Homero Blancas, Jr. (born March 7, 1938) is an American professional golfer who has played on both the PGA Tour and the Senior PGA Tour (now known as the Champions Tour).
| Homero Blancas | |
|---|---|
| Personal information | |
| Full name | Homero Blancas, Jr. |
| Nickname | Mr. 55 |
| Born | March 7, 1938 Houston, Texas |
| Height | 5 ft 10 in (1.78 m) |
| Weight | 195 lb (88 kg; 13.9 st) |
| Sporting nationality |  United States |
| Career | |
| College | University of Houston |
| Turned professional | 1965 |
| Former tour(s) | PGA Tour Champions Tour |
| Professional wins | 7 |
| Number of wins by tour | |
| PGA Tour | 4 |
| PGA Tour Champions | 1 |
| Other | 2 |
| Best results in major championships | |
| Masters Tournament | T5: 1972 |
| PGA Championship | T30: 1970 |
| U.S. Open | T4: 1972 |
| The Open Championship | DNP |
Amateur career
editBlancas, who is of Mexican American descent, was born in Houston, Texas.[1] He attended the University of Houston from 1958 to 1962, and was a member of the golf team. Blancas shot a record-setting round of 55 (27-28) in a college tournament, which stands as the lowest round in the history of competitive golf. His 13 birdies and an eagle on a par-70 course in Longview, Texas on August 19, 1962 earned him the nickname "Mr. 55."[2] He was inducted into the University of Houston Athletics Hall of Fame in 1978.
Blancas' 55 shot round (played on a course of just over 5,000 yards) was included in the Guinness Book of Records for a time, but shortly after officials removed his name after instituting a requirement that a course must be of at least 6,500 yards to achieve inclusion. The 55 shot round is still the lowest official golf score on record for course of regular par.
Professional career
editBlancas won four PGA Tour events. He turned pro in 1965 and was the PGA Rookie of the Year that year. He was a member of the 1973 Ryder Cup team. During his career on the PGA Tour, he had more than 4 dozen top-10 finishes. His best finishes in a major championship were a T-4 at the 1972 U.S. Open, and a T-5 at the 1972 Masters. Blancas spent the last 16 years of his regular career as club pro at Randolph Park in Tucson.
After turning 50 in March 1988, Blancas joined the Senior Tour. He has one victory in this venue – at the 1989 Doug Sanders Kingwood Celebrity Classic. He has 18 holes-in-one during his career, is a member of the Texas Golf Hall of Fame, and lives in Houston.
Amateur wins
edit- 1962 W.E. Cole Cotton States Invitational
- 1963 W.E. Cole Cotton States Invitational
- 1964 W.E. Cole Cotton States Invitational
Professional wins (8)
editPGA Tour wins (4)
edit| No. | Date | Tournament | Winning score | Margin of victory |
Runner(s)-up |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Sep 25, 1966 | Greater Seattle-Everett Classic | −18 (66-65-65-70=266) | 1 stroke |  Jacky Cupit
|
| 2 | May 17, 1970 | Colonial National Invitation | −7 (69-68-69-67=273) | 1 stroke | Gene Littler, Lee Trevino
|
| 3 | Feb 20, 1972 | Phoenix Open | −11 (70-61-73-69=273) | Playoff | Lanny Wadkins
|
| 4 | Apr 15, 1973 | Monsanto Open | −11 (67-69-66-75=277) | 1 stroke | Frank Beard
|
PGA Tour playoff record (1–1)
| No. | Year | Tournament | Opponent | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1969 | Michigan Golf Classic | Larry Ziegler
|
Lost to birdie on second extra hole |
| 2 | 1972 | Phoenix Open | Lanny Wadkins
|
Won with birdie on first extra hole |
Other wins (3)
edit- 1960 Texas State Open (as an amateur)
- 1963 Louisiana State Open (as an amateur)[3]
- 1965 Mexican Open
Senior PGA Tour wins (1)
edit| No. | Date | Tournament | Winning score | Margin of victory |
Runners-up |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Jun 4, 1989 | Doug Sanders Kingwood Celebrity Classic | −8 (73-65-70=208) | 2 strokes |  Bob Charles, Walt Zembriski
|
Results in major championships
edit| Tournament | 1963 | 1964 | 1965 | 1966 | 1967 | 1968 | 1969 | 1970 | 1971 | 1972 | 1973 | 1974 | 1975 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Masters Tournament | T39 | CUT | CUT | T5 | CUT | CUT | T43 | ||||||
| U.S. Open | CUT | T52 | T36 | T19 | T4 | CUT | T40 | CUT | |||||
| PGA Championship | T30 | T34 | CUT | CUT | T67 | T65 |
Note: Blancas never played in The Open Championship.
CUT = missed the half-way cut
"T" indicates a tie for a place
U.S. national team appearances
editProfessional
References
edit- ^ Wright, Alfred (October 1, 1962). "Lost In A Forest Of Needles". Sports Illustrated. Retrieved September 19, 2022.
- ^ "Little University". Chillicothe Gazette. Ohio. December 20, 1963. p. 6. Retrieved September 19, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Blancas First Amateur To Win Louisiana Open". The Shreveport Times. Louisiana. Associated Press. December 13, 1963. p. C1. Retrieved September 19, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Homero Blancas". Golf Major Championships. Retrieved September 15, 2019.
- ^ "Past Winners & Results". Masters.
- ^ "January claims lead". Eugene Register-Guard. April 10, 1971. pp. 1B, 2B. Retrieved September 15, 2019 – via Google News Archive Search.
- ^ "Masters results". Eugene Register-Guard. April 13, 1974. p. 3B. Retrieved September 15, 2019 – via Google News Archive Search.
- ^ "Course The Opponent, Player Says". The Tuscaloosa News. June 16, 1973. p. 5. Retrieved September 15, 2019 – via Google News Archive Search.
- ^ "PGA Media Guide 2012 – 94th PGA Championship" (PDF). PGA of America. pp. 52–57, 113.
External links
edit- Homero Blancas at the PGA Tour official site