Mark John Calcavecchia (born June 12, 1960) is an American professional golfer and a former PGA Tour member. During his professional career, he won 13 PGA Tour events, including the 1989 Open Championship. He plays on the Champions Tour as well as a limited PGA Tour schedule that includes The Open Championship.
Early life Calcavecchia was born in Laurel, Nebraska. While he was a teenager, his family moved from Nebraska to West Palm Beach, Florida in 1973. He attended North Shore High School in West Palm Beach, and won the Florida high school golf championship in 1977 while playing for the North Shore golf team. FHSAA Boys Golf 2010–11 Championship Records, Florida High School Athletic Association, Tallahassee, Florida, p. 5 (2010). Retrieved July 15, 2011. While playing in junior tournaments, Calcavecchia often competed against Jack Nicklaus' son, Jackie, and as a result began a lifelong friendship at the age of 14 with the legendary pro.
Amateur career He accepted an athletic scholarship to the University of Florida in Gainesville, where he played for head coach Buster Bishop and head coach John Darr's Florida Gators men's golf teams in National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) competition from 1978 to 1980. Florida Men's Golf 2011 Media Supplement , University Athletic Association, Gainesville, Florida, pp. 28, 34, 39, 41 (2010); retrieved July 11, 2011. Calcavecchia earned first-team All-Southeastern Conference (SEC) honors in 1979.
Professional career Calcavecchia turned professional in 1981 and joined the PGA Tour in 1982, but lost his card after the 1985 season. His most notable achievement was in 1989, when he won The Open Championship (the "British Open"), one of the four major championships, by beating Wayne Grady and Greg Norman in a four-hole playoff at Royal Troon in Scotland.
Upon being awarded the Open's Claret Jug, Calcavecchia (whose Italian surname translates as "old crowd") asked "How's my name going to fit on that thing?" He later revealed that he had initially not wanted to play in the Open Championship that year due to his wife expecting their first child, but he was persuaded to fly to Scotland to compete in the tournament by his wife. He also revealed that he didn't know that the Open Championship had a four-hole aggregate playoff format until just before he teed off in the playoff. Calcavecchia shares the record for the lowest back nine in the Masters at 29, in 1992. 1989 was Calcavecchia's only multiple-win season on the PGA Tour, with two other titles complementing the Open. He also finished second behind Sandy Lyle at the 1988 Masters Tournament by a single stroke.
Calcavecchia has won 13 times on the PGA Tour and 13 times in other professional events. He spent 109 weeks in the top 10 of the Official World Golf Rankings from 1988 to 1991. In winning the 2001 Phoenix Open, he set the Tour scoring record at that time by making 32 birdies in 72 holes finishing at 28 under par for the tournament. He has won the Phoenix Open three times (1989, 1992, 2001), and his margins of victory in the Phoenix tournament are also his three largest. He was a member of the U.S. Ryder Cup team in 1987, 1989, 1991 and 2002. His performance in 1991 is most remembered, as he lost a four-hole lead to Colin Montgomerie in the last four holes of his round. Thinking he had cost his team the victory, he broke down in tears—not knowing the U.S. team would still win.
On July 25, 2009, Calcavecchia set a PGA Tour record by getting nine consecutive birdies during his second round at the RBC Canadian Open at the Glen Abbey Golf Course in Oakville, Ontario, Canada. The birdies came on the 12th through 18th holes, and then on the first and second hole (he started his round on the 10th hole). The previous record of eight consecutive birdies was held by six golfers including J. P. Hayes, who was one of his partners at the time Calcavecchia achieved the new record. Calcavecchia joined the Champions Tour in 2010, but still plays a limited PGA Tour schedule that includes The Open Championship. His eligibility for The Open expired in 2020 after he turned 60, but after the COVID-19 pandemic cancelled that tournament, he was grandfathered into the 2021 tournament, but was unable to attend due to surgery. Calcavecchia's exemption was extended to 2022.
Personal life Calcavecchia has two children with his ex-wife Sheryl. He married, secondly, on May 5, 2005 in Lake Como, Italy, to Brenda Nardecchia. He has homes in Jupiter, Florida, and Phoenix, Arizona.
On April 8, 2026, while attending the 2026 Masters Tournament, Calcavecchia was removed from Augusta National Golf Club as a result of violating the club's restrictions on cell phone use.
