J. C. Snead

J. C. Snead
J. C. Snead
Personal information
Full name	Jesse Carlyle Snead
Born	October 14, 1940; Hot Springs, Virginia, U.S.
Died	April 25, 2025 (aged 84); Hot Springs, Virginia, U.S.
Height	6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)
Weight	215 lb (98 kg; 15.4 st)
Sporting nationality	United States
Career
College	East Tennessee State University
Turned professional	1964
Former tour(s)	Champions Tour, PGA Tour
Professional wins	16
Number of wins by tour
PGA Tour	8
PGA Tour of Australasia	1
PGA Tour Champions	4
Other	3
Best results in major championships;
Masters Tournament	2nd: 1973
PGA Championship	T3: 1973
U.S. Open	T2: 1978
The Open Championship	DNP

Jesse Carlyle Snead (October 14, 1940 – April 25, 2025) was an American professional golfer who won tournaments on both the PGA Tour and Champions Tour. Snead was the nephew of hall of famer Sam Snead.^[1]^[2]

Early life

Snead, who preferred that people called him JC and whom his Uncle Sam called by his middle name, Carlyle,^[3] was born in Hot Springs, Virginia, where his father worked at The Homestead resort.^[4] He attended East Tennessee State University in Johnson City, Tennessee, where he was a member of Sigma Phi Epsilon fraternity. He played pro baseball in the Washington Senators farm system before becoming a professional golfer in 1964. He joined the PGA Tour in 1968.^[2]

Professional career

PGA Tour

Snead won eight tournaments on the PGA Tour and one in international competition. He was a member of the 1971, 1973, and 1975 Ryder Cup teams. Snead's biggest career disappointment was that he never won a major championship on the PGA Tour; however, he made his career mark as one of the tour's most consistent players, with more than seven million dollars in career earnings.^[2] Snead recorded two runner-up finishes in majors: 2nd at 1973 Masters Tournament and a tie for 2nd with Dave Stockton at the 1978 U.S. Open.^[5] He was also twice runner-up in The Players Championship, in 1974 and 1976, behind Jack Nicklaus on both occasions.

Senior career

Playing on the PGA Champions Tour, Snead got his revenge on Nicklaus, by beating him in a playoff for the 1995 Senior Players Championship, a senior major championship. From 1993 to 2002, Snead won four times on the Champions Tour,

Awards, honors

In 2003, Snead was inducted into the Virginia Sports Hall of Fame.

Prtivat life, death

In his free time, Snead enjoyed hunting and farming. He had one son, Jason. He resided full time in Hot Springs and part-time in Hobe Sound, Florida.

Snead died of cancer on April 25, 2025, in Hot Springs at the age of 84.^[6]

Professional wins (15)

PGA Tour wins (8)

No.	Date	Tournament	Winning score	Margin of victory	Runner(s)-up
1	Feb 21, 1971	Tucson Open Invitational	−15 (66-71-70-66=273)	1 stroke	Dale Douglass
2	Mar 7, 1971	Doral-Eastern Open Invitational	−13 (70-70-66-69=275)	1 stroke	Gardner Dickinson
3	Jun 11, 1972	IVB-Philadelphia Golf Classic	−6 (70-71-69-72=282)	1 stroke	Chi-Chi Rodríguez
4	Feb 16, 1975	Andy Williams-San Diego Open Invitational	−9 (69-71-71-68=279)	Playoff	Raymond Floyd, Bobby Nichols
5	Feb 15, 1976	Andy Williams-San Diego Open Invitational (2)	−16 (65-68-67-72=272)	1 stroke	Don Bies
6	Sep 26, 1976	Kaiser International Open Invitational	−14 (66-70-70-68=274)	2 strokes	Gibby Gilbert, Johnny Miller
7	Oct 11, 1981	Southern Open	−9 (67-68-70-66=271)	Playoff	Mike Sullivan
8	Jun 14, 1987	Manufacturers Hanover Westchester Classic	−8 (71-70-65-70=276)	Playoff	Seve Ballesteros

PGA Tour playoff record (3–1)

No.	Year	Tournament	Opponent(s)	Result
1	1971	Greater Hartford Open	George Archer, Lou Graham	Archer won with birdie on first extra hole
2	1975	Andy Williams-San Diego Open Invitational	Raymond Floyd, Bobby Nichols	Won with birdie on fourth extra hole Nichols eliminated by par on first hole
3	1981	Southern Open	Mike Sullivan	Won with par on second extra hole
4	1987	Manufacturers Hanover Westchester Classic	Seve Ballesteros	Won with par on first extra hole

PGA Tour of Australasia wins (1)

No.	Date	Tournament	Winning score	Margin of victory	Runner-up
1	Oct 28, 1973	Qantas Australian Open	−8 (70-70-69-71=280)	2 strokes	Jerry Breaux

Other wins (1)

No.	Date	Tournament	Winning score	Margin of victory	Runner-up
1	Jul 29, 1980	Jerry Ford Invitational	−5 (66-71=137)	Shared title with Hubert Green

Senior PGA Tour wins (4)

Legend
Senior PGA Tour major championships (1)
Other Senior PGA Tour (3)

