Jerry Heard
FullnameJerry Michael Heard
Birth dateMay 1, 1947 (age 79)
Birth placeVisalia, California, U.S.
Height6 ft 0 in (1.83 m)
Weight190 lb (86 kg; 14 st)
CollegeFresno State
Yearpro1968
ExtourPGA Tour
Champions Tour
Prowins8
Pgawins5
Eurowins1
Otherwins2
MastersT5: 1972
UsopenT7: 1973
OpenT28: 1972
PgaT7: 1972

Jerry Michael Heard (born May 1, 1947) is an American professional golfer who won several PGA Tour events in the 1970s.

Career

In 1947, Heard was born in Visalia, California. He attended Fresno State College for a short while.

In 1968, Heard turned professional. In 1969, he joined the PGA Tour after his success at Fall 1968 PGA Tour Qualifying School. His first professional win came in the American Golf Classic at Firestone Country Club in Akron, Ohio in 1971. He finished with a four-day total of 275, three strokes better than runner-up Dale Douglass. In 1972, he won the Florida Citrus Open and the Colonial National Invitation. Heard had nearly 60 top-10 finishes in PGA Tour events in his career including four top-10 finishes in major championships — his best finish in a major was T-5 at the 1972 Masters Tournament.[1] Heard was struck by lightning at the 1975 Western Open, along with playing partner Lee Trevino. Three others were also struck: Bobby Nichols, Jim Ahern, and Tony Jacklin.[2][3]

In 1980, Heard left the tour and today owns and operates a golf school, the Jerry Heard Golf Academy located at the Silverthorn Country Club in Spring Hill, Florida. His school had been located for many years in southwest Florida.

Personal life

Heard lives near Fort Myers, Florida.

Professional wins (8)

PGA Tour wins (5)

No.DateTournamentWinning scoreTo parMargin of
victory		Runner(s)-up
1Aug 8, 1971American Golf Classic67-66-68-74=275−53 strokesDale Douglass
2Mar 12, 1972Florida Citrus Open70-67-70-69=276−122 strokesBobby Mitchell
3May 14, 1972Colonial National Invitation69-66-67-73=275−52 strokesFred Marti
4Mar 3, 1974Florida Citrus Open (2)67-68-69-69=273−153 strokesHomero Blancas, Jim Jamieson
5May 28, 1978Atlanta Classic67-67-68-67=269−192 strokesLou Graham, Bob Murphy
Tom Watson

PGA Tour playoff record (0–1)

No.YearTournamentOpponentResult
11974Kemper OpenBob MenneLost to birdie on first extra hole

Source:[4]

European Tour wins (1)

No.DateTournamentWinning scoreTo parMargin of
victory		Runner-up
1Apr 20, 1974Spanish Open72-67-70-70=279−96 strokesGary Player

New Zealand Golf Circuit wins (1)

No.DateTournamentWinning scoreTo parMargin of
victory		Runner-up
1Nov 21, 1971Garden City Classic67-70-68-64=269−235 strokesBob Charles

Source:[5]

Other wins (1)

Results in major championships

Tournament19661967196819691970197119721973197419751976197719781979
Masters Tournament48T556T11T26CUT
U.S. OpenCUTCUTT13T29T7T45T29CUT
The Open ChampionshipT28CUT
PGA ChampionshipT9T7T66T48T25T22T64

CUT = missed the half-way cut
"T" indicates a tie for a place

Summary

TournamentWins2nd3rdTop-5Top-10Top-25EventsCuts made
Masters Tournament00011265
U.S. Open00001285
The Open Championship00000021
PGA Championship00002477
Totals0001482318
  • Most consecutive cuts made – 12 (1971 PGA – 1974 U.S. Open)
  • Longest streak of top-10s – 1 (four times)

See also

References

  1. ^ "Jerry Heard". Golf Major Championships. Retrieved September 22, 2025.
  2. ^ "Lightning hits Trevino, 4 other golfers". Milwaukee Journal. June 28, 1975. p. 11. Archived from the original on April 30, 2016. Retrieved September 21, 2016.
  3. ^ "Lightning is a big shocker for 3 golfers". Miami News. Chicago Daily News Service. June 28, 1975. p. 3B.
  4. ^ "Jerry Heard". PGA Tour. Retrieved 2025-09-22.
  5. ^ "Heard has five-stroke win in NZ". The Age. 22 November 1971. p. 20. Retrieved 1 December 2023. – via Google News Archive.