Al Mengert

Al Mengert
Personal information
Born	(1929-04-07)April 7, 1929 Spokane, Washington
Died	April 6, 2021(2021-04-06) (aged 91)
Height	6 ft 0 in (1.83 m)
Weight	195 lb (88 kg; 13.9 st)
Sporting nationality	United States
Spouse	Donna (Jacobson) Mengert[1]
Children	4
Career
College	Stanford University (attended)
Turned professional	1952
Former tour(s)	PGA Tour Senior PGA Tour
Professional wins	At least 17
Best results in major championships
Masters Tournament	T9: 1958
PGA Championship	T18: 1970
U.S. Open	T13: 1954
The Open Championship	DNP

Alfred John Mengert (April 7, 1929 – April 6, 2021) was an American professional golfer.[2]

Biography

Born and raised in Spokane, Washington, he was the son of local businessman Otto Mengert and his wife Otelia Johnson, who was the sister of U.S. Racing Hall of Fame jockey Albert Johnson.[3]

Mengert played football at Gonzaga Prep, briefly attended Stanford University in the late 1940s, and served in the Washington Air National Guard and U.S. Air Force in the early 1950s.[4] Mengert was first reserve for the 1951 Walker Cup team.[5] He was runner-up in the 1952 U.S. Amateur to Jack Westland.[6][7]

Mengert turned professional in 1952 and worked mainly as a club pro while also playing on the PGA Tour. He won several non-PGA Tour events. His best finish in a major came at the 1958 Masters Tournament. After three rounds, he was tied for fourth, two shots off the lead,[8] and finished tied for ninth. Mengert was the first round leader at the U.S. Open in 1966 at the Olympic Club in San Francisco.[9] He was tied for seventh after 54 holes, but a final round 81 resulted in a tie for 26th place.[10] He finished tied for third place in a rain-delayed Tucson Open in 1971.[11] Mengert played several tournaments on the Senior PGA Tour in the 1980s, and was inducted into the Pacific Northwest Golf Association's Hall of Fame in 2001.[12]

After turning pro in 1952, Mengert's first job was as an assistant club pro under Masters champion Claude Harmon at Winged Foot, north of New York City. He was a head pro at clubs in New Jersey, St. Louis, and Sacramento.[2] Mengert returned to the Northwest as the head pro at Tacoma Country Club in the 1960s[9] then went to Oakland Hills in the suburbs north of Detroit, Michigan.[13]

Mengert died April 6, 2021.[14]

Amateur wins

• 1946 International Jaycee Junior Golf Tournament[15]
• 1947 International Jaycee Junior Golf Tournament
• 1949 Washington State Amateur
• 1950 Mexican Amateur, Pacific Northwest Amateur,[13] Washington State Amateur

Tournament wins

this list may be incomplete

• 1952 Northwest Open (as an amateur)
• 1957 New Jersey State Open
• 1958 New Jersey State Open
• 1960 New Jersey State Open, New Jersey PGA Championship, Metropolitan Open, Arizona Open
• 1963 Washington Open
• 1964 Washington Open
• 1965 Washington Open, Northern California PGA Championship, British Columbia Open
• 1966 Northwest Open
• 1968 Pacific Northwest PGA Championship
• 1969 Pacific Northwest PGA Championship
• 1971 Washington Open
• 1976 Michigan PGA Championship

Results in major championships

Tournament	1952	1953	1954	1955	1956	1957	1958	1959
Masters Tournament	T34	T23	T38	T32	T24	T21	T9	CUT
U.S. Open		T21	T13	T16		T45	CUT
PGA Championship

Tournament	1960	1961	1962	1963	1964	1965	1966	1967	1968	1969
Masters Tournament
U.S. Open	T38						T26	CUT
PGA Championship		T29			CUT	T33	T49		T20	T32

Tournament	1970	1971	1972	1973	1974	1975	1976	1977	1978	1979
Masters Tournament
U.S. Open	T54
PGA Championship	T18			CUT				CUT		CUT

Note: Mengert never played in The Open Championship.

  Top 10

  Did not play

CUT = missed the half-way cut (3rd round cut in the 1964 PGA Championship)
"T" indicates a tie for a place

References

1. "Al has a new title; it's Daddy Mengert". Spokane Daily Chronicle. December 21, 1951. p. 11.
2. "Mengert's biography". Spokesman-Review. Chicago Tribune press service. June 17, 1966. p. 24.
3. "Spokane jockey Albert Johnson among latest inductees into Washington Sports Hall of Fame". The Spokesman-Review. April 16, 2018. Retrieved December 20, 2019.
4. "Around golf many years". Ottawa Citizen. NEA. April 15, 1955. p. 28.
5. "Mengert named cup alternate". The Spokesman-Review. January 28, 1951. p. Sports 2.
6. "1952 U.S. Amateur". Archived from the original on July 28, 2011.
7. Hanson, Scott (August 19, 2010). "Northwest golfer tells of his near miss at 1952 U.S. Amateur in Seattle". Seattle Times. Retrieved March 1, 2011.
8. "Snead, Palmer Lead Masters". The Gadsden Times. Gadsden, Alabama. April 6, 1958. p. 8. Retrieved March 1, 2011.
9. Grimsley, Will (June 17, 1966). "Mengert takes Open lead with great first-round 67". Spokesman-Review. Associated Press. p. 24.
10. "U.S. Open golf scores". Spokesman-Review. Associated Press. June 20, 1966. p. 24.
11. "Eagle helps J.C. Snead win Tucson". The Spokesman-Review. Associated Press. February 23, 1971. p. 16.
12. PNGA Hal of Fame profile
13. Van Sickel, Charlie (August 10, 1977). "Al Mengert, No.1". Spokesman-Review. p. 40.
14. Meehan, Jim (April 8, 2021). "Spokane native and decorated golfer Al Mengert passes away at 91". Spokesman-Review.
15. "Looking back: Spokane golfer Al Mengert and others in 1946". Spokesman-Review. April 4, 2005. Retrieved May 1, 2014.

External links

• Al Mengert at the PGA Tour official site
• PNGA Hall of Fame