Jeff Mitchell (golfer)

Jeff Mitchell
Personal information
Born (1954-08-09) August 9, 1954 (age 70)
Rockford, Illinois
Height6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)
Weight190 lb (86 kg; 14 st)
Sporting nationality United States
Career
CollegeTexas Tech University
Turned professional1976
Former tour(s)PGA Tour
Professional wins2
Number of wins by tour
PGA Tour1
Best results in major championships
Masters TournamentT38: 1980
PGA ChampionshipT65: 1982
U.S. Open59th: 1980
The Open ChampionshipDNP

Jeff Mitchell (born August 9, 1954) is an American professional golfer who played on the PGA Tour in the 1970s and 1980s. He has also been a head coach in various college men's and women's golf programs.

Mitchell was born in Rockford, Illinois. He attended Texas Tech University in Lubbock, Texas and was a member of the golf team. While a student at Texas Tech, he won the 1975 and 1976 West Texas Championships. Mitchell turned pro and joined the PGA Tour in 1976.

Mitchell was a full-time member of the PGA Tour from 1977–1984. His career year was 1980 when he won[1] the Phoenix Open by four strokes over Rik Massengale after having to Monday qualify, earned $111,217, and finished 37th on the money list. That year he was also first round co-leader[2] at The Masters; he ended the tournament at T38, which was his best finish in a major championship.[3] Mitchell had a dozen top-10 finishes in PGA Tour events during his career.

After retiring as a touring professional in the mid-1980s, Mitchell took various club pro jobs in Texas and Florida before returning to Texas Tech to complete his degree and earn his teaching certificate. Mitchell was men's head golf coach at Stanford University for four years prior to resigning in June 2004. Before that, he was head of women's golf at Texas Tech for 10 years; his last three years at Texas Tech he headed both the men's and women's programs. He was inducted into the Texas Tech University Hall of Fame in 2000.

Mitchell was a contestant on The Big Break VI: Trump National, the sixth edition of The Golf Channel's reality show, The Big Break.

Mitchell was the women's golf coach at the University of North Texas from 2008 to September 2015.

Amateur wins

  • 1975 West Texas Championship
  • 1976 West Texas Championship

Professional wins (2)

PGA Tour wins (1)

No. Date Tournament Winning score Margin of
victory
Runner-up
1 Jan 20, 1980 Phoenix Open −16 (69-67-69-67=272) 4 strokes United States Rik Massengale

Other wins (1)

Results in major championships

Tournament 1980 1981 1982
Masters Tournament T38
U.S. Open 59
PGA Championship CUT T65

Note: Mitchell never played in The Open Championship.

  Did not play

CUT = missed the half-way cut
"T" = tied

See also

References

  1. ^ Mitchell wins at Phoenix, Sullivan third
  2. ^ Young Mitchell's 66 ties for Masters top
  3. ^ "Golf Major Championships".