3. Davis Love III wins in style in 1997
As the 1997 PGA Championship, it was getting to the point that people were wondering if a major championship was ever in the cards for Davis Love III. He had been on the PGA Tour for more than a decade and had 10 wins to his credit there. But he had played in 38 major championships and never won, putting him in the dreaded conversation of the “best player in the world without a major”, a conversation you really don’t want to be in. Just ask Colin Montgomerie.
The son of a PGA Professional, Davis Love III had endured tragedy when his father was killed in a plane crash in 1988 and his memory was always there and perhaps never more than the 1997 PGA Championship at Winged Foot. Love had finished in the top 10 in six of his previous 11 major appearance but could never close the door. That wouldn’t be the case this time around.
Love was tied with John Daly for the lead at four-under after an opening-round 66 but fell one back of Lee Janzen heading into the weekend with a second-round 71. Love fought back nicely on a very tough scoring day and at the end of the third round, only Love and Justin Leonard, who had just won The Open Championship, were under par, both sitting at seven-under. However, Leonard made three bogeys on the front nine and Love was able to relax a bit coming in, even if that wouldn’t be easy for him.
With brother Mark on the bag, Love was admittedly nervous after hitting his approach to the 18th and only hoped that he could keep it together. Thinking of their father and the emotions that come with that, Mark told him to enjoy it and in a classy move, Love asked Leonard to join him in the walk to the green but Leonard pushed him ahead, signifying how much he wanted this for his playing partner. With a beautiful rainbow in the background, Love sank one last birdie to shoot 66 and won by five. Jim Nantz, as per usual, had the perfect call: “That’s what Love is all about.” Great stuff.
Davis Love III would never win another major but would go on to win 10 more PGA Tour events, including the 2015 Wyndham Championship at the age of 51. He has captained two Ryder Cup teams and was inducted into the World Golf Hall of Fame in 2017.