Bruce Lietzke
Age: 73
Bruce Alan Lietzke (born July 18, 1951) is an American professional golfer who has won 13 tournaments on the PGA Tour, including two victories in the Canadian Open. He has had seven victories on the Champions Tour, including one senior major title.
Early life
Lietzke was born in Kansas City, Kansas. He moved to Beaumont, Texas with his parents in 1960 and lived there until 1977, graduating from Forest Park High School in 1969.
Acknowledgments
Lietzke credits his older brother, Duane, for introducing him to the game of golf at age five. He also credits Henry Homberg, a local Beaumont professional, along with Duane for having the greatest influences on his game when he first started playing. Lietzke attended the University of Houston in Houston, Texas. He graduated in 1973 and turned pro in 1974.
Successes
Lietzke's first PGA Tour victory was in the 1977 Tucson Open. Although he had to wait until the Champions Tour to win a major in the 2003 U.S. Senior Open, Lietzke has had a relatively successful career, winning a combined total of 20 tournaments so far on the PGA Tour and the Champions Tour. His career year on the PGA Tour was 1981, when he had three tournament victories. He played on the winning 1981 U.S. Ryder Cup team at Walton Heath Golf Club in England in what is considered by many to be the finest American team ever assembled.
Lietzke's best finish in a major on the PGA Tour was a solo 2nd place at the 1991 PGA Championship.
Lietzke was well known for not practicing a great deal, and not playing in a large number of tournaments compared to his fellow competitors, electing to spend more time with his family. He did not play more than 25 events in any PGA Tour season and never played more than 20 tournaments in a single season after 1988. Despite this he never finished below 74th on the money list. During his career, Lietzke played in 506 PGA Tour events..
Medical problems
In recent years, Lietzke has been plagued by the so-called "frozen shoulder syndrome" - the correct medical term is adhesive capsulitis - which has caused him to miss a considerable amount of playing time.
Hobbies
Lietzke enjoys collecting classic cars and has built an 11-car garage at his home in which to store his large collection; the crown jewel is a 1967 yellow Corvette Stingray convertible. He lists Bruce Springsteen as his favorite entertainer and Don "Big Daddy" Garlits as his favorite athlete. He makes his home in Dallas, Texas. In 1978, Lietzke was shown in print ads for the Dodge Magnum coupe, as also being a 1970 Plymouth Barracuda owner.
Lietzke was an avid supporter of the Sour Mash Open in Parkersburg, West Virginia. He has played in the event numerous times. "The Bryce-Lietzke-Martin Scholarship Fund was the first fund established by the Sour Mash Open Golf Tournament Committee in 1990 in honor of the late Dr. John Coyle Bryce, PGA Golf Professional, Bruce Lietzke and Larry Martin. The earnings of the fund are used to provide scholarships to worthy Wood County students who have shown an interest in golf."
Professional wins (22)
PGA Tour wins (13)
No. | Date | Tournament | Winning score | Margin of victory |
Runner(s)-up |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Jan 16, 1977 | Joe Garagiola-Tucson Open | −13 (70-66-70-69=275) | Playoff | Gene Littler |
2 | Feb 6, 1977 | Hawaiian Open | −15 (67-70-67-69=273) | 3 strokes | Don January, Takashi Murakami |
3 | Jun 25, 1978 | Canadian Open | −1 (76-67-67-73=283) | 1 stroke | Pat McGowan |
4 | Feb 18, 1979 | Joe Garagiola-Tucson Open | −15 (63-66-68-68=265) | 2 strokes | Buddy Gardner, Jim Thorpe, Tom Watson |
5 | May 18, 1980 | Colonial National Invitation | −9 (63-68-71-69=271) | 1 stroke | Ben Crenshaw |
6 | Jan 18, 1981 | Bob Hope Desert Classic | −25 (65-66-65-70-69=335) | 2 strokes | Jerry Pate |
7 | Feb 8, 1981 | Wickes-Andy Williams San Diego Open | −10 (68-72-70-68=278) | Playoff | Raymond Floyd, Tom Jenkins |
8 | May 10, 1981 | Byron Nelson Golf Classic | +1 (68-74-69-70=281) | Playoff | Tom Watson |
9 | Aug 1, 1982 | Canadian Open | −7 (68-68-68-73=277) | 2 strokes | Hal Sutton |
10 | Mar 4, 1984 | Honda Classic | −8 (72-70-70-68=280) | Playoff | Andy Bean |
11 | May 15, 1988 | GTE Byron Nelson Golf Classic | −9 (66-69-66-70=271) | Playoff | Clarence Rose |
12 | May 24, 1992 | Southwestern Bell Colonial | −13 (69-68-64-66=267) | Playoff | Corey Pavin |
13 | Oct 23, 1994 | Las Vegas Invitational | −28 (66-67-68-66-65=332) | 1 stroke | Robert Gamez |
PGA Tour playoff record (6-6)
No. | Year | Tournament | Opponent(s) | Result |
