Lee Janzen

Lee McLeod Janzen (born August 28 1964) is an American golfer who is best known for twice winning the U.S. Open in 1993 and
1998.

Overview

Janzen was born in Austin, Minnesota, and spent most of his childhood in Baltimore, Maryland, where he played Little League baseball. When Janzen was 12, his father's company transferred him to Florida and his parents started him in golf and tennis, and he continued playing baseball. Janzen liked golf best and started playing that sport exclusively. He won his first tournament at age 15 as a member of the Greater Tampa Junior Golf Association.

Janzen chose to attend a small college – Florida Southern – rather than a big institution like Florida. In 1985 and 1986, Florida Southern won the Division II national team championship. Janzen was the individual medalist in 1986. He turned professional later that same year.

Janzen has won eight times on the PGA Tour, most notably the 1993 and 1998 U.S. Opens. In 1993, he defeated Payne Stewart at Baltusrol in Springfield, New Jersey, en route to tying the 72-hole U.S. Open scoring record of 8-under par. Five years later, he again beat out Stewart to win his second U.S. Open, this time at the Olympic Club in San Francisco. He overcame a five stroke deficit on Sunday, marking the best final-round comeback in a U.S. Open since 1973.

Janzen also notched a victory at The Players Championship in 1995. The Players is a premiere event on the PGA Tour, unofficially known as the "fifth major," and includes the largest purse of the season. He has been featured in the top 20 of the Official World Golf Rankings.

Janzen had several opportunities to win additional major golf championships. In 1996, he was in contention at both the U.S. Open and PGA Championship before finishing in the top-10 in both events. He finished fourth at the 1997 PGA Championship after sharing the 36-hole lead at Winged Foot in Mamaroneck, New York.

Janzen also played on two American Ryder Cup teams, in 1993 and 1997.

Janzen has lived in various places in Central Florida since becoming a professional golfer. He frequently speaks about his Christian beliefs.

Professional wins (9)

PGA Tour wins (8)

*1992 (1) Northern Telecom Open
*1993 (2) Phoenix Open, U.S. Open
*1994 (1) Buick Classic
*1995 (3) The Players Championship, Kemper Open, Sprint International
*1998 (1) U.S. Open

Major championships are shown in bold.

Other wins (1)

*2000 Franklin Templeton Shootout (with Rocco Mediate)

Major Championships

Wins (2)

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.

United States national team appearances

*Ryder Cup: 1993 (winners), 1997
*Presidents Cup: 1998
*Dunhill Cup: 1995

ee also

* Golfers with most PGA Tour wins

External links

* [http://www.pgatour.com/players/00/15/77 Profile on the PGA Tour's official site]