Robert T. Hamilton (January 10, 1916 – December 6, 1990) was an American professional golfer.
Career He was born and raised in Evansville, Indiana. He attended and graduated from Evansville Reitz High School in 1934.
Hamilton won ten professional titles, including one major, the PGA Championship in 1944 at Manito Golf and Country Club in Spokane, Washington. Then a match play event, he defeated heavily favored Byron Nelson in the finals, 1 up. Hamilton was a three-time winner of the Indiana Open, winning in 1938, 1942, and 1966. He won five times on the PGA Tour, including the 1948 New Orleans Open, one stroke ahead of runner-up Roberto De Vicenzo. Hamilton was also a member of the 1949 Ryder Cup team.
Hamilton also served as the golf pro at Fort Lewis, south of Seattle, during the latter stages of World War II; he was also a member of the Warriors, the inter-base (intramural) team. Individually, he placed 3rd in the Pacific Northwest Servicemen's Championship (Seattle) and 3rd in the Tacoma Open, a PGA Tour event.
Hamilton finished second to Sam Snead in the 1967 Senior PGA Championship at PGA National Golf Club in Palm Beach Gardens, Florida.
In 1975, Hamilton set the overall record for youngest golfer to shoot his age when he shot a 59 at Hamilton Golf Club in Evansville.
In 1990, Hamilton died in his hometown of Evansville, Indiana.
Awards and honors In 1965, Hamilton was inducted into the Indiana Golf Hall of Fame.
Amateur wins This list may be incomplete 1934 IHSAA State Champion 1936 Indiana Amateur
Professional wins (10) PGA Tour wins (3) Legend Major championships (1) Other PGA Tour (4) No.DateTournamentWinning scoreMargin ofvictoryRunner(s)-up1Aug 15, 1944PGA Championship1 up Byron Nelson2Mar 31, 1946Charlotte Open−15 (70-71-67-65=273)3 strokes Pete Cooper, Jimmy Demaret, Sam Snead3Feb 22, 1948New Orleans Open−4 (70-71-70-69=280) 1 stroke Roberto De Vicenzo, Fred Haas, Lawson Little
PGA Tour playoff record (0–1) No.YearTournamentOpponentResult11949Miami Open Fred HaasLost 18-hole playoff;Haas: −1 (69),Hamilton: +1 (71)
Source:
Other wins (7) This list may be incomplete 1938 Indiana Open 1942 Indiana Open 1943 Indiana PGA Championship 1944 Indiana PGA Championship, North and South Open 1949 Inverness Invitational Four-Ball (with Chick Harbert) 1966 Indiana Open
Major championships Wins (1) YearChampionshipWinning scoreRunner-up 1944 PGA Championship 1 up Byron Nelson Note: The PGA Championship was match play until 1958
Results timeline Tournament194119421943194419451946194719481949Masters TournamentNTNTNT3T42T18T23U.S. OpenT45NTNTNTNTT29CUTPGA ChampionshipNT1R32R32R64R64R32
Tournament1950195119521953195419551956195719581959Masters TournamentT32T404WDU.S. OpenT42PGA ChampionshipR64R32SF
Tournament196019611962196319641965196619671968Masters TournamentU.S. OpenPGA ChampionshipWDT59 Note: Hamilton never played in The Open Championship.
NT = no tournament WD = withdrew CUT = missed the half-way cut R64, R32, R16, QF, SF = round in which player lost in PGA Championship match play "T" indicates a tie for a place
Summary Tournament Wins 2nd 3rd Top-5 Top-10 Top-25 Events Cuts madeMasters Tournament 0 0 1 2 2 4 8 7U.S. Open 0 0 0 0 0 0 4 3The Open Championship 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0PGA Championship 1 0 1 2 2 6 11 10Totals 1 0 2 4 4 10 23 20 Most consecutive cuts made – 11 (1941 U.S. Open – 1949 Masters) Longest streak of top-10s – 2 (1952 PGA – 1953 Masters)
See also Chronological list of men's major golf champions List of men's major championships winning golfers
References
External links Indiana Golf Hall of Fame Funeral home card from Browning Genealogy database