Brian Tennyson (born July 10, 1962) is a retired American professional golfer.

Brian Tennyson
Personal information
Born (1962-07-10) July 10, 1962 (age 62)[1]
Evansville, Indiana
Height5 ft 10 in (1.78 m)[1]
Weight165 lb (75 kg; 11.8 st)[1]
Sporting nationality United States
ResidenceAmelia Island, Florida
SpouseJeanne
Career
CollegeBall State University
Turned professional1984[1]
Reinstated as amateur in 2008[2]
Former tour(s)PGA Tour
Nike Tour
Asia Golf Circuit
Professional wins3
Highest ranking95 (September 23, 1990)[3]
Best results in major championships
Masters TournamentT53: 1991
PGA ChampionshipT26: 1990
U.S. OpenCUT: 1987, 1988, 1989, 1991, 1997
The Open ChampionshipDNP
Achievements and awards
Ball State University
Hall of Fame
1994

Tennyson was born in Evansville, Indiana. He played college golf at Ball State University. He was twice named as an NCAA All-American in 1982 and 1983; in 1984, the Golf Coaches Association named him an All-American. He was a three-time All-MAC golfer (1982-84) and the team MVP in 1982 and 1984. He led the Cardinals to the 1982 Conference title, he tied for first but lost in the playoff.

Tennyson turned professional in 1984. He played on the Asia Golf Circuit, winning twice in 1987. He played on the PGA Tour from 1988 to 1992. His best finishes were T-2 at the 1989 Hardee's Golf Classic and the 1990 Bob Hope Chrysler Classic.

When his golf game diminished in 1991 and 1992, Tennyson quit golf and accepted a job in October 1992 as vice president of strategic planning at Papa John's Pizza – he had been roommates with Papa John's founder, John Schnatter at Ball State. He helped take the company public in June 1993. Unhappy with a corporate job, Tennyson quit in April 1994 and decided to resume his golf career.[4] He returned to the PGA Tour in 1996 where he had one top-10 finish, T-9 at the Quad City Classic. He played on the Buy.com Tour (now Web.com Tour) from 1998 to 2000 where his best finish was second at the 1999 Nike Dayton Open.

After retiring from golf in 2001, Tennyson worked as a studio analyst at Golf Channel and Fox Sports. He also started his own business.[5] He regained his amateur status in 2008.[2]

Amateur wins

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this list may be incomplete

  • 8 intercollegiate events from 1980–84

Professional wins (3)

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Asia Golf Circuit wins (2)

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No. Date Tournament Winning score Margin of
victory
Runner(s)-up
1 22 Feb 1987 San Miguel Philippine Open E (73-71-73-71=288) 1 stroke   Chen Tze-ming
2 22 Mar 1987 Charminar Challenge Indian Open −8 (74-73-65-68=280) 3 strokes   Mike Cunning,   Jim Hallet

Other wins (1)

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this list may be incomplete

Results in major championships

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Tournament 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997
Masters Tournament T53
U.S. Open CUT CUT CUT CUT CUT
PGA Championship T27 T26 CUT

Note: Tennyson never played in The Open Championship

  Did not play

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

See also

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References

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  1. ^ a b c d "Brian Tennyson". Yahoo Sports. Retrieved September 7, 2015.
  2. ^ a b O'Shea, Kelly (September 5, 2012). "Tennyson Qualifies for Mid Amateur on a Whim". USGA.
  3. ^ "Week 38 1990 Ending 23 Sep 1990" (pdf). OWGR. Retrieved October 29, 2019.
  4. ^ Lipsky, Rick (October 17, 1994). "Second Time Around Brian Tennyson, who walked away from the PGA Tour and golf in 1992, is ready to give the sport another shot". Sports Illustrated.[permanent dead link]
  5. ^ Furlong, Lisa (April 16, 2006). "Riding Tall In The Business World – Brian Tennyson". BusinessWeek.
  6. ^ "View Image".
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