Ed Oliver
Ed Oliver | |
---|---|
— Golfer — | |
Personal information | |
Full name | Edward Stewart Oliver, Jr. |
Nickname | Porky, Pork Chops[1] |
Born |
Wilmington, Delaware | September 6, 1915
Died |
September 21, 1961 46) Wilmington, Delaware | (aged
Height | 5 ft 9 in (1.75 m) |
Weight | 240 lb (109 kg; 17 st) |
Nationality |
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Spouse | Clara E. Hee[2][3] |
Children | 3 sons, 1 daughter[4] |
Career | |
College | none |
Turned professional | 1940 |
Former tour(s) | PGA Tour |
Professional wins | 15 |
Number of wins by tour | |
PGA Tour | 8 |
Other | 7 |
Best results in major championships | |
Masters Tournament | 2nd: 1953 |
U.S. Open | 2nd: 1952 |
The Open Championship | DNP |
PGA Championship | 2nd: 1946 |
Edward Stewart "Porky" Oliver, Jr. (September 6, 1915 – September 21, 1961) was a professional golfer from the United States. He played on what is now known as the PGA Tour in the 1940s and 1950s.
Born in Wilmington, Delaware, Oliver started as a caddy at age 11 at Wilmington Country Club and turned pro at age 18.[1][3] He earned his nickname because he stood 5 ft 9 in (1.75 m) but weighed 240 pounds (109 kg). He won eight times on the PGA Tour in the 1940s and 1950s. Oliver was well known for finishing second in several major championships, but not letting it get him down. He lost to Ben Hogan in the finals of the 1946 PGA Championship, was runner-up to Julius Boros in the 1952 U.S. Open, and to Hogan at the 1953 Masters. Oliver also finished in a tie with Lawson Little and Gene Sarazen at the 1940 U.S. Open, but was disqualified for teeing off 30 minutes early over weather concerns (under current rules, tournament directors reserve the rule to advance round start times, group players in three, and using both the first and tenth tees in case of approaching weather).[5] He was the medalist in the stroke play qualifier of the PGA Championship in 1954, but lost in the third round to eventual champion Chick Harbert. Because of his positive attitude, Oliver was a popular player on tour.[4]
Oliver played on three Ryder Cup teams (1947, 1951, and 1955). He lost several years of playing time while serving in the U.S. Army during World War II,[2] and suffered from the after effects of a 1948 automobile accident that injured a kidney.[6]
Cancer
Oliver was diagnosed with cancer in 1960 and had part of a lung removed in late May in Denver.[7] Remarkably, he played a tour event that September in Utah, but missed the cut by two strokes.[8] Oliver was an advocate for cancer research, traveling the banquet circuit while battling the disease.[4] He died the following September at age 46 at Memorial Hospital in Wilmington, Delaware.[1][3]
Legacy
In 1976, he was inducted into the Delaware Sports Museum and Hall of Fame in its inaugural year. The course of the Wilmington Country Club where he caddied as a teenager has been redesigned and is now the Ed Oliver Golf Club.[9] He and his wife Clara (1915–2010) are buried in All Saints Cemetery in Wilmington; they had three sons and a daughter.[4]
Professional wins
PGA Tour wins (8)
- 1940 (3) Bing Crosby Pro-Am, Phoenix Open, St. Paul Open
- 1941 (1) Western Open
- 1947 (1) San Antonio Texas Open
- 1948 (1) Tacoma Open Invitational
- 1953 (1) Kansas City Open
- 1958 (1) Houston Open
Other wins
this list may be incomplete
- 1948 Pacific Northwest PGA Championship
- 1949 Northwest Open, Philippine World Open
- 1950 Philippine Open
- 1956 Massachusetts Open, White Sulphur Open
- 1959 Jamaican Open
Results in major championships
Tournament | 1939 | 1940 | 1941 | 1942 | 1943 | 1944 | 1945 | 1946 | 1947 | 1948 | 1949 |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Masters Tournament | DNP | T19 | DNP | DNP | NT | NT | NT | T37 | T8 | DNP | DNP |
U.S. Open | T29 | DQ | DNP | NT | NT | NT | NT | T6 | T3 | CUT | DNP |
PGA Championship | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP | NT | DNP | DNP | 2 | R16 | R16 | R64 |
Tournament | 1950 | 1951 | 1952 | 1953 | 1954 | 1955 | 1956 | 1957 | 1958 | 1959 | 1960 |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Masters Tournament | DNP | DNP | T30 | 2 | T22 | T53 | DNP | DNP | DNP | T14 | T20 |
U.S. Open | DNP | T24 | 2 | T58 | DNP | CUT | T41 | T22 | DNP | DNP | DNP |
PGA Championship | DNP | R32 | DNP | R64 | R16 | R64 | DNP | DNP | T8 | T11 | DNP |
Note: Oliver never played in The Open Championship.
NT = No tournament
DNP = Did not play
DQ = Disqualified
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
Yellow background for top-10
Summary
Tournament | Wins | 2nd | 3rd | Top-5 | Top-10 | Top-25 | Events | Cuts made |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Masters Tournament | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 6 | 9 | 9 |
U.S. Open | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 5 | 11 | 8 |
The Open Championship | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
PGA Championship | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 5 | 7 | 10 | 10 |
Totals | 0 | 3 | 1 | 4 | 10 | 18 | 30 | 27 |
- Most consecutive cuts made – 12 (1948 PGA – 1955 Masters)
- Longest streak of top-10s – 5 (1946 U.S. Open – 1947 PGA)
See also
References
- 1 2 3 "Cancer takes Porky Oliver". Meriden Journal. Connecticut. Associated Press. September 21, 1961. p. 4.
- 1 2 "Ed Oliver, golf ace in Army". San Jose News. California. Associated Press. February 24, 1942. p. 6.
- 1 2 3 "Golf's Porky Oliver Dies". Nashua Telegraph. New Hampshire. Associated Press. September 21, 1961. p. 2.
- 1 2 3 4 "Porky eyes miracle". Milwaukee Sentinel. Associated Press. March 22, 1961. p. 6-part 2.
- ↑ "Jack Bell's Sports Desk". Miami Daily News. June 17, 1940. p. B1.
- ↑ "Oliver sets PGA pace with 5-under 66". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Associated Press. July 22, 1954. p. 17.
- ↑ "Porky recovering". Tuscaloosa News. Alabama. Associated Press. June 5, 1960. p. 11.
- ↑ "Finsterwald gains lead in Utah Open". Eugene Register-Guard. Oregon. Associated Press. September 11, 1960. p. 2B.
- ↑ "Welcome". Ed Oliver Golf Club. Retrieved December 3, 2013.