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George Bayer
George Bayer
Personal information
Born	September 15, 1925; Bremerton, Washington, U.S.
Died	March 16, 2003 (aged 77); Palm Springs, California, U.S.
Height	6 ft 5 in (1.96 m)
Weight	230 lb (100 kg; 16 st)
Sporting nationality	United States
Career
College	Washington
Turned professional	1954
Former tour(s)	PGA Tour; Champions Tour
Professional wins	6
Number of wins by tour
PGA Tour	4
Other	1 (regular); 1 (senior)
Best results in major championships;
Masters Tournament	T15: 1965
PGA Championship	T3: 1962
U.S. Open	T11: 1964
The Open Championship	DNP

George Bayer (September 15, 1925 – March 16, 2003) was an American professional golfer who played on the PGA Tour and the Senior PGA Tour.

Bayer was born in Bremerton, Washington.^[1] He attended the University of Washington and was a member of the football team from 1946–1949; he played in the 1949 East-West Shrine Game.^[2]^[3] After college, he was drafted by the Washington Redskins in the 20th round (253rd overall). He was released by the Redskins and played for the Brooklyn Brooks and Richmond Arrows of the minor league American Football League in 1950.^[4] Bayer did not begin playing golf professionally until he was 29 years old; he started in golf as a caddie at Kitsap Golf and Country Club, which is located between Silverdale, Washington and his hometown of Bremerton.^[2]

At 6-foot-5-inches tall and 230 pounds, the power that Bayer could generate was astonishing. He was known for booming 300-yard drives.^[4] Bayer won four times on the PGA Tour in a four-year period made remarkable by the fact that he played in an era of inconsistently wound balls; and laminated maple or persimmon clubs that were made for players of average height (5'9" tall) and build (160 pounds). His achievements came in an era when golf equipment was simply not available for extremely tall or extremely short people.^[5] He also won the par-3 contest at the Masters Tournament in 1963.

Bayer also played on the Senior PGA Tour. His best year on that circuit was 1984, when he finished 21st on the money list with $64,491 in earnings. His last appearance in competitive golf was at the 2002 Liberty Mutual Legends of Golf. Bayer suffered a fatal heart attack at home in Palm Springs, California while dining with his wife, golfer Bob Goalby and Goalby's wife.^[2]

Professional wins (6)

PGA Tour wins (4)

No.	Date	Tournament	Winning score	Margin of victory	Runner-up
1	Jul 13, 1957	Canadian Open	−13 (70-68-64-69=271)	2 strokes	Bo Wininger
2	Nov 16, 1958	Havana International	+6 (75-64-74-73=286)	Playoff	Sam Snead
3	Dec 14, 1958	Mayfair Inn Open	−12 (68-67-69-68=272)	1 stroke	Chick Harbert
4	Mar 21, 1960	St. Petersburg Open Invitational	−6 (66-69-75-72=282)	Playoff	Jack Fleck

PGA Tour playoff record (2–2)

No.	Year	Tournament	Opponent(s)	Result
1	1957	Western Open	Doug Ford, Gene Littler, Billy Maxwell	Ford won with par on third extra hole Littler and Maxwell eliminated by par on first hole
2	1958	Havana International	Sam Snead	Won with par on first extra hole
3	1960	St. Petersburg Open Invitational	Jack Fleck	Won with birdie on first extra hole
4	1961	Ontario Open	Eric Monti, Bobby Nichols	Monti won with birdie on second extra hole