Tommy Aaron

Tommy Aaron
Tommy Aaron
Born	February 22, 1937 (age 89); Gainesville, Georgia, U.S.
Occupation	Professional golfer
Years active	1960s–1990s
Known for	Winning the 1973 Masters Tournament; involvement in 1968 Masters scoring error incident

Adapted from the English Wikipedia article Tommy Aaron, available under CC BY-SA 4.0Updated 1 December 2025

Thomas Dean Aaron (born February 22, 1937) is a retired American professional golfer who competed on the PGA Tour from the 1960s through the 1980s. He is most recognized for capturing the 1973 Masters Tournament title and for his involvement in a famous scoring mistake at the 1968 Masters Tournament, where he mistakenly recorded a 4 instead of a 3 on Roberto De Vicenzo's scorecard, which ultimately cost De Vicenzo a chance to enter a playoff.

Early life

Hailing from Gainesville, Georgia, Aaron took up golf at the age of 12. During his amateur career, he won two Georgia Amateur championships, two Southeastern Amateur titles, and two Georgia Open events.

Aaron pursued his education at the University of Florida, where he joined the Kappa Alpha Order fraternity (Beta Zeta chapter). He competed on the Florida Gators men's golf team between 1956 and 1959, helping secure the Gators' 1956 Southeastern Conference (SEC) team championship and earning individual SEC titles in both 1957 and 1958. He received All-American honors in 1958 and 1959, reached the final round of the U.S. Amateur in 1958, was selected for the 1959 Walker Cup squad, and won the Western Amateur in 1960. Aaron completed his bachelor's degree in business administration in 1960.

Professional career

Turning professional in 1960, Aaron's initial pro victory occurred at the 1969 Canadian Open, which that year was not considered a PGA Tour event. His maiden PGA Tour triumph came at the Atlanta Classic in 1970. In 1972, he claimed the title at the Trophée Lancôme in France and achieved his highest position on the PGA Tour money list by finishing ninth.

The pinnacle of Aaron's career was his triumph at the Masters Tournament in 1973. Additionally, he secured several top-ten finishes at the Masters between 1967 and 1970, along with top-ten placements at the PGA Championship in both 1965 and 1972. Impressively, at age 63, he made the cut at the Masters in 2000, surpassing a previous record held by Gary Player.

Aaron represented the United States in the Ryder Cup competitions of 1969 and 1973, compiling a record of one victory, one halved match, and four defeats.

Throughout the 1980s and 1990s, Aaron played on the Senior PGA Tour, amassing earnings totaling $3,646,302. His last professional win was recorded at the 1992 Kaanapali Classic.

He is also remembered for his association with Argentinian golfer Roberto De Vicenzo during the final round of the 1968 Masters Tournament. Aaron inadvertently marked a par 4 instead of a birdie 3 on De Vicenzo's card; since De Vicenzo signed without correcting this error, PGA regulations enforced the higher score, resulting in Bob Goalby being declared champion. Conversely, Aaron’s own scorecard was accurately maintained by his playing partner from the 1973 Masters, Johnny Miller, who noted a higher score that Aaron caught before signing.

Awards and honors

In 1969, Aaron was inducted into the University of Florida Athletic Hall of Fame as a distinguished "Gator Great."
In 1980, he gained entry into the Georgia Sports Hall of Fame.
In 1989, he was honored by induction into the Georgia Golf Hall of Fame.
In 1992, he received the Senior PGA Tour Comeback Player of the Year award.

Amateur Victories

1957 SEC individual title, Georgia Amateur Championship
1958 SEC individual title, Southeastern Amateur Championship
1959 Sunnehanna Amateur Tournament
1960 Western Amateur, Georgia Amateur Championship, Southeastern Amateur Championship

PGA Tour Victories (2)

Legend
Major championship titles (1)
Other PGA Tour wins (1)

No.	Date	Event	Final score	Victory margin	Runner-up
1	May 24, 1970	Atlanta Classic Tournament	−13 (68-68-70-69=275)	3 strokes ahead	Dan Sikes
2	April 9, 1973	Masters Tournament	−5 (68-73-74-68=283)	Won by 1 stroke	J. C. Snead

PGA Tour playoff record (0–4)

No.	Year	Event	Opponents	Outcome
1	1963	Memphis Open Invitational	Tony Lema	Defeated on first extra hole by par score
2	1963	Cleveland Open Invitational	Tony Lema, Arnold Palmer	Arnold Palmer won 18-hole playoff; Palmer: −4 (67), Aaron: −1 (70), Lema: −1 (70)
3	1972	Glen Campbell-Los Angeles Open	George Archer, Dave Hill	George Archer won 18-hole playoff; Archer: −5 (66), Aaron: −3 (68), Hill: −3 (68)
4	1972	Greater Greensboro Open	George Archer	Lost on second extra hole to par score