Professional wins (29) PGA Tour wins (13) LegendMajor championships (1)Other PGA Tour (12) No.DateTournamentWinning scoreMargin ofvictoryRunner(s)-up1Sep 28, 1986Southwest Golf Classic−13 (68-70-66-71=275)3 strokes Tom Byrum2Mar 8, 1987Honda Classic−9 (69-72-68-70=279)3 strokes Bernhard Langer, Payne Stewart3Sep 18, 1988Bank of Boston Classic−10 (71-67-70-66=274)1 stroke Don Pooley4Jan 22, 1989Phoenix Open−21 (66-68-65-64=263)7 strokes Chip Beck5Feb 5, 1989Nissan Los Angeles Open−12 (68-66-70-68=272)1 stroke Sandy Lyle6Jul 23, 1989The Open Championship−13 (71-68-68-68=275)Playoff Wayne Grady, Greg Norman7Jan 26, 1992Phoenix Open (2)−20 (69-65-67-63=264)5 strokes Duffy Waldorf8May 7, 1995BellSouth Classic−17 (67-69-69-66=271)2 strokes Jim Gallagher Jr.9Aug 24, 1997Greater Vancouver Open−19 (68-66-65-66=265)1 stroke Andrew Magee10Mar 15, 1998Honda Classic (2)−18 (70-67-68-65=270)3 strokes Vijay Singh11Jan 28, 2001Phoenix Open (3)−28 (65-60-64-67=256)8 strokes Rocco Mediate12Sep 11, 2005Bell Canadian Open−5 (65-67-72-71=275)1 stroke Ben Crane, Ryan Moore13Mar 11, 2007PODS Championship−10 (75-67-62-70=274)1 stroke John Senden, Heath Slocum
PGA Tour playoff record (1–4) No.YearTournamentOpponent(s)Result11987Byron Nelson Golf Classic Fred CouplesLost to par on third extra hole21989The Open Championship Wayne Grady, Greg NormanWon four-hole aggregate playoff;Calcavecchia: −2 (4-3-3-3=13),Grady: +1 (4-4-4-4=16),Norman: x (3-3-4-x=x)31990Doral-Ryder Open Paul Azinger, Greg Norman, Tim SimpsonNorman won with eagle on first extra hole41993Greater Milwaukee Open Billy Mayfair, Ted SchulzMayfair won with birdie on fourth extra holeSchulz eliminated by par on first hole52005Chrysler Classic of Tucson Kevin Na, Geoff OgilvyOgilvy won with birdie on second extra holeCalcavecchia eliminated by par on first hole
PGA Tour of Australia wins (1) No.DateTournamentWinning scoreMargin ofvictoryRunner-up1Nov 27, 1988National Panasonic Australian Open−19 (67-67-66-69=269)6 strokes Mark McCumber
Korean Tour wins (1) No.DateTournamentWinning scoreMargin ofvictoryRunner-up1May 9, 2004Maekyung Open−6 (69-70-71-72=282)2 strokes Jang Ik-jae
South American Tour wins (2) 1993 Argentine Open 1995 Argentine Open
Other wins (7) No.DateTournamentWinning scoreMargin ofvictoryRunners-up1Dec 31, 1989Spalding Invitational−10 (69-69-67-71=276)2 strokes Dave Barr, Bill Glasson2Nov 19, 1995Franklin Templeton Shootout(with Steve Elkington)−32 (64-61-59=184)1 stroke Chip Beck and Lee Janzen3Nov 9, 1997Subaru Sarazen World Open−17 (62-67-71-71=271)3 strokes Lee Westwood4Dec 12, 1999Diners Club Matches(with Fred Couples)1 up Steve Elkington and Jeff Maggert5Jul 10, 2001CVS Charity Classic(with Nick Price)−15 (60-59=119)Playoff Brad Faxon and Gary Player6Dec 9, 2001Hyundai Team Matches (2)(with Fred Couples)1 up Tom Lehman and Duffy Waldorf7Dec 9, 2007Merrill Lynch Shootout (2)(with Woody Austin)−29 (64-60-63=187)1 stroke Greg Norman and Bubba Watson
Other playoff record (1–1) No.YearTournamentOpponentsResult11991Fred Meyer Challenge(with Bob Gilder) Paul Azinger and Ben Crenshaw, Fred Couples and Raymond FloydAzinger/Crenshaw won with birdie on second extra holeCalcavecchia/Gilder eliminated by par on first hole22001CVS Charity Classic(with Nick Price) Brad Faxon and Gary PlayerWon with birdie on first extra hole
PGA Tour Champions wins (4) No.DateTournamentWinning scoreMargin ofvictoryRunner(s)-up1Aug 28, 2011Boeing Classic−14 (70-67-65=202)Playoff Russ Cochran2Jun 24, 2012Montreal Championship−16 (69-67-64=200)4 strokes Brad Bryant3Jun 7, 2015Principal Charity Classic−12 (67-68-69=204)1 stroke Joe Durant, Brian Henninger4Feb 11, 2018Boca Raton Championship−16 (64-66-70=200)2 strokes Bernhard Langer
