Dave Marr

Dave Marr
Personal information
Full name	David Francis Marr, Jr.
Born	December 27, 1933(1933-12-27) Houston, Texas
Died	October 5, 1997(1997-10-05) (aged 63) Houston, Texas
Height	5 ft 9 in (1.75 m)
Weight	195 lb (88 kg; 13.9 st)
Nationality	United States
Career
College	Rice Institute University of Houston
Turned professional	1953
Former tour(s)	PGA Tour
Professional wins	5
Number of wins by tour
PGA Tour	3
Best results in Major Championships (Wins: 1)
Masters Tournament	T2: 1964
U.S. Open	T4: 1966
The Open Championship	T8: 1966
PGA Championship	Won: 1965
Achievements and awards
PGA Player of the Year	1965

David Francis Marr, Jr. (December 27, 1933 – October 5, 1997) was an American professional golfer and sportscaster, best known for winning the 1965 PGA Championship.

Early years

Marr was born and raised in Houston, Texas, the son of a professional golfer.^[1] He attended St. Thomas High School, and while there was on the honor roll, captain of the golf team and member of the Letterman's Club.^[2] Following graduation, he attended Rice Institute and the University of Houston.

Professional career

In 1953 at age 19, Marr left college and turned professional. He began his professional golfing career by accepting a position at Westwood Country Club in Westwood, New Jersey, in 1953. A short time later, Marr took a job as an assistant club pro to Claude Harmon at Winged Foot Golf Club in Mamaroneck, New York, where he began to blossom.^[1] He began playing regularly on the PGA tour in 1960, and in that year earned his first professional win at the Sam Snead Festival. A year later, he won the Greater Seattle Open Invitational and then the Azalea Open in 1962. Marr joined the elite in golf world in 1965 when he captured the coveted PGA Championship, was named to the Ryder Cup team and elected PGA Player of the Year.^[2]

The 1965 PGA Championship was played at the Laurel Valley Golf Club in Ligonier, Pennsylvania. He defeated golf legends Jack Nicklaus and Billy Casper by two strokes with a four-day total score of 280. Incredibly, this wasn't the biggest news story of the day in the Marr family – a few hours after his victory, his third child, son Tony, was born.

Marr played in the 1965 Ryder Cup, finishing his six matches with a 4-2 record. He was the appointed non-playing captain of the U.S. Ryder Cup team in 1981.^[1]

Marr was a close friend of golf legend Arnold Palmer. Marr and Palmer were both sons of PGA pros and developed a close bond. Palmer called Marr's 1965 PGA victory "one of the happiest moments of my life". The two of them used to joke that between them they won a career grand slam. (Palmer won many majors in his career, but never won the PGA Championship.)

Later years

Marr served as a golf analyst for ABC from 1972 until 1991.^[1] He was usually teamed with the legendary Jim McKay, and fellow one-time PGA Championship winner, Bob Rosburg. He later worked for the BBC and then NBC.^[1]

Marr and long-time golfing partner Jay Riviere established a golf course architectural and design firm in 1981. They have designed many courses in the greater Houston area.^[2]

Marr died at the M.D. Anderson Cancer Center in Houston after a long battle with stomach cancer on October 5, 1997. He was 63. He is survived by his wife, Tally, and sons Dave III, Anthony, Wayne Bunch, Tucker Bunch, and daughter Elizabeth Hallas.^[1] Marr's oldest son, Dave III, works for Golf Channel covering the Champions Tour.^[3]

Marr's children have scattered his ashes around the various courses that meant so much to him during his playing days – Royal Birkdale, in England, where he played on the 1965 Ryder Cup team; Walton Heath, in England, where he captained the 1981 Ryder Cup team; and at the 18th hole at Laurel Valley, the site of his 1965 PGA Championship.^[4]

Awards and honors

Marr was elected to the National Collegiate Hall of Fame in 1977 and the Texas Golf Hall of Fame in 1978. He was selected for the Gold Tee Award presented by the Met (N.Y.) Golf Writers in 1990.