Additional Victories (6)

1957 Georgia Open (achieved as amateur)
1960 Georgia Open Tournament
1969 Canadian Open Championship
1972 Trophée Lancôme, ABC Japan vs USA Golf Matches
1975 Georgia Open

Senior PGA Tour Victory (1)

No.	Date	Event Name	Final score	Victory margin	Runner-up player
1	November 1, 1992 Senior PGA Tour	Kaanapali Classic	−15 (67-67-64=198)	Won by 1 stroke	Dave Stockton

Senior PGA Tour playoff record (0–2)

No.	Year	Tournament	Opponents	Result
1	1992 Senior PGA Tour	Vintage ARCO Invitational	Jim Colbert, Mike Hill	Hill secured victory with birdie on first extra hole
2	1992	Murata Reunion Pro-Am	George Archer	Lost after birdie on third extra hole

Victory (1)

Year	Championship	Position after 54 holes	Final score	Winning margin	Runner-up competitor
1973 Masters Tournament	Masters Tournament	Overcame a four-shot deficit	−5 (68-73-74-68=283)	Won by one stroke	J. C. Snead

Performance Timeline

Amateur

Tournament	1958	1959	1960
Masters Tournament	style="background:#eeeeee;"\|	CUT	T25
U.S. Open	style="background:#eeeeee;"\|	style="background:#eeeeee;"\|	style="background:#eeeeee;"\|
The Open Championship	style="background:#eeeeee;"\|	style="background:#eeeeee;"\|	style="background:#eeeeee;"\|
U.S. Amateur	style="background:yellow;" \|2nd place	style="background:yellow;" \|Round of 16	Round of 64

Professional

Tournament
Masters Tournament		T11	T13	T8	T7	T8
	T30		T40

	T21	T8	T22	T20	T26	T57

Tournament	1970 !1971 !1972 !1973 !1974 !1975 !1976 !1977 !1978 !1979
T5	T22	CUT	Champion	CUT	T38	42	T35	36	T28
T46	T55	T45	CUT	T29	T47
T50		CUT
T45	CUT	T2	T44	T55	CUT	T38	CUT	T46

Tournament !1980 !1981 !1982 !1983 !1984 !1985 !1986 !1987 !1988 !1989
CUT	48	T36	CUT	CUT	CUT	CUT	T50	CUT	T38

Tournament !1990 !1991 !1992 !1993 !1994 !1995 !1996 !1997 !1998 !1999
CUT	T49	T54	CUT	CUT		CUT	CUT	CUT	CUT

Tournament !2000 !2001 !2002 !2003 !2004 !2005
57	CUT	CUT	CUT	CUT	CUT

CUT = missed the cut after the halfway point "T" denotes a tied position

Performance in Senior Major Championships

The following results are presented without strict chronological order.

Tournament	1987	1988	1989
Senior PGA Championship		Tied 13th	Tied 27th
U.S. Senior Open	Tied 19th	Tied 32nd
The Tradition	Not yet founded	Not yet founded	Tied 22nd
Senior Players Championship	Tied 45th	Tied 54th

Tournament	1990	1991	1992	1993	1994	1995	1996	1997	1998	1999
Senior PGA Championship	Tied 55th	Tied 31st	Tied 39th	73rd place	Tied 15th	Missed cut	Tied 25th		Missed cut	Withdrew
U.S. Senior Open	Missed cut	Tied 29th	Tied 49th	Tied 13th	Tied 45th	Tied 29th	Tied 51st	Missed cut		Missed cut
The Tradition	Tied 55th	Tied 12th	4th place	Tied 17th	Tied 41st	Tied 52nd	Tied 50th	61st place
Senior Players Championship	Tied 33rd	Tied 52nd	Tied 5th	Tied 33rd	Tied 32nd	Tied 23rd	Tied 24th	76th place	Tied 73rd	Tied 48th

Tournament	2000	2001	2002	2003	2004	2005	2006
Senior PGA Championship		Missed cut	Missed cut	Tied 67th	Disqualified	Missed cut	Missed cut

Note: The Senior British Open Championship was designated as a major starting in the year 2003.

NYF = tournament not yet established
CUT = failed to make the halfway cut
WD = withdrew from event
"T" denotes a tied position

Participation in U.S. National Teams

As an Amateur

Walker Cup: Competed in the 1959 Walker Cup (team victorious)

As a Professional

Ryder Cup: Participated in the 1969 Ryder Cup (match tied, United States retained cup), and the 1973 Ryder Cup (team won)

External links