In a career that lasted 54 years in terms of entering Majors, Lee Trevino won six of them on the way to 29 PGA Tour wins and five European Tour victories. His success in the PGA Tour put him third on the all-time list, behind just Bernhard Langer and Hale Irwin and in front of the likes of Gary Player, Fred Couples and Tom Watson. It was enough to see him inducted into the World Golf Hall of Fame in 1981.
The only Major that eluded Trevino was the Masters Tournament, winning two each of the other three Majors. He is one of just four players who has won the Open Championship, the US Open and the PGA Championship twice apiece. Often referred to as either the Merry Mex or Supermex, he was considered to be an icon for Mexican American sports lovers, having been born in Texas into a family with Mexican heritage.
Although it is likely that Trevino would’ve found golf anyway, he was hurried on his journey by his uncle, who gave him an old golf club and a few balls to hit. Having started working in the cotton fields when he was five, Trevino left school as a 14-year-old in order to work full-time as a caddy at his home club of the Dallas Athletic Club. Earning $30 a week as a caddy and shoe shiner, he could also practice on the three short holes behind the caddy hut.
He would hit the ball off ‘Texas hardpan’, which was tough ground with little grass, developing a unique hitting style that helped him to stand out from the rest of the tour. Known for his ‘fade’, he would go on to be considered as one of the finest shot-makers in the game.
Lee Trevino’s Major Wins
| Years | Masters | US PGA | U.S. Open | Open |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1968 | ✕ | ✕ | ✅ | ✕ |
| 1971 | ✕ | ✕ | ✅ | ✅ |
| 1972 | ✕ | ✕ | ✕ | ✅ |
| 1974 | ✕ | ✅ | ✕ | ✕ |
| 1984 | ✕ | ✅ | ✕ | ✕ |
Masters Wins: None
Although the Masters Tournament was the only one of the Majors that Lee Trevino never managed to win, it wasn’t through a lack of trying. He entered the competition for the first time in 1968, ending up tied-40th, going on to enter it another 19 times during his career. Of those 19 attempts, he only missed the cut three times. That being said, the truth is that he never really even threatened to win the thing, coming tied-10th on two occasions. They were the closest that he ever got to to the top, missing out by ten shots in 1975 and five shots a decade later, with first Jack Nicklaus and then Bernhard Langer taking the wins.
PGA Championship Wins: 2
The first PGA Championship that Lee Trevino entered was in 1968 when he finished tied-23rd, following that up with a tied-48th and a tied-26th before he slowly began to improve his rankings. Even so, when his first win in the competition came around in 1974 it was also the first time that he had finished in the top ten. It was also his fourth Major, having already racked up two wins apiece in the other two. In some ways, then, the PGA Championship was the toughest of the three Major tournaments that he enjoyed success in, with his two wins in it coming a decade apart.
1974 – Nicklaus Beaten by One Stroke
Lee Trevino’s first PGA Championship win was also his fifth Major, coming about in 1974 when the competition was held at on the Championship Course at Tanglewood Park in North Carolina. One of the remarkable stories about the win was that he was using a putter that he’d found in a friend’s attic only days before, but only three-putted once. An opening round 73 was not a good start, but it was followed by a 66 on day two to put him four off the lead. A day three 68 gave him the lead by a single shot. On the final day he carded a 69, which gave him the win over Jack Nicklaus; the fourth time he’d finished as runner-up to Trevino.
1984 – Final Major Secured with Record -15 Score
Fast forward a decade and Lee Trevino is back winning his second and final PGA Championship. This time the competition was played at Shoal Creek Golf and Country Club in Alabama, with Trevino carding an opening day 69 to sit one shot off the lead. He moved into a tie for the lead with Gary Player after carding a 63 on the second day, then took it in his own right thanks to a day three 67. That gave him a slender one shot lead heading into the final day, but an impressive 69 allowed him to win his final Major by four shots. His total of 273 for the week set a new record for under par in the PGA Championship by five strokes.
US Open Wins: 2
The US Open was the first Major won by Lee Trevino in a career that saw him win six overall. He entered the competition for the first time in 1966, ending up tied-54th, then a year later he improved on that markedly when he ended up in fifth. In 1968 he won the competition for the first time, coming tied-8th a year further on and then winning it again in 1971. In total he enjoyed eight top ten finishes in the competition, including coming tied-4th in 1986, 20 years after he’d taken part in it for the first time. He entered the US Open 23 times in his career, missing the cut on just eight occasions in total.
1968 – First US Open Player to Score Four Under-Par Rounds
Having come fifth the year before, Lee Trevino headed off to the East Course of Oak Hill Country Club in New York in 1968 with a quiet confidence. He was just 28 at the time and had yet to win a PGA Tour event, but shot an opening round of 69 to put him just two shots off the top. When he bettered that with a 68 on day two he remained two shy of Bert Yancey, moving one shot behind at the end of day three. The final round saw Trevino card another 69, finishing on -5 and four shots clear of Jack Nicklaus in second. Not only did he win his first Major, he also equalled the tournament record with his total of 275 shots over the week.
1971 – Nicklaus Defeated in Playoff
Three years later and the US Open had moved to the East Course of Merion Golf Club in Pennsylvania, which boasted a par of 70. That’s exactly what he scored on the opening day, which put him three shots off the top, then he carded a 72 on the second day to put him on +2 overall. When he put in a 69 on day three that moved him to tied-4th, whilst a final round of the same score ensured he would go into an 18-hole play-off with Jack Nicklaus. He won it by three shots with a score of 68, having entertained the crowd prior to the start of play by pulling a rubber snake out of his bag and tossing it back and forth with Nicklaus.
Open Championship Wins: 2
It takes a brilliant golfer to win a Major, but only the very best can win more than one across different competitions. British golfers can handle the test of links golf but struggle with the big-hitting courses in the United States of America, whilst the reverse can also be true. That Lee Trevino won not just one Open Championship but two is, therefore, a testament to his ability as a golfer. Not only that but he won back-to-back Championships, having coming tied-3rd the year before and coming in fourth in 1977. Add in the fact that he came second in 1980 and it’s clear that links golf didn’t scare the Mexican American.
1971 – Triumph in the 100th Open
Lee Trevino’s first Open Championship win came in 1971, having already won the US Open and the Canadian Open the year before. That made him just one of two players to win those three competitions, with Tiger Woods achieving it several decades later. His competition began at Royal Birkdale in Southport with a 69, which put him tied-1st on -4. A second day 70 matched the score of Tony Jacklin, but when he carded another 69 the day after it gave him the lead in his own right. A final day 70 meant he scored 278 over the course of the week, which handed him the win over Lu Liang-Huan of Taiwan by a single shot.
1972 – Nicklaus Held-Off for Second Successive Claret Jug
Trevino returned a year later to win his second Open Championship, making him the first golf since Arnold Palmer a decade earlier to successfully defend the Claret Jug. It was played at Muirfield Golf Links in Scotland, with Trevino shooting a par 71 on the opening day. A 70 on day to moved him into the joint lead with Tony Jacklin, then on day three he took the lead in his own right thanks to an impressive 66. The final round saw Jack Nicklaus attacking him with a 66 of his own, but Trevino was able to hold him off with a 71 that gave him a six under par 278 for the week, winning the Claret Jug by one shot from his compatriot.