Shell Oil Company created the Dave Marr Memorial Award the year after his death. It is awarded annually in conjunction with the Shell Houston Open. Marr's last assignment as a broadcaster had been to host Shell's Wonderful World of Golf from 1993–97. Past winners of the award include Gene Sarazen, Byron Nelson, Jack Nicklaus, Judy Rankin, Gary Player, Former President George H. W. Bush and Arnold Palmer.

Professional wins (5)

PGA Tour wins (3)

No.	Date	Tournament	Winning Score	Margin of Victory	Runner(s)-up
1	Sep 17, 1961	Greater Seattle Open Invitational	-15 (67-69-66-63=265)	Playoff	Jacky Cupit, Bob Rosburg
2	Apr 1, 1962	Azalea Open	-7 (673-66-71-71=281)	Playoff	Jerry Steelsmith
3	Aug 15, 1965	PGA Championship	-4 (70-69-70-71=280)	2 strokes	Billy Casper, Jack Nicklaus

Other wins (2)

• 1960 Sam Snead Festival
• 1962 Metropolitan PGA Championship

Major championships

Wins (1)

Year	Championship	54 Holes	Winning Score	Margin	Runners-up
1965	PGA Championship	Tied for lead	-4 (70-69-70-71=280)	2 strokes	Billy Casper, Jack Nicklaus

Results timeline

Tournament	1952	1953	1954	1955	1956	1957	1958	1959
The Masters	DNP	DNP	DNP	DNP	DNP	DNP	DNP	DNP
U.S. Open	CUT	DNP	DNP	DNP	CUT	CUT	DNP	T15
The Open Championship	DNP	DNP	DNP	DNP	DNP	DNP	DNP	DNP
PGA Championship	DNP	DNP	DNP	DNP	DNP	DNP	T44	DNP

Tournament	1960	1961	1962	1963	1964	1965	1966	1967	1968	1969
The Masters	T34	DNP	CUT	DNP	T2	CUT	CUT	T16	T20	CUT
U.S. Open	T17	CUT	DNP	T21	DNP	CUT	T4	T9	T32	T10
The Open Championship	DNP	DNP	DNP	DNP	DNP	DNP	T8	DNP	DNP	DNP
PGA Championship	T10	T22	T51	CUT	65	1	T18	T33	CUT	T48

Tournament	1970	1971	1972	1973
The Masters	CUT	DNP	DNP	DNP
U.S. Open	T30	CUT	CUT	DNP
The Open Championship	T41	DNP	T11	CUT
PGA Championship	T35	DNP	CUT	T46

DNP = Did not play
CUT = missed the half-way cut
"T" indicates a tie for a place
Green background for wins. Yellow background for top-10

References

1. ^ ^{a b c d e f} Brink, Bill (October 6, 1997). "Dave Marr, 63, Golf Champion And Television Commentator". New York Times. http://www.nytimes.com/1997/10/06/sports/dave-marr-63-golf-champion-and-television-commentator.html. Retrieved 2010-05-09. 
2. ^ ^{a b c} "Profile from St. Thomas High School Alumni Hall of Honor page". http://sths.org/about/hallofhonor/marrd.html. 
3. ^ "Dave Marr III bio". Golf Channel. http://www.thegolfchannel.com/22100/21/. Retrieved 2010-05-09. 
4. ^ "Senior PGA Championship News". http://www.pga.com/seniorpga/2005/news_052705_dave_marr.html. 

External links

• Dave Marr at the PGA Tour official site

Persondata
Name	Marr, Dave
Alternative names	Marr, David Francis, Jr.
Short description	American professional golfer, sportscaster
Date of birth	December 27, 1933
Place of birth	Houston, Texas
Date of death	October 5, 1997
Place of death	Houston, Texas