Mark Calcavecchia

Mark John Calcavecchia (born June 12, 1960) is an American professional golfer who formerly held a full PGA Tour card. He has 13 PGA Tour victories to his name, the most famous being the 1989 Open Championship. Today, he competes on the Champions Tour and in a handful of PGA Tour events, most notably the Open Championship.

Calcavecchia was born in Laurel, Nebraska. When he was a teenager, his family relocated to West Palm Beach, Florida, in 1973. He attended North Shore High School there and won the Florida high school golf championship in 1977 while representing the school’s golf team. During his junior tournament days, he frequently faced off against Jackie Nicklaus, the son of Jack Nicklaus, which sparked a lifelong friendship with the legendary golfer that began when Calcavecchia was 14.

He accepted an athletic scholarship to the University of Florida in Gainesville, playing for the Florida Gators men’s golf team under head coaches Buster Bishop and John Darr from 1978 to 1980. In 1979, he earned first-team All-Southeastern Conference honors.

Calcavecchia turned professional in 1981 and joined the PGA Tour the following year, though he lost his tour card after the 1985 season. His biggest career highlight came in 1989, when he captured the Open Championship—one of golf’s four majors—by defeating Wayne Grady and Greg Norman in a four-hole playoff at Royal Troon in Scotland. Upon receiving the Claret Jug, he joked, “How’s my name going to fit on that thing?” He later admitted he initially didn’t want to play in that Open because his wife was expecting their first child, but she persuaded him to fly to Scotland.

He also said he didn’t realize the Open used a four-hole aggregate playoff format until just before teeing off. In 1992, he tied the Masters record for the lowest back nine with a 29. The 1989 season was his only multiple-win year on the PGA Tour, as he added two other titles to the Open. He also finished runner-up to Sandy Lyle at the 1988 Masters by a single stroke.

Over his career, Calcavecchia has won 13 times on the PGA Tour and 13 times in other professional events. He spent 109 weeks inside the top 10 of the Official World Golf Rankings between 1988 and 1991. At the 2001 Phoenix Open, he set a Tour scoring record by making 32 birdies over 72 holes, finishing at 28 under par. He won the Phoenix Open three times (1989, 1992, 2001), and those victories also represent his three largest margins of victory. He played on U.S. Ryder Cup teams in 1987, 1989, 1991, and 2002. His 1991 performance is especially memorable: he blew a four-hole lead to Colin Montgomerie over the final four holes of their match. Believing he had cost his team the win, he broke down in tears—unaware that the U.S. would still prevail.

On July 25, 2009, Calcavecchia set a PGA Tour record by notching nine consecutive birdies during the second round of the RBC Canadian Open at Glen Abbey Golf Course in Oakville, Ontario. The birdies came on holes 12 through 18, then on the first and second holes (he started his round on the 10th). The previous record of eight straight birdies was shared by six golfers, including J. P. Hayes, who was one of Calcavecchia’s playing partners at the time. He joined the Champions Tour in 2010 but continues to play a limited PGA Tour schedule, including the Open Championship. His eligibility for the Open expired in 2020 after he turned 60, but the COVID-19 pandemic canceled that year’s tournament, so he was grandfathered into the 2021 event. He couldn’t attend due to surgery, and his exemption was extended to 2022.

Calcavecchia has two children with his ex-wife Sheryl. He married Brenda Nardecchia on May 5, 2005, at Lake Como, Italy. He maintains homes in Jupiter, Florida, and Phoenix, Arizona. On April 8, 2026, while attending the Masters Tournament, he was removed from Augusta National Golf Club for violating the club’s cell phone use restrictions.