Pete Cooper (golfer)

Pete Cooper
Personal information
Full nameRichard Bernice Cooper
Born(1914-12-31)December 31, 1914
DiedOctober 8, 1993(1993-10-08) (aged 78)
Sporting nationality United States
Career
Turned professional1938
Former tour(s)PGA Tour
Champions Tour
Professional wins23
Number of wins by tour
PGA Tour5
Other17 (regular)
1 (senior)
Best results in major championships
Masters TournamentT12: 1956
PGA ChampionshipT9: 1953
U.S. OpenT4: 1953
The Open ChampionshipCUT: 1976

Richard Bernice "Pete" Cooper (December 31, 1914 – October 8, 1993) was an American professional golfer on the PGA Tour in the 1940s and 1950s; he was best known for winning the 1976 PGA Seniors' Championship.

Cooper turned professional in 1938. In the ten-year span between 1949 and 1958, he won five official PGA Tour events and had runner-up finishes in the 1950 Houston Open and the 1955 Tournament of Champions. His best finish in a major was T4 at the 1953 U.S. Open.[1] He helped a young Chi-Chi Rodríguez improve enough to secure a spot on the PGA Tour.

Cooper won the 1976 PGA Seniors' Championship at the age of 61 with a four-day total of 283 over runner-up Fred Wampler. The tournament was held at Walt Disney World in Orlando, Florida.

Cooper lived in Lakeland, Florida, where he owned the Par 3 and Lone Palm Golf Club. He was also active in golf course design.

  1. ^ "Golf Major Championships". Retrieved January 15, 2008.