur Championships

Year	Championship	Winning score	Runner-up
1959	The Amateur Championship	3 & 2	Bill Hyndman
1960	U.S. Amateur	6 & 4	Robert W. Gardner
1963	U.S. Amateur	2 & 1	R. H. Sikes

Tournament Results Timeline

Amateur

Professional

Note: Beman turned professional between the 1967 Masters and U.S. Open.
     Win      Top 10      Did not play LA = Low amateur
"T" indicates a tie for a place
R128, R64, R32, R16, QF, SF = Round in which player lost in match play

Source for The Masters: www.masters.com

Source for U.S. Open and U.S. Amateur: USGA Championship Database

Source for British Open: www.opengolf.com

Deane Beman's National Team Appearances

Amateur

• Walker Cup: 1959 (winners), 1961 (winners), 1963 (winners), 1965 (tied, cup retained)
• Eisenhower Trophy: 1960 (winners), 1962 (winners), 1964, 1966
• Americas Cup: 1960 (winners), 1961 (winners), 1963 (winners)