Bill Mehlhorn

Bill Mehlhorn
— Golfer —
Personal information
Full name	William Earl Mehlhorn
Nickname	Wild Bill
Born	(1898-12-02)December 2, 1898 Elgin, Illinois
Died	Miami, Florida
Nationality	United States
Spouse	Velva Ivo (aka Virginia Raye)
Children	Carol, Janet, Katherine, Patricia
Career
Turned professional	1920
Former tour(s)	PGA Tour
Professional wins	22
Number of wins by tour
PGA Tour	20
Best results in major championships
Masters Tournament	T33: 1937
U.S. Open	3rd/T3: 1924, 1926
The Open Championship	T8: 1926
PGA Championship	2nd: 1925

William Earl Mehlhorn (December 2, 1898 – April 5, 1989) was an American professional golfer who played on the PGA Tour in its early days, and was at his best in the 1920s.

Mehlhorn was born in Elgin, Illinois and lived a majority of his life in Seaford, New York when not traveling. He often wore cowboy hats on the course and was nicknamed "Wild Bill." He won 20 times on the PGA Tour, but did not win a major championship. Only a handful of golfers have won more often on the PGA Tour without claiming a major. He finished 14 times in the top-10 at majors. His best finish was runner-up to Walter Hagen at the PGA Championship in 1925. Mehlhorn competed on the first Ryder Cup team in 1927 as well as the inaugural Masters Tournament in 1934. He was a gallery favorite because of his uncanny accuracy from tee to green, but his game was undermined by problems with putting: the yips.

Mehlhorn also designed and plotted several golf courses across the country, including Pensacola, Florida's Osceola Golf Course.

Mehlhorn retired and moved to Miami, Florida with his family, where he coached golf at Florida International University with Bobby Shave during his later years. Mehlhorn and Shave wrote the book, Golf Secrets Exposed, in the early 1980s to summarize Mehlhorn's golf secrets and insight. Two versions of the book have been published since Mehlhorn's death.

Professional wins

PGA Tour wins (20)

• 1923 (2) Texas Open, Oklahoma Open
• 1924 (1) Western Open
• 1926 (5) Long Beach Open, South Central Open, South Florida Open Championship, Santa Clara Valley Open, San Jose Open
• 1927 (1) San Jose Open
• 1928 (6) Long Beach Open (January; tie with Leo Diegel), Texas Open, Richmond Open, Montauk Open, Westchester Open, Hawaiian Open
• 1929 (4) El Paso Open, Texas Open, South Central Open, Metropolitan Open
• 1930 (1) La Gorce Open

Other wins

• 1924 Miami International Four-Ball (with Macdonald Smith)
• 1926 Miami International Four-Ball (with Macdonald Smith)

Results in major championships

Tournament	1919	1920	1921	1922	1923	1924	1925	1926	1927	1928	1929
U.S. Open	WD	T27	DNP	4	T8	3	T15	T3	5	T49	T55
The Open Championship	NT	DNP	T16	DNP	DNP	DNP	DNP	T8	CUT	T9	T36
PGA Championship	R32	R16	DNP	DNP	DNP	R32	2	DNP	R32	R32	R16

Tournament	1930	1931	1932	1933	1934	1935	1936	1937
Masters Tournament	NYF	NYF	NYF	NYF	WD	T35	DNP	T33
U.S. Open	T9	T4	T35	DNP	T37	DNP	DNP	T50
The Open Championship	DNP	DNP	DNP	DNP	DNP	DNP	DNP	DNP
PGA Championship	R32	R16	DNP	DNP	R32	DNP	SF	R64

NYF = Tournament not yet founded
NT = No tournament
DNP = Did not play
WD = Withdrew
CUT = missed the half-way cut
R64, R32, R16, QF, SF = Round in which player lost in PGA Championship match play
"T" indicates a tie for a place
Yellow background for top-10

Summary

Tournament	Wins	2nd	3rd	Top-5	Top-10	Top-25	Events	Cuts made
Masters Tournament	0	0	0	0	0	0	3	2
U.S. Open	0	0	2	5	7	8	15	14
The Open Championship	0	0	0	0	2	3	5	4
PGA Championship	0	1	1	2	5	11	12	12
Totals	0	1	3	7	14	22	35	32

• Most consecutive cuts made – 13 (1919 PGA – 1927 U.S. Open)
• Longest streak of top-10s – 4 (1925 PGA – 1927 U.S. Open)

See also

• List of golfers with most PGA Tour wins

External links

• Golf with Mehlhorn