PGA Tour Champions playoff record (1–0) No.YearTournamentOpponentResult12011Boeing Classic Russ CochranWon with birdie on first extra hole
Other senior wins (1) 2011 Nedbank Champions Challenge
Major championships Wins (1) YearChampionship54 holesWinning scoreMarginRunners-up 1989 The Open Championship 3 shot deficit −13 (71-68-68-68=275) Playoff1 Wayne Grady, Greg Norman 1Defeated Grady and Norman in a four-hole aggregate playoff: Calcavecchia (4-3-3-3=13), Grady (4-4-4-4=16), Norman (3-3-4-x)
Results timeline Results not in chronological order in 2020. Tournament1986198719881989Masters TournamentT172T31U.S. Open14T17T62T61The Open ChampionshipT11CUT1PGA ChampionshipCUTT17
Tournament1990199119921993199419951996199719981999Masters TournamentT20T12T31T17CUTT41T15T17T16CUTU.S. OpenCUTT37T33T25CUTCUTCUTCUTCUTCUTThe Open ChampionshipCUTCUTT28T14T11T24T41T10T35CUTPGA ChampionshipCUTT32T48T31CUTCUTT36T23T44T61
Tournament2000200120022003200420052006200720082009Masters TournamentT4CUTCUTT20CUTU.S. OpenT24CUTT20T20CUTWDThe Open ChampionshipT26T54T80CUTT11T60T41T23CUTT27PGA ChampionshipT34T47T39DQT70WDCUTT63 Tournament201020112012201320142015201620172018Masters TournamentU.S. OpenThe Open Championship73CUTT9CUTCUTCUTCUTPGA Championship Tournament2019202020212022Masters TournamentPGA ChampionshipU.S. OpenThe Open ChampionshipNTCUT
DQ = Disqualified WD = Withdrew CUT = missed the half-way cut "T" indicates a tie for a place NT = No tournament due to the COVID-19 pandemic
Summary Tournament Wins 2nd 3rd Top-5 Top-10 Top-25 Events Cuts madeMasters Tournament 0 1 0 2 2 10 18 13U.S. Open 0 0 0 0 0 6 20 10The Open Championship 1 0 0 1 3 9 31 19PGA Championship 0 0 0 1 2 4 21 14Totals 1 1 0 4 7 29 90 56 Most consecutive cuts made – 9 (1991 PGA – 1993 PGA) Longest streak of top-10s – 1 (seven times)
Results in The Players Championship Tournament198719881989The Players ChampionshipT50T64CUT Tournament1990199119921993199419951996199719981999The Players Championship273CUTT23T18T29T244T10CUT Tournament2000200120022003200420052006200720082009The Players ChampionshipCUTCUTT69T11T66T1272CUTCUT Tournament2010The Players ChampionshipCUT
CUT = missed the halfway cut "T" indicates a tie for a place
Results in World Golf Championships Tournament1999200020012002200320042005200620072008Match PlayR64R16R16R64R64Championship10NT1T33T30InvitationalT1274T68 1Cancelled due to 9/11
QF, R16, R32, R64 = Round in which player lost in match play "T" = Tied NT = No tournament
Results in senior major championships Results are not in chronological order prior to 2022. Tournament 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 20192020202120222023202420252026Senior PGA ChampionshipT13T12CUTT15CUTCUTCUTCUTNTCUTWDThe TraditionT4T5T18T122T52T33WDWDT57NTU.S. Senior OpenT243T12T54CUTCUTT51CUTCUTCUTNTCUTCUTWDSenior Players ChampionshipWD12T4T9WDT20T76T41T32T46T67WDSenior British Open ChampionshipT142T10T65T5170T24NTCUT
CUT = missed the halfway cut WD = withdrew "T" indicates a tie for a place NT = no tournament due to COVID-19 pandemic
U.S. national team appearances Professional Ryder Cup: 1987, 1989 (tie), 1991 (winners), 2002 Four Tours World Championship: 1987 (winners), 1989 (winners), 1990 Dunhill Cup: 1989 (winners), 1990 Presidents Cup: 1998 UBS Warburg Cup: 2001 (winners) Wendy's 3-Tour Challenge: 2001 (PGA Tour), 2003 (PGA Tour, winners), 2005 (PGA Tour), 2011 (Champions Tour, winners)
See also
Spring 1981 PGA Tour Qualifying School graduates 1983 PGA Tour Qualifying School graduates