---|---|---|---|---|
1 | 1977 | Joe Garagiola-Tucson Open | Gene Littler | Won with birdie on fourth extra hole |
2 | 1977 | MONY Tournament of Champions | Jack Nicklaus | Lost to birdie on third extra hole |
3 | 1978 | Tallahassee Open | Barry Jaeckel | Lost to par on first extra hole |
4 | 1981 | Wickes-Andy Williams San Diego Open | Raymond Floyd, Tom Jenkins | Won with birdie on second extra hole Jenkins eliminated with par on first hole |
5 | 1981 | Byron Nelson Golf Classic | Tom Watson | Won with par on first extra hole |
6 | 1984 | Honda Classic | Andy Bean | Won with par on first extra hole |
7 | 1988 | GTE Byron Nelson Classic | Clarence Rose | Won with birdie on first extra hole |
8 | 1992 | GTE Byron Nelson Classic | Billy Ray Brown, Ben Crenshaw, Raymond Floyd | Brown won with birdie on first extra hole |
9 | 1992 | Southwestern Bell Colonial | Corey Pavin | Won with birdie on first extra hole |
10 | 1992 | Canadian Open | Greg Norman | Lost to birdie on second extra hole |
11 | 1995 | Mercedes Championships | Steve Elkington | Lost to birdie on second extra hole |
12 | 1998 | Bob Hope Chrysler Classic | Fred Couples | Lost to birdie on first extra hole |
Other wins (1)
- 1997 Franklin Templeton Shark Shootout (with Scott McCarron)
Champions Tour wins (7)
Legend |
Champions Tour major championships (1) |
Other Champions Tour (6) |
No. | Date | Tournament | Winning score | Margin of victory |
Runner(s)-up |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Aug 12, 2001 | 3M Championship | −9 (72-66-69=207) | 2 strokes | Doug Tewell |
2 | Sep 23, 2001 | SAS Championship | −15 (69-66-66=201) | 3 strokes | Allen Doyle, Gary McCord |
3 | Feb 24, 2002 | Audi Senior Classic | −8 (75-66-67=208) | 1 stroke | Hale Irwin, Gary McCord |
4 | May 12, 2002 | TD Waterhouse Championship | −11 (69-64=133) | 2 strokes | Larry Nelson |
5 | Sep 22, 2002 | SAS Championship | −14 (72-63-67=202) | 4 strokes | Gil Morgan, Sammy Rachels, Tom Watson |
6 | Apr 27, 2003 | Liberty Mutual Legends of Golf | −10 (70-65-71=26) | 1 stroke | David Eger, Dana Quigley |
7 | Jun 29, 2003 | U.S. Senior Open | −7 (69-71-64-73=277) | 2 strokes | Tom Watson |
Other senior wins (1)
- 2002 Liberty Mutual Legends of Golf - Raphael Division (with Bill Rogers)
Results in major championships
Tournament | 1972 | 1973 | 1974 | 1975 | 1976 | 1977 | 1978 | 1979 |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Masters Tournament | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP | T28 | DNP | 6 |
U.S. Open | CUT | DNP | DNP | CUT | T47 | T19 | T20 | T41 |
The Open Championship | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP |
PGA Championship | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP | T38 | T15 | 62 | T16 |
Tournament | 1980 | 1981 | 1982 | 1983 | 1984 | 1985 | 1986 | 1987 | 1988 | 1989 |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Masters Tournament | CUT | T11 | T20 | T42 | T33 | T6 | T31 | 49 | DNP | T34 |
U.S. Open | T38 | T17 | CUT | CUT | DNP | T31 | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP |
The Open Championship | T19 | T6 | CUT | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP |
PGA Championship | T30 | T4 | T16 | T6 | T65 | T18 | T5 | T28 | T62 | T46 |
Tournament | 1990 | 1991 | 1992 | 1993 | 1994 | 1995 |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Masters Tournament | DNP | DNP | T13 | T31 | DNP | T31 |
U.S. Open | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP |
The Open Championship | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP |
PGA Championship | CUT | 2 | T73 | CUT | DNP | T23 |
DNP = Did not play
CUT = missed the half-way cut
"T" indicates a tie for a place
Yellow background for top-10
Summary
Tournament | Wins | 2nd | 3rd | Top-5 | Top-10 | Top-25 | Events | Cuts made |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Masters Tournament | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 5 | 14 | 13 |
U.S. Open | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 11 | 7 |
The Open Championship | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 2 |
PGA Championship | 0 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 4 | 9 | 19 | 17 |
Totals | 0 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 7 | 19 | 47 | 39 |
- Most consecutive cuts made - 13 (1983 PGA - 1989 PGA)
- Longest streak of top-10s - 2 (1981 Open Championship - 1981 PGA)
Champions Tour major championships
Wins (1)
Year | Championship | Winning score | Margin | Runner-up |
---|---|---|---|---|
2003 | U.S. Senior Open | −7 (69-71-64-73=277) | 2 strokes | Tom Watson |