Al Watrous

Albert Andrew Watrous was an American professional golfer who played on the PGA Tour in the 1920s and 1930s.

Early life

Watrous was born in Yonkers, New York, of Polish descent. He moved to Michigan at an early age.

Professional career

Watrous played on the first two Ryder Cup teams in 1927 and 1929. Watrous was the club pro at Oakland Hills Country Club in Bloomfield Hills, Michigan, for 37 years. Watrous had tremendous success in Michigan events, winning the Michigan PGA Championship nine times and the Michigan Open six times.
Watrous never won a major championship, but came very close in the 1926 Open Championship at Royal Lytham & St Annes Golf Club. Playing with Bobby Jones in the final round, and tied with him, Watrous hit the green in two shots on the difficult par-4 17th hole, with Jones in trouble after his tee shot finished in sandy dunes and tall grass far left of the fairway. But from this very difficult position, Jones hit one of the greatest recovery shots in golf history from 175 yards, as his ball finished on the green nearer than Watrous', who three-putted, and finished second to Jones.
Watrous had much success as a senior. He won the PGA Seniors Championship three times after he turned 50.

Death

Watrous died on December 3, 1983, in Royal Oak, Michigan.

Awards and honors

On June 14, 1979, Watrous was inducted into the National Polish-American Sports Hall of Fame and Museum
In 1982, he was inducted with the charter class at the Michigan Golf Hall of Fame
A collegiate golf tournament named in his honor, the Al Watrous Memorial Intercollegiate Invitational, was first played in 2009.
Professional wins

PGA Tour wins (8)

1922 Canadian Open
1925 South Central Open, Corpus Christi Open
1927 Michigan Open
1929 Michigan Open
1932 Mid-South Open, Mid-South Bestball
1933 Lakeland Open

Sources:

Other wins

1922 Michigan PGA Championship
1924 Michigan PGA Championship
1926 Michigan Open
1930 Michigan Open
1932 Michigan PGA Championship
1936 Michigan PGA Championship
1938 Michigan PGA Championship
1939 Michigan PGA Championship
1941 Michigan PGA Championship
1943 Michigan Open
1949 Michigan Open
1952 Michigan PGA Championship
1954 Michigan PGA Championship
Senior wins
1950 PGA Seniors' Championship
1951 PGA Seniors' Championship
1953 Michigan PGA Senior Championship
1954 Michigan PGA Senior Championship
1956 Michigan PGA Senior Championship
1957 PGA Seniors' Championship, Michigan PGA Senior Championship, World Senior Championship
1961 Michigan PGA Senior Championship
Results in major championships

Tournament	1930	1931	1932	1933	1934	1935	1936	1937	1938	1939
Masters Tournament	NYF	NYF	NYF	NYF	T11	34	T29	7	T27	25
U.S. Open	T17	T15	T35	T13	T14	T33	T32	CUT
The Open Championship
PGA Championship	R16		R32		QF	SF		R32		R16

Tournament	1940	1941	1942	1943	1944	1945	1946	1947	1948	1949
Masters Tournament	T21	32		NT	NT	NT	T32
U.S. Open	CUT	52	NT	NT	NT	NT	T43
The Open Championship	NT	NT	NT	NT	NT	NT
PGA Championship	R32			NT				R64	R64

Tournament	1950	1951	1952	1953	1954	1955	1956	1957	1958	1959
Masters Tournament
U.S. Open		T35
The Open Championship					T42
PGA Championship	R32			R64		R64		R64

Tournament	1960	1961
Masters Tournament
U.S. Open		CUT
The Open Championship
PGA Championship		CUT

NYF = tournament not yet founded
NT = no tournament
WD = withdrew
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 – 23
Longest streak of top-10s – 2