Ben Crenshaw is a retired American professional golfer….who has won 19 events on the PGA Tour….which includes two major championships…..after winning the Masters Tournament in 1984 and 1995. Crenshaw was born in Austin, Texas….and attended and played golf at Austin High School and the University of Texas….where he won three NCAA Championships from 1971 to 1973. He turned professional in 1973….and became the second player in Tour history to win the first event of his career …..as this accomplishment was achieved earlier by Marty Fleckman in 1967…..and later repeated by Jim Benepe in 1988, Robert Gamez in 1990, Garrett Willis in 2001 and Russell Henley in 2013. Following five runner-up finishes in major championships without a victory….which included losing a sudden-death playoff for the 1979 PGA Championship….he finally won the 1984 Masters.
In the mid-1980’s, he suffered from Graves’ disease….which is a disease of the thyroid….but he continued to accumulate victories…..while finishing with 19 on the PGA Tour….which included an emotional second Masters victory in 1995….which came a week after the death of his mentor Harvey Penick.
This video of Gentle Ben, as he was known on the tour, holds a special place in our hearts here at ImaSportsphile…..cuz our Bone Daddy, the original Sportsphile, went to the University of Texas at the same time a Crenshaw….and saw him, along with his teammate Tom Kite, win the NCAA Tournament in 1971…..while being a huge fan of Gentle Ben throughout his career…..for he is a Home Boy around these parts.
