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Pete Cooper (golfer)

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Pete Cooper
Personal information
Full nameRichard Bernice Cooper
Born(1914-12-31)December 31, 1914
DiedOctober 8, 1993(1993-10-08) (aged 78)
Sporting nationality United States
Career
Turned professional1938
Former tour(s)PGA Tour
Champions Tour
Professional wins23
Number of wins by tour
PGA Tour5
Other17 (regular)
1 (senior)
Best results in major championships
Masters TournamentT12: 1956
PGA ChampionshipT9: 1953
U.S. OpenT4: 1953
The Open ChampionshipCUT: 1976

Richard Bernice "Pete" Cooper (December 31, 1914 – October 8, 1993) was an American professional golfer on the PGA Tour in the 1940s and 1950s; he was best known for winning the 1976 PGA Seniors' Championship.

Cooper turned professional in 1938. In the ten-year span between 1949 and 1958, he won five official PGA Tour events and had runner-up finishes in the 1950 Houston Open and the 1955 Tournament of Champions. His best finish in a major was T4 at the 1953 U.S. Open.[1] He helped a young Chi-Chi Rodríguez improve enough to secure a spot on the PGA Tour.

Cooper won the 1976 PGA Seniors' Championship at the age of 61 with a four-day total of 283 over runner-up Fred Wampler. The tournament was held at Walt Disney World in Orlando, Florida.

Cooper lived in Lakeland, Florida, where he owned the Par 3 and Lone Palm Golf Club. He was also active in golf course design.

Professional wins (23)

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PGA Tour wins (5)

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No. Date Tournament Winning score Margin of
victory
Runner(s)-up
1 Mar 6, 1949 St. Petersburg Open −9 (68-67-69-71=275) 1 stroke United States Cary Middlecoff
2 Dec 10, 1950 Miami International Four-Ball
(with United States Claude Harmon)
1 up United States Dave Douglas and United States Jim Turnesa
3 Jun 13, 1954 Virginia Beach Open −13 (67-64-64-68=263) 1 stroke United States Tommy Bolt
4 Mar 17, 1957 St. Petersburg Open −15 (68-68-68-65=269) 4 strokes United States Jack Burke Jr.
5 Nov 23, 1958 West Palm Beach Open Invitational −19 (68-63-68-70=269) Playoff United States Wes Ellis

PGA Tour playoff record (1–1)

No. Year Tournament Opponent(s) Result
1 1958 West Palm Beach Open Invitational United States Wes Ellis Won with birdie on first extra hole
2 1959 West Palm Beach Open Invitational United States Gay Brewer, United States Arnold Palmer Palmer won with par on fourth extra hole

Sources:[2][3][4][5][6]

Other wins (17)

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this list is probably incomplete

Senior wins (1)

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Team appearances

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See also

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References

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  1. ^ "Golf Major Championships". Retrieved January 15, 2008.
  2. ^ MacFeely, F. T. (March 7, 1949). "Pete Cooper Wins With Eagle Three". Daytona Beach Morning Journal. p. 6.
  3. ^ "Dream Comes True For Cooper". Daytona Beach Morning Journal. December 11, 1950. p. 8.
  4. ^ "Pete Cooper Wins At Virginia Beach, Heads for Open". The Day. Associated Press. June 14, 1954. p. 17.
  5. ^ Bailey, Mercer (March 18, 1957). "Cooper Captures St. Pete Open". Daytona Beach Morning Journal. p. 8.
  6. ^ "Cooper Wins At WPB In Playoff". Daytona Beach Morning Journal. Daytona Beach, Florida. AP. November 24, 1958. p. 10.
  7. ^ "Canada Cup Golf Event Starts Today". Schenectady Gazette. Associated Press. June 1, 1961. p. 35.
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