Harper, Chandler
Golf
b. March 10, 1914, Portsmouth, VA
When Harper was hot, he was very, very hot. He used only twenty putts over one eighteen-hole round when he won the Tucson Open in 1950. And he shot a PGA record of 189 for the last fifty-four holes to win the 1954 Texas Open.
Harper won the Virginia Amateur in 1930, 1932, and 1933, the Virginia Open in 1932 and 1941 before joining the pro tour after World War II. He won the 1950 PGA Championship, and he was also Virginia Open champion again in 1952 and 1960.
His most famous tournament, though, was probably his heart-breaking loss in the 1953 "World Championship," then the biggest money event on the tour. Harper was in the clubhouse with a comfortable two-shot lead over Lew Worsham, who had just one hole to play. But Worsham holed a wedge shot for an eagle on that final hole to win the $25,000 first prize.