James R. Turnesa (December 9, 1912 – August 27, 1971) was an American professional golfer and winner of the 1952 PGA Championship, beating Chick Harbert 1-up in the match-play final.[1] He was one of seven famous golfing brothers; Phil (1896–1987), Frank (1898–1949), Joe (1901–1991), Mike (1907–2000), Doug (1909–1972), Jim (1912–1971), and Willie (1914–2001). The family was referred to as a "golf dynasty" in a 2000 New York Times article.[2]
| Jim Turnesa | |
|---|---|
 Turnesa in 1936 | |
| Personal information | |
| Full name | James R. Turnesa |
| Born | December 9, 1912 New York, New York, U.S. |
| Died | August 27, 1971 (aged 58) Elmsford, New York, U.S. |
| Sporting nationality |  United States |
| Career | |
| Turned professional | 1931 |
| Former tour(s) | PGA Tour |
| Professional wins | 11 |
| Number of wins by tour | |
| PGA Tour | 2 |
| Other | 9 |
| Best results in major championships (wins: 1) | |
| Masters Tournament | T4: 1949 |
| PGA Championship | Won: 1952 |
| U.S. Open | 3rd: 1948 |
| The Open Championship | T5: 1954 |
Career
editTurnesa was born in Elmsford, New York, one of seven brothers who became prominent in the golfing world: Phil (1896–1987), Frank (1898–1949), Joe (1901–1991), Mike (1907–2000), Doug (1909–1972), Jim (1912–1971), and Willie (1914–2001). All but Willie turned professional[3] and Jim was the only one to win a major championship.
The Turnesa brothers were well known for their prowess on the links and they started out as caddies before competing in tournaments.[4] Jim's father Vitale was a head greenskeeper at Fairview Country Club. It was at Fairview that Jim and his brothers would apprentice under the head pro John R. Inglis.[5][6] So famous did they become as a dynasty of the sport that RKO Pictures filmed a newsreel about them in 1938 labeling the clip "The Golfing Brothers."[7]
Turnesa faced and lost to Sam Snead in the 1942 PGA Championship final. In 1948, he held the record for low score (280) in the U.S. Open for about an hour. Ben Hogan (276) and Jimmy Demaret (278) finished later, erasing his record, and he finished third. He won one other PGA Tour event, the 1951 Reading Open.[8]
He was a frequent participant in Westchester member-pro events beating out a duo that included Gene Sarazen in 1947 at a Knollwood Country Club best ball tournament.[9]
Turnesa played on the 1953 Ryder Cup team.
After serving as pro at Briar Hall and Empire State course, he was named the head pro at Ryewood Country Club in 1959 and continued there in the early 1960s.[10]
Personal life
editHe died in his home town of lung cancer.[11]
Professional wins (11)
editPGA Tour wins (2)
edit- 1951 Reading Open
- 1952 PGA Championship
Major championship is shown in bold.
Source:[12]
Other wins (9)
edit- Note: This list may be incomplete.
- 1937 Rhode Island Open
- 1946 Westchester PGA Championship
- 1947 North and South Open
- 1950 Havana Invitational
- 1956 Westchester PGA Championship
- 1959 Metropolitan Open
- 1960 Haig & Haig Scotch Foursome (with Gloria Armstrong)
- 1964 Westchester PGA Championship
- 1968 Long Island PGA Championship
Major championships
editWins (1)
edit| Year | Championship | Winning score | Runner-up |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1952 | PGA Championship | 1 up |  Chick Harbert
|
Note: The PGA Championship was match play until 1958
Results timeline
edit| Tournament | 1937 | 1938 | 1939 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Masters Tournament | |||
| U.S. Open | T50 | CUT | T32 |
| The Open Championship | |||
| PGA Championship |
| Tournament | 1940 | 1941 | 1942 | 1943 | 1944 | 1945 | 1946 | 1947 | 1948 | 1949 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Masters Tournament | NT | NT | NT | T37 | T44 | T4 | ||||
| U.S. Open | CUT | T33 | NT | NT | NT | NT | T39 | 3 | T4 | |
| The Open Championship | NT | NT | NT | NT | NT | NT | ||||
| PGA Championship | 2 | NT | R16 | QF | R16 | R64 | R16 |
| Tournament | 1950 | 1951 | 1952 | 1953 | 1954 | 1955 | 1956 | 1957 | 1958 | 1959 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Masters Tournament | T46 | T27 | T60 | 48 | T22 | CUT | T35 | CUT | ||
| U.S. Open | T38 | T17 | T33 | CUT | CUT | |||||
| The Open Championship | T5 | |||||||||
| PGA Championship | R32 | 1 | R32 | R64 | R16 | R128 | CUT | T38 |
| Tournament | 1960 | 1961 | 1962 | 1963 | 1964 | 1965 | 1966 | 1967 | 1968 | 1969 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Masters Tournament | T39 | CUT | CUT | |||||||
| U.S. Open | T46 | CUT | CUT | |||||||
| The Open Championship | ||||||||||
| PGA Championship | T32 | CUT | CUT | CUT | T62 | CUT | CUT | CUT | T76 |
NT = no tournament
CUT = missed the half-way cut
R128, R64, R32, R16, QF, SF = round in which player lost in PGA Championship match play
"T" indicates a tie for a place
Summary
edit| Tournament | Wins | 2nd | 3rd | Top-5 | Top-10 | Top-25 | Events | Cuts made |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Masters Tournament | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 14 | 10 |
| U.S. Open | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 3 | 16 | 10 |
| The Open Championship | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| PGA Championship | 1 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 7 | 9 | 23 | 16 |
| Totals | 1 | 1 | 1 | 7 | 11 | 15 | 54 | 37 |
- Most consecutive cuts made – 27 (1941 U.S. Open – 1956 PGA)
- Longest streak of top-10s – 3 (1949 Masters – 1949 PGA)
U.S. national team appearances
editProfessional
- Ryder Cup: 1953 (winners)
- Canada Cup: 1953
- Lakes International Cup: 1952 (winners)
- Hopkins Trophy: 1953 (winners)
See also
editReferences
edit- ^ "PGA Championship Media Guide". Archived from the original on January 23, 2013.
- ^ Kilgannon, Corey (December 3, 2000). "Recalling a Golf Dynasty: Elmsford's Turnesa Family". The New York Times. Retrieved March 23, 2022.
- ^ "Jim Turnesa Named Head Pro at Ryewood". The Daily Times. Mamaroneck, New York. December 15, 1959. p. 20 – via newspapers.com.
- ^ "Jim Turnesa Seeks Honors in Midget Golf". The Daily Item. Port Chester, New York. December 9, 1930. p. 14 – via newspapers.com.
- ^ "Club History". Fairview Country Club. Retrieved December 13, 2021.
- ^ "John R. Inglis 'It's Been A Long And Joyful Life'". Sports Illustrated. Retrieved December 13, 2021.
- ^ Kilgannon, Corey (June 21, 2001). "Willie Turnesa, Last Brother In Golfing Family, Dies at 87". The New York Times.
- ^ "Miscellaneous PGA Tour records (wins by brothers)". Archived from the original on December 25, 2005. Retrieved December 24, 2006.
- ^ "Turnesa Duo Links Victors". The Daily Argus. Mount Vernon, NY. September 29, 1947.
- ^ "Pro Golf's Royal Family". The Daily News. Port Chester, New York. September 26, 1961. p. 25 – via newspapers.com.
- ^ "Jim Turnesa, Former PGA Champ Dies". The Morning Record. Meriden, Connecticut. Associated Press. August 28, 1971. p. 5 – via Google News Archive.
- ^ "Jim Turnesa". PGA Tour. Retrieved December 18, 2024.