Editing Byron Nelson (section)

{{short description|American professional golfer (1912–2006)}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=July 2024}}
{{Infobox golfer
| name              = Byron Nelson
| image             = Byron Nelson by Acme, 1944.jpg
| caption           = Byron Nelson, {{circa|1944}}
| fullname          = John Byron Nelson Jr.
| nickname          = Lord Byron
| birth_date        = {{birth date|1912|2|4}}
| birth_place       = [[Waxahachie, Texas]], U.S.
| death_date        = {{death date and age|2006|9|26|1912|2|4}}
| death_place       = [[Roanoke, Texas]], U.S.
| height            = 6 ft 1 in
| nationality       = {{Flagu|United States}}
| spouse            = {{ubl|{{marriage|Louise Shofner Nelson|1934|1985|end=her death}}|{{marriage|Peggy Simmons Nelson|November 15, 1986|<!--2006; his death-->}}<ref name=nytdva07>{{cite news |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2007/06/27/sports/golf/27anderson.html?_r=0 |newspaper=The New York Times |last=Anderson |first=Dave |author-link=Dave Anderson (sportswriter) |title=An honor for Byron Nelson, Golf's patron saint |date=June 27, 2007 |access-date=June 1, 2016}}</ref>}}
| yearpro           = 1932
| extour            = [[PGA Tour]]
| prowins           = 64
| pgawins           = 52 ([[List of golfers with most PGA Tour wins|6th all-time]])
| otherwins         = 12
| majorwins         = 5
| masters           = '''Won''': [[1937 Masters Tournament|1937]], [[1942 Masters Tournament|1942]]
| usopen            = '''Won''': [[1939 U.S. Open (golf)|1939]]
| open              = 5th: [[1937 Open Championship|1937]]
| pga               = '''Won''': [[1940 PGA Championship|1940]], [[1945 PGA Championship|1945]]
| wghofid           = byron-nelson
| wghofyear         = 1974
| award1            = [[Vardon Trophy]]
| year1             = 1939
| award2            = [[PGA Tour#Money winners and most wins leaders|PGA Tour<br />leading money winner]]
| year2             = 1944, 1945
| award3            = [[Associated Press Athlete of the Year|Associated Press<br />Male Athlete of the Year]]
| year3             = 1944, 1945
| award4            = [[Bob Jones Award]]
| year4             = 1974
| award5            = [[PGA Tour Lifetime Achievement Award|PGA Tour Lifetime<br />Achievement Award]]
| year5             = 1997
| award6            = [[Payne Stewart Award]]
| year6             = 2000
| award7            = [[Congressional Gold Medal]]
| year7             = 2006
| awardssection     = #Awards
}}
<!-- Deleted image removed: [[File:Golddusttwins.jpg|thumb|220px|The "Gold Dust Twins":<br />[[Jug McSpaden]] (left) and Nelson]] -->
'''John Byron Nelson Jr.''' (February 4, 1912 – September 26, 2006) was an American [[professional golfer]] between 1935 and 1946, widely considered one of the greatest golfers of all time.

Nelson and two other legendary champions of the time, [[Ben Hogan]] and [[Sam Snead]], were born within seven months of each other in 1912.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://golf.about.com/od/golfersmen/p/ben_hogan.htm |title=Ben Hogan |publisher=About.com |last=Kelley |first=Brent |access-date=May 25, 2007 |archive-date=May 27, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160527030254/http://golf.about.com/od/golfersmen/p/ben_hogan.htm |url-status=dead }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://golf.about.com/od/golfersmen/p/sam_snead.htm |title=Sam Snead |publisher=About.com |last=Kelley |first=Brent |access-date=May 25, 2007 |archive-date=January 27, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170127014547/http://golf.about.com/od/golfersmen/p/sam_snead.htm |url-status=dead }}</ref>  Although he won many tournaments in the course of his relatively brief career, he is mostly remembered today for having won 11 consecutive tournaments and 18 total tournaments in 1945. He retired officially at the age of 34 to be a rancher, later becoming a commentator and lending his name to the [[Byron Nelson Classic]], the first [[PGA Tour]] event to be named for a professional golfer. As a former [[Masters Tournament|Masters]] champion he continued to play in that annual tournament, placing in the top-10 six times between 1947 and 1955 and as high as 15th in 1965.<ref name=augusta>[http://www.augusta.com/masters/historic/leaderboards/1965leaderboard.shtml Historic Augusta Leaderboards]</ref>

In 1974, Nelson received the [[Bob Jones Award]], the highest honor given by the [[United States Golf Association]] in recognition of distinguished sportsmanship in golf, and was inducted into the [[World Golf Hall of Fame]].<ref name="WGHF">{{cite web |url=http://www.worldgolfhalloffame.org/byron-nelson/ |title=Byron Nelson profile |publisher=World Golf Hall of Fame |access-date=January 16, 2014}}</ref> He became the second recipient of the [[PGA Tour Lifetime Achievement Award]] in 1997. He received the 1994 [[Old Tom Morris Award]] from the [[Golf Course Superintendents Association of America]], that organization's highest honor. Nelson was posthumously awarded the [[Congressional Gold Medal]] in 2006.