No.	Date	Tournament	Winning score	Margin of victory	Runner(s)-up
1	Mar 14, 1993	Vantage at The Dominion	−2 (71-73-70=214)	1 stroke	Bobby Nichols, Gary Player
2	Feb 5, 1995	Royal Caribbean Classic	−4 (69-75-65=209)	Playoff	Raymond Floyd
3	Jul 16, 1995	Ford Senior Players Championship	−16 (69-68-66-69=272)	Playoff	Jack Nicklaus
4	Jun 23, 2002	Greater Baltimore Classic	−13 (69-64-70=203)	1 stroke	John Mahaffey, Doug Tewell, Bobby Wadkins

Senior PGA Tour playoff record (2–3)

No.	Year	Tournament	Opponent(s)	Result
1	1991	Bank One Classic	DeWitt Weaver	Lost to birdie on second extra hole
2	1992	Kroger Senior Classic	Gibby Gilbert	Lost to par on second extra hole
3	1995	Royal Caribbean Classic	Raymond Floyd	Won with par on first extra hole
4	1995	Ford Senior Players Championship	Jack Nicklaus	Won with birdie on first extra hole
5	2000	LiquidGolf.com Invitational	Gary McCord, Tom Wargo	Wargo won with birdie on third extra hole Snead eliminated by par on first hole

Other senior wins (2)

2011 Liberty Mutual Legends of Golf – Demaret Division (with Gibby Gilbert)
2012 Liberty Mutual Legends of Golf – Demaret Division (with Gibby Gilbert)

Results in major championships

Tournament	1969	1970	1971	1972	1973	1974	1975	1976	1977	1978	1979
Masters Tournament				30	2	T26	T10	T43	T39		22
U.S. Open	CUT	CUT	CUT	CUT	CUT	T21	T49	T14	T27	T2	CUT
PGA Championship			CUT	T20	T3	T24	T28	T15	T19		CUT

Tournament	1980	1981	1982	1983	1984	1986	1987	1988
Masters Tournament	T14	CUT	DQ	T12	CUT			CUT
U.S. Open	T22	T33	T15	T43
PGA Championship	T50	15	CUT	CUT	CUT	72	CUT

Note: Snead never played in The Open Championship.

Top 10

Did not play

CUT = missed the half-way cut
DQ = disqualified
"T" indicates a tie for a place

Summary

Tournament	2nd	3rd	Top-5	Top-10	Top-25	Events	Cuts made
Masters Tournament	1	0	1	2	5	13	9
U.S. Open	1	0	1	1	5	15	9
The Open Championship	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
PGA Championship	0	1	1	1	6	15	9
Totals	2	1	3	4	16	43	27

Most consecutive cuts made – 14 (1973 PGA – 1979 Masters)
Longest streak of top-10s – 1 (four times)

Results in The Players Championship

Tournament	1974	1975	1976	1977	1978	1979	1980	1981	1982	1983	1984	1985	1986	1987	1988	1989	1990
The Players Championship	2	T34	2	T13	T71	CUT	T31	WD	T13	T32	CUT	T17	T67	CUT	CUT	CUT	T46

Top 10

CUT = missed the halfway cut
WD = withdrew
"T" indicates a tie for a place

Champions Tour major championships

Wins (1)

Year	Championship	Winning score	Margin	Runner-up
1995	Ford Senior Players Championship	−16 (69-68-66-69=272)	Playoff¹	Jack Nicklaus

¹ Won with birdie on the first playoff hole.

U.S. national team appearances

Professional

Ryder Cup: 1971 (winners), 1973 (winners), 1975 (winners)

References

^ "Sam's nephew takes charge in Doral golf". Lawrence Daily Journal-World. (Kansas). Associated Press. March 8, 1971. p. 14.
^ ^a ^b ^c "Virginia Sports Hall of Fame Inductees Class of 2003". Archived from the original on November 30, 2010. Retrieved March 15, 2010.
^ Hill, Dave; Seitz, Nick (1977). Teed Off. Prentice-Hall. p. 157.
^ Herskowitz, Mickey (September 1984). "Least popular tour pro, or did we all get him wrong?". Golf Digest. Retrieved May 11, 2020.
^ "Golf Major Championships".
^ "Eight-time PGA Tour winner J.C. Snead dies at age 84". PGA Tour. April 26, 2025. Retrieved April 26, 2025.

External links

J. C. Snead at the PGA Tour official site
J. C. Snead at the Official World Golf Ranking official site

Career statistics from Baseball Reference (Minors)

[snptch-1] "Sam's nephew takes charge in Doral golf". Lawrence Daily Journal-World. (Kansas). Associated Press. March 8, 1971. p. 14.

[vshf-2] "Virginia Sports Hall of Fame Inductees Class of 2003". Archived from the original on November 30, 2010. Retrieved March 15, 2010.

[3] Hill, Dave; Seitz, Nick (1977). Teed Off. Prentice-Hall. p. 157.

[4] Herskowitz, Mickey (September 1984). "Least popular tour pro, or did we all get him wrong?". Golf Digest. Retrieved May 11, 2020.

[5] "Golf Major Championships".

[6] "Eight-time PGA Tour winner J.C. Snead dies at age 84". PGA Tour. April 26, 2025. Retrieved April 26, 2025.

[1]

[2]

[3]

[4]

[5]

[6]