Raymond Floyd

Raymond Floyd was a known during his PGA Tour career as a tough competitor and a great chipper. He maintained his competitiveness into his early 50s before moving to the Champions Tour.

Date of birth: Sept. 4, 1942
Place of birth: Fort Bragg, North Carolina
Nickname: His first name was commonly shortened to "Ray" by peers and fans.

• PGA Tour: 22
List of Floyd's PGA Tour wins
• Champions Tour: 14

4
• 1969 PGA Championship
• 1976 Masters
• 1982 PGA Championship
• 1986 U.S. Open

• Member, World Golf Hall of Fame
• PGA Tour Vardon Trophy winner, 1983
• Member of 8 U.S. Ryder Cup teams
• Captain, 1989 U.S. Ryder Cup team

• Raymond Floyd is one of only two players to win official PGA Tour events in four different decades. The other is Sam Snead.

• Floyd's sister, Marlene Floyd, played on the LPGA Tour in the 1970s and 1980s.

Raymond Floyd was a terrific baseball player in his youth, and didn't turn fulltime to golf until he won the 1960 National Jaycees Junior golf tournament. After serving in the Army, Floyd turned pro in 1963 and claimed his first victory that year. At age 20, he became the fourth youngest winner of a PGA Tour event.

He really broke out in 1969, with three victories, including the PGA Championship. But it would be six years before Floyd would win again. He worked hard during those years building a reputation as a great partier. But after marrying in 1973, he settled down and focused again on his game.

He started reeling off wins more consistently beginning in the mid-70s, including the 1976 Masters and 1982 PGA Championship. He won four times in 1981 and '82, and took the Vardon Trophy in 1983.

When Floyd won the U.S. Open in 1986, at age 43, he was the oldest-ever winner of that event.

Floyd became eligible for the Champions Tour in 1992, but that year posted another win on the PGA Tour at Doral. He also claimed three Champions Tour victories in '92, becoming the first man to win on both the PGA and Senior PGA tours in the same year.

Floyd played on eight Ryder Cup teams, and three years after he captained the 1989 team, was selected to play in 1993. At age 51, he became the oldest Ryder Cup player, and chalked up three points in the event.

The World Golf Hall of Fame described Floyd's game this way: "Floyd was one of the first players to combine tremendous power with a soft touch, making him an important player in the evolution of the modern game. Floyd's short game is considered exemplary, and he is often acknowledged as one of the greatest chippers the game has ever seen."

Off the course, Floyd launched his own design company. He also wrote an instructional book, "The Elements of Scoring: A Master's Guide to the Art of Scoring Your Best When You’re Not Playing Your Best" (compare prices).

Raymond Floyd was inducted into the World Golf Hall of Fame in 1989.