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Lloyd Mangrum

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Lloyd Mangrum
Mangrum, circa 1951
Personal information
Full nameLloyd Eugene Mangrum
NicknameMr. Icicle
Born(1914-08-01)August 1, 1914
Trenton, Texas, U.S.
DiedNovember 17, 1973(1973-11-17) (aged 59)
Apple Valley, California, U.S.
Sporting nationality United States
Career
CollegeNone
Turned professional1929
Former tour(s)PGA Tour
Professional wins45
Number of wins by tour
PGA Tour36
Other9
Best results in major championships
(wins: 1)
Masters Tournament2nd/T2: 1940, 1949
PGA ChampionshipT3: 1941, 1949
U.S. OpenWon: 1946
The Open ChampionshipT24: 1953
Achievements and awards
World Golf Hall of Fame1998 (member page)
PGA Tour
leading money winner		1951
Vardon Trophy1951, 1953
Lloyd Mangrum
Allegiance United States
Service / branchUnited States Army seal U.S. Army
Rank Staff sergeant
Unit90th Infantry Division
Battles / warsWorld War II
Awards Bronze Star (2)
Purple Heart (2)

Lloyd Eugene Mangrum (August 1, 1914 – November 17, 1973) was an American professional golfer.[1][2] He was known for his smooth swing and his relaxed demeanour on the course, which earned him the nickname "Mr. Icicle."[3]

Early life and family

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Mangrum was born on August 1, 1914, in Trenton, Texas, he became a professional golfer at age fifteen, working as an assistant to his brother Ray, the head professional at Cliff-Dale Country Club in Dallas.

Career and military service

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Mangrum joined the PGA Tour in 1937 and went on to win 36 events on the Tour. He might have won more if his career had not been interrupted by service in World War II.

While serving in the U.S. Army and training for deployment in the European Theater, Mangrum was offered the professional's job at the Fort Meade golf course in Maryland, which would have kept him out of combat, but he declined. He was assigned to the 90th Infantry Division Reconnaissance Troop and was injured in a jeep accident near Falaise on August 21, 1944. He recuperated for six months in England and returned to his unit in February 1945. He was awarded a Purple Heart after being wounded by shrapnel in Germany. He returned to competitive golf winning a U.S. Army European Theater Golf Tournament at St. Cloud, France in July 1945. He later played at the Old Course in St Andrews, Scotland in the Daily Mail 1500 Guineas Tournament and was victorious in the U.S. Army Inter-Theater Tournament in Biarritz, France in October 1945. He was discharged from the Army as a corporal in January 1946.

Mangrum's best years on tour came after the war: he led the PGA Tour money list in 1951 and won the Vardon Trophy for the lowest scoring average on the tour in both 1951 and 1953.

Mangrum's only major title came at the U.S. Open in 1946,[4][5] though he was runner-up in three majors and third in six more (including twice losing in the semi-finals in the PGA Championship when it was a match-play event). He lost a playoff for the 1950 U.S. Open at Merion to Ben Hogan and his famous one-iron. Mangrum finished in the top ten at the Masters Tournament ten consecutive years. He shot 64 in the opening round in 1940, a Masters record that stood for 46 years, until Nick Price's 63 in the third round in 1986.

Mangrum played on four Ryder Cup teams in 1947, 1949, 1951, and 1953. On the last occasion, he was a playing captain.[2] He had a record of six wins, two losses, and no ties (.750), including three wins, one loss, and no ties (.750) in singles matches.

Later life

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Mangrum died at age 59 in Apple Valley, California in 1973.[2] The cause of death was a heart attack, the 12th he had suffered.[1] Mangrum was called "the forgotten man of golf" by sportswriter Jim Murray. Even though only 12 men have won more PGA Tour events, his reputation has been overshadowed by the other stars of his era who lived long, extraordinary lives such as Sam Snead and fellow Texans Ben Hogan Jimmy Demaret and Byron Nelson.[6] At the 1996 Masters, Nelson conducted a test. "I asked three young pros if they ever heard of Lloyd Mangrum, and they never had." Nelson commented, "Lloyd's the best player who's been forgotten since I've been playing golf." A quarter century after his death, he was inducted into the World Golf Hall of Fame in 1998.

Professional wins

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PGA Tour wins (36)

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Major championship is shown in bold.

Source:[7]

Other wins (9)

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Source:[8]

Major championships

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Wins (1)

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Year Championship 54 holes Winning score Margin Runners-up
1946 U.S. Open 1 shot deficit −4 (74-70-68-72=284) Playoff 1 United States Vic Ghezzi, United States Byron Nelson

1 Defeated Ghezzi and Nelson in a playoff. All three shot 72 (E) in first 18-hole playoff. Second 18-hole playoff: Mangum 72=144 (E), Ghezzi 73=145 (+1), Nelson 73=145 (+1).

Results timeline

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Tournament 1937 1938 1939
Masters Tournament
U.S. Open CUT T56
The Open Championship
PGA Championship
Tournament 1940 1941 1942 1943 1944 1945 1946 1947 1948 1949
Masters Tournament 2 T9 WD NT NT NT T16 T8 T4 T2
U.S. Open T5 T10 NT NT NT NT 1 T23 T21 T14
The Open Championship NT NT NT NT NT NT
PGA Championship SF R16 NT R64 QF R32 SF
Tournament 1950 1951 1952 1953 1954 1955 1956 1957 1958 1959
Masters Tournament 6 T3 6 3 T4 7 T4 T28 CUT CUT
U.S. Open 2 T4 T10 3 T3 CUT T37
The Open Championship T24
PGA Championship QF R16 R32
Tournament 1960 1961 1962
Masters Tournament 43 CUT T33
U.S. Open T23
The Open Championship
PGA Championship
  Win
  Top 10
  Did not play

NT = no tournament
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

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Tournament Wins 2nd 3rd Top-5 Top-10 Top-25 Events Cuts made
Masters Tournament 0 2 2 7 12 13 20 16
U.S. Open 1 1 2 6 8 12 16 14
The Open Championship 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 1
PGA Championship 0 0 2 4 6 8 9 9
Totals 1 3 6 17 26 34 46 40
  • Most consecutive cuts made – 30 (1942 PGA Championship – 1957 Masters)
  • Longest streak of top-10s – 8 (1950 Masters – 1952 U.S. Open)

U.S. national team appearances

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See also

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References

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  1. ^ a b "After 10 heart attacks Mangrum looks healthy and wealthy at 56". New York Times. Associated Press. July 11, 1971. p. 5.
  2. ^ a b c "Lloyd Mangrum, golfer, dead; '46 U.S. Open winner was 59". New York Times. UPI. November 18, 1973. p. 77.
  3. ^ Glick, Shav (June 18, 1998). "Cool Customer". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved April 6, 2010.
  4. ^ Sixty, Billy (June 17, 1946). "Mangrum wins 'Open' title in play-off in heavy storm". Milwaukee Journal. p. 4-L.
  5. ^ Cavagnaro, Bob (June 17, 1946). "Lloyd Mangrum captures national open; beats Nelson, Ghezzi in 36-hole playoff". Youngstown Vindicator. (Ohio). Associated Press. p. 10.
  6. ^ Kelley, Brent. "Lloyd Mangrum". About.com.
  7. ^ Barkow, Al (1989). The History of the PGA TOUR. Doubleday. p. 264. ISBN 0-385-26145-4.
  8. ^ Barrett, David (2010). Miracle at Merion: The Inspiring Story of Ben Hogan's Amazing Comeback and Victory at the 1950 U.S. Open. Doubleday. p. 23. ISBN 9781616080822.
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