John F. Revolta (April 5, 1911 – March 3, 1991) was an American professional golfer who played on the PGA Tour in the 1930s, 1940s, and early 1950s. He won a major title, the 1935 PGA Championship, and had 18 career wins on tour.

Johnny Revolta
Personal information
Full nameJohn F. Revolta
Born(1911-04-05)April 5, 1911
St. Louis, Missouri, U.S.
DiedMarch 3, 1991(1991-03-03) (aged 79)
Palm Springs, California, U.S.
Sporting nationality United States
SpouseLorene Revolta
Children3
Career
CollegeNone
Turned professional1929
Former tour(s)PGA Tour
Professional wins29
Number of wins by tour
PGA Tour18
Other11
Best results in major championships
(wins: 1)
Masters Tournament13th/T13: 1935, 1937, 1952
PGA ChampionshipWon: 1935
U.S. OpenT8: 1934
The Open ChampionshipT32: 1937
Achievements and awards
PGA Tour
leading money winner
1935

Born in St. Louis, Missouri, Revolta's family relocated to Oshkosh, Wisconsin in 1923 when he was twelve.[1] He learned the game as a caddie at the public course in Oshkosh and won the state caddie championship at age 14.[2] Like most professional golfers of his generation, Revolta started out as a club professional. He worked at Swan Lake Country Club in Portage in 1930, Chippewa Elks Golf Club in 1931, Riverside Country Club in Menominee, Michigan 1932–1933, and Tripoli Country Club in Milwaukee from 1934 to 1936. He won the Wisconsin State Open four times in a six-year period; he was not eligible for two years while working in Michigan.[3] Revolta was a member of the PGA Tour from 1935 to 1952.[4]

Revolta's best year as a tour pro was 1935, when he won five tournaments and led the PGA Tour's money list. He defeated Tommy Armour 5 & 4 in the PGA Championship held at Twin Hills Golf & Country Club and also won the Western Open, the era's "fifth major". He also played in the Ryder Cup in 1935 and 1937.

Revolta was known as the "Iron Master" because of his outstanding short game. Regarding his bunker play in particular, short game master Paul Runyan said Revolta "led the class [of outstanding bunker players] by a big margin. His skill from sand simply left me aghast." His instruction book, Johnny Revolta's Short Cuts to Better Golf, first published in 1949, is still in print today.

Revolta was the head professional at Evanston Golf Club in Skokie, Illinois, from 1935 to 1966, and continued to teach there during summers into the late 1980s. He died in Palm Springs, California in 1991, a month shy of his 80th birthday.[2]

Professional wins (29)

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PGA Tour wins (18)

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Major championship is shown in bold.

Other wins (11)

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this list is probably incomplete

Major championships

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Wins (1)

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Year Championship Winning score Runner-up
1935 PGA Championship 5 & 4   Tommy Armour

Note: The PGA Championship was match play until 1958

Results timeline

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Tournament 1928 1929
U.S. Open WD
The Open Championship
PGA Championship
Tournament 1930 1931 1932 1933 1934 1935 1936 1937 1938 1939
Masters Tournament NYF NYF NYF NYF T18 T13 25 T13 T18 T31
U.S. Open T15 T8 T36 T14 T28 T16 T22
The Open Championship T32
PGA Championship R32 R16 1 R32 R32 R32 R16
Tournament 1940 1941 1942 1943 1944 1945 1946 1947 1948 1949
Masters Tournament T27 NT NT NT T29 T39
U.S. Open T16 WD NT NT NT NT
The Open Championship NT NT NT NT NT NT
PGA Championship R64 NT R16 R64
Tournament 1950 1951 1952 1953 1954 1955 1956 1957 1958 1959
Masters Tournament T42 13 58 T60 T49 75 CUT CUT CUT
U.S. Open T19 40 CUT T29 CUT T30
The Open Championship
PGA Championship R16 R128
Tournament 1960 1961 1962
Masters Tournament CUT CUT CUT
U.S. Open CUT
The Open Championship
PGA Championship CUT
  Win
  Top 10
  Did not play

NYF = tournament not yet founded
NT = no tournament
WD = withdrew
CUT = missed the half-way cut
R64, R32, R16, QF, SF, F = round in which player lost in PGA Championship match play
"T" indicates a tie for a place

Summary

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Tournament Wins 2nd 3rd Top-5 Top-10 Top-25 Events Cuts made
Masters Tournament 0 0 0 0 0 6 21 15
U.S. Open 0 0 0 0 1 7 17 12
The Open Championship 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 1
PGA Championship 1 0 0 1 5 9 11 11
Totals 1 0 0 1 6 22 50 39
  • Most consecutive cuts made – 24 (1933 U.S. Open – 1940 PGA)
  • Longest streak of top-10s – 2 (1934 U.S. Open – 1934 PGA)

See also

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References

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  1. ^ "Official Program of the 2010 PGA Championship: Raised in Oshkosh, Wis., Johhny Revolta went on to win the 1935 PGA Championship". PGA of America. p. 91. Retrieved May 9, 2013.
  2. ^ a b "Johnny Revolta, Golf Caddie Turned Champion". Chicago Tribune. March 6, 1991. Retrieved May 9, 2013.
  3. ^ "Wisconsin Open golf meet starts Sunday on Lawsