Sheldon George "Don" Pooley Jr. (born August 27, 1951) is an American professional golfer. He has won tournaments on both the PGA Tour and the Champions Tour.
Early life and amateur career Pooley was born in Phoenix, Arizona. He grew up in Riverside, California. He attended the University of Arizona in Tucson, where he was a member of the golf team.
Professional career Pooley turned pro in 1973. Despite winning the 1980 B.C. Open and the 1987 Memorial Tournament, Pooley is probably best remembered in his PGA Tour career for his dramatic million-dollar hole-in-one at the 1987 Bay Hill Classic. Pooley received $500,000 as did Arnold Palmer Hospital for Children and Women in Orlando, Florida because of this once-in-a-lifetime shot.Profile from TheGoal.com In 1985, he won the Vardon Trophy, awarded annually by the PGA to the Tour leader in scoring average. His best finish in a major was T-5 in consecutive major championships: the 1987 PGA Championship and the 1988 Masters Tournament.
Late in his PGA Tour career, Pooley began to experience many debilitating ailments, and missed several years of playing time as a result; however, he enjoyed a resurgence in his career after turning 50 in August 2001 when he began play on the Champions Tour. The biggest win in his golf career was his first on the Champions Tour. In 2002, he won on the biggest stage in men's senior golf, the U.S. Senior Open. Pooley was inducted into the Pima County (Arizona) Sports Hall of Fame in 2006.
Professional wins (7) PGA Tour wins (2) No.DateTournamentWinning scoreMargin ofvictoryRunner-up1Aug 31, 1980 B.C. Open−17 (68-69-66-68=271)1 stroke Peter Jacobsen2May 31, 1987 Memorial Tournament−16 (70-67-65-70=272)3 strokes Curt Byrum
Other wins (3) 1983 Jerry Ford Invitational (tie with Gil Morgan) 1989 Ebel Match Play 1992 Amoco Centel Championship
Champions Tour wins (2) LegendSenior major championships (1)Other Champions Tour (1) No.DateTournamentWinning scoreMargin ofvictoryRunner(s)-up1Jun 30, 2002 U.S. Senior Open−10 (71-70-63-70=274)Playoff Tom Watson2Aug 24, 2003 Allianz Championship−13 (66-67-67=200)3 strokes Bruce Fleisher, Bruce Lietzke, Jim Thorpe
Champions Tour playoff record (1–2) No.YearTournamentOpponent(s)Result12002U.S. Senior Open Tom WatsonWon with birdie on fifth extra hole after three-hole aggregate playoff;Pooley: E (4-4-4=12),Watson: E (4-4-4=12)22005Boeing Classic Mark McNulty, Tom PurtzerMcNulty won with birdie on second extra hole32009AT&T Classic Dan ForsmanLost to birdie on first extra hole
Results in major championships Tournament197719781979Masters TournamentU.S. OpenCUTThe Open ChampionshipPGA ChampionshipCUT Tournament1980198119821983198419851986198719881989Masters TournamentT19CUT41T45T5T14U.S. OpenCUTCUTT15T24T24CUTT26The Open ChampionshipT16T19PGA ChampionshipT46T19T67T23T34T62T16T5T58T34 Tournament1990199119921993199419951996199719981999Masters TournamentT42T46U.S. OpenCUTT44CUTThe Open ChampionshipT39T101PGA ChampionshipT8T73CUTT29
Tournament2000200120022003Masters TournamentU.S. OpenCUTCUTThe Open ChampionshipPGA Championship
CUT = missed the half-way cut "T" indicates a tie for a place
Summary Tournament Wins 2nd 3rd Top-5 Top-10 Top-25 Events Cuts madeMasters Tournament 0 0 0 1 1 3 8 7U.S. Open 0 0 0 0 0 3 13 5The Open Championship 0 0 0 0 0 2 4 4PGA Championship 0 0 0 1 2 5 15 13Totals 0 0 0 2 3 13 40 29 Most consecutive cuts made – 12 (1982 PGA – 1988 Masters) Longest streak of top-10s – 2 (1987 PGA – 1988 Masters)
Champions Tour major championships
Wins (1) YearChampionshipWinning scoreMarginRunner-up 2002 U.S. Senior Open −10 (71-70-63-70=274) Playoff1 Tom Watson 1 In the three-hole aggregate playoff, Pooley and Watson tied with three pars each.On the second sudden-death hole, Pooley won with a birdie to Watson's par.
Results timeline Results not in chronological order before 2012.
Tournament 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013Senior PGA ChampionshipT18CUTT54T57WDT6T28T23The TraditionT9T14T53T36T9T4046T8T29WDT66Senior Players ChampionshipT22T40T13T18T11T23T27T34T57U.S. Senior Open1T43T15T22T51T18T47T40T47Senior British Open Championship–T27T5T13T8 The Senior British Open was not a Champions Tour major until 2003.
CUT = missed the halfway cut WD = withdrew from tournament "T" indicates a tie for a place
See also
Fall 1976 PGA Tour Qualifying School graduates
References
External links