Jerry Heard

Last updated

Jerry Heard
Personal information
Full nameJerry Michael Heard
Born (1947-05-01) May 1, 1947 (age 78)
Visalia, California
Height6 ft 0 in (1.83 m)
Weight190 lb (86 kg; 14 st)
Sporting nationalityFlag of the United States (23px).png  United States
Career
College Fresno State
Turned professional1968
Former tour(s) PGA Tour
Champions Tour
Professional wins8
Number of wins by tour
PGA Tour5
European Tour1
Other2
Best results in major championships
Masters Tournament T5: 1972
PGA Championship T7: 1972
U.S. Open T7: 1973
The Open Championship T28: 1972

Jerry Michael Heard (born May 1, 1947) is an American professional golfer who won several PGA Tour events in the 1970s.

Contents

Career

In 1947, Heard was born in Visalia, California. He attended Fresno State College for a short while.

In 1968, Heard turned professional. In 1969, he joined the PGA Tour after his success at Fall 1968 PGA Tour Qualifying School. His first professional win came in the American Golf Classic at Firestone Country Club in Akron, Ohio in 1971. He finished with a four-day total of 275, three strokes better than runner-up Dale Douglass. In 1972, he won the Florida Citrus Open and the Colonial National Invitation. Heard had nearly 60 top-10 finishes in PGA Tour events in his career including four top-10 finishes in major championships — his best finish in a major was T-5 at the 1972 Masters Tournament. [1] Heard was struck by lightning at the 1975 Western Open, along with playing partner Lee Trevino. Three others were also struck: Bobby Nichols, Jim Ahern, and Tony Jacklin. [2] [3]

In 1980, Heard left the tour and today owns and operates a golf school, the Jerry Heard Golf Academy located at the Silverthorn Country Club in Spring Hill, Florida. His school had been located for many years in southwest Florida.

Personal life

Heard lives near Fort Myers, Florida.

Professional wins (8)

PGA Tour wins (5)

No.DateTournamentWinning scoreTo parMargin of
victory
Runner(s)-up
1Aug 8, 1971 American Golf Classic 67-66-68-74=275−53 strokes Flag of the United States.svg Dale Douglass
2Mar 12, 1972 Florida Citrus Open 70-67-70-69=276−122 strokes Flag of the United States.svg Bobby Mitchell
3May 14, 1972 Colonial National Invitation 69-66-67-73=275−52 strokes Flag of the United States.svg Fred Marti
4Mar 3, 1974 Florida Citrus Open (2)67-68-69-69=273−153 strokes Flag of the United States.svg Homero Blancas, Flag of the United States.svg Jim Jamieson
5May 28, 1978 Atlanta Classic 67-67-68-67=269−192 strokes Flag of the United States.svg Lou Graham, Flag of the United States.svg Bob Murphy
Flag of the United States.svg Tom Watson

PGA Tour playoff record (0–1)

No.YearTournamentOpponentResult
1 1974 Kemper Open Flag of the United States.svg Bob Menne Lost to birdie on first extra hole

Source: [4]

European Tour wins (1)

No.DateTournamentWinning scoreTo parMargin of
victory
Runner-up
1Apr 20, 1974 Spanish Open 72-67-70-70=279−96 strokes Flag of South Africa (1928-1982).svg Gary Player

New Zealand Golf Circuit wins (1)

No.DateTournamentWinning scoreTo parMargin of
victory
Runner-up
1Nov 21, 1971 Garden City Classic 67-70-68-64=269−235 strokes Flag of New Zealand.svg Bob Charles

Source: [5]

Other wins (1)

Results in major championships

Tournament19661967196819691970197119721973197419751976197719781979
Masters Tournament 48T556T11T26CUT
U.S. Open CUTCUTT13T29T7T45T29CUT
The Open Championship T28CUT
PGA Championship T9T7T66T48T25T22T64
  Top 10
  Did not play

CUT = missed the half-way cut
"T" indicates a tie for a place

Summary

TournamentWins2nd3rdTop-5Top-10Top-25EventsCuts made
Masters Tournament 00011265
U.S. Open 00001285
The Open Championship 00000021
PGA Championship 00002477
Totals0001482318

See also

References

  1. "Jerry Heard". Golf Major Championships. Retrieved September 22, 2025.
  2. "Lightning hits Trevino, 4 other golfers". Milwaukee Journal. June 28, 1975. p. 11. Archived from the original on April 30, 2016. Retrieved September 21, 2016.
  3. "Lightning is a big shocker for 3 golfers". Miami News. Chicago Daily News Service. June 28, 1975. p. 3B.
  4. "Jerry Heard". PGA Tour. Retrieved September 22, 2025.
  5. "Heard has five-stroke win in NZ". The Age. Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. November 22, 1971. p. 20. Retrieved December 1, 2023 via Google News Archive.