Al Espinosa


Abel Ruben "Al" Espinosa was an American professional golfer.

Early life

Espinosa was born on March 24, 1891, in Monterey, California. He was of Mexican American descent. His brother, Abe Espinosa, also became a professional golfer.
Espinosa served in the U.S. Army in World War I.

Professional career

Espinosa won eight times on the PGA Tour in the 1920s and 1930s. He was on the Ryder Cup teams in 1927, 1929, and 1931. He lost to Leo Diegel in the PGA Championship finals in 1928. He tied with Bobby Jones in the U.S. Open in 1929 at Winged Foot, but lost by 23 strokes in the 36-hole playoff. He won the Mexican Open four times.
Espinosa served as the Head Professional at Portage Country Club in Akron, Ohio from 1931 through 1944. During his tenure at Portage he won the Ohio Open three times: in 1932, 1933, and 1936. While head pro at Portage Country Club in Akron, Ohio, in the early 1940s, Espinosa hired as his assistant future Masters champion Herman Keiser.

Personal life

In 1957, Espinosa died of cancer at age 65 in San Francisco. and is buried at San Carlos Cemetery in Monterey.

Awards and honors

In 1957, Espinosa was inducted into the Summit County Sports Hall of Fame.

Professional wins (20)

PGA Tour wins (8)

Source:

Other wins (12)

this list may be incomplete
Tournament19301931193219331934193519361937193819391940
Masters TournamentNYFNYFNYFNYFT7T17T15T29
U.S. OpenT35T10CUTCUTT21T28CUTT32T43
The Open ChampionshipNT
PGA ChampionshipQFR32R16R32R64

NYF = tournament not yet founded
NT = no tournament
CUT = missed the half-way cut
R64, R32, R16, QF, SF = round in which player lost in PGA Championship match play
"T" indicates a tie for a place

Summary

  • Most consecutive cuts made – 16
  • Longest streak of top-10s – 3