Jerome Dunstan "Jerry" Travers (May 19, 1887 – March 29, 1951) was one of the leading amateur golfers of the early 1900s. He won the U.S. Amateur in 1907, 1908, 1912 and 1913, the New Jersey Amateur three times, and the Metropolitan Amateur (New York) five times. He was regarded as one of the finest match play golfers of his time and had a famous rivalry with Walter Travis. He won the 1915 U.S. Open.
Early life Travers was born on May 19, 1887, in New York City, New York.
Golf career On September 16, 1905, a then 18-year-old Travers partnered with Herbert Strong to tie for second place, shooting 72, in a four-ball tournament held at Fox Hills Golf Club on Staten Island as part of the 1905 Metropolitan Open. The stroke play portion of the tournament was won by Alex Smith.
In 1915 Travers won the U.S. Open at Baltusrol Golf Club, making him the second of the five amateurs to win the event. It was his only top ten finish in four appearances at the U.S. Open – he never entered the tournament again once he had won it.
Although all of Travers' notable victories came as an amateur, he later became a teaching professional and gave exhibitions.
Death and legacy Travers died on March 29, 1951, in East Hartford, Connecticut.
Awards and honors In 1976, Travers was inducted into the World Golf Hall of Fame
Tournament wins 1904 Nassau Invitational 1906 Metropolitan Amateur, Eastern Scholastic, Lynnewood Hall Cup 1907 U.S. Amateur, Metropolitan Amateur, New Jersey Amateur 1908 U.S. Amateur, New Jersey Amateur, Morris County Invitation Tournament, Lynnewood Hall Cup 1910 Montclair G.C. Invitational 1911 Metropolitan Amateur, New Jersey Amateur 1912 U.S. Amateur, Metropolitan Amateur 1913 U.S. Amateur, Metropolitan Amateur, New Jersey Amateur 1914 Prince of Wales Medal 1915 U.S. Open, Lynnewood Hall Cup
Note: Major championships in bold
Major championships
Professional wins (1) YearChampionship54 holesWinning scoreMarginRunner-up 1915 U.S. Open 1 shot lead +1 (76-72-73-76=297) 1 stroke Tom McNamara
Amateur wins (4) YearChampionshipWinning scoreRunner-up 1907 U.S. Amateur 6 & 5 Archibald Graham 1908 U.S. Amateur 8 & 7 Max H. Behr 1912 U.S. Amateur 7 & 6 Chick Evans 1913 U.S. Amateur 5 & 4 John G. Anderson
Results timeline Tournament1903190419051906190719081909U.S. OpenT25CUTU.S. AmateurR64R32R32QF11The Amateur ChampionshipR256 Tournament1910191119121913191419151916191719181919U.S. OpenT271NTNTU.S. AmateurQF112R16NTNTR32The Amateur ChampionshipR256NTNTNTNTNT Note: Travers played in only the U.S. Open, U.S. Amateur, and The Amateur Championship.
NT = no tournament "T" indicates a tie for a place R256, R128, R64, R32, R16, QF, SF = round in which player lost in match play
Sources: U.S. Open and U.S. Amateur,USGA Championship Database Amateur Championship: 1909, 1914
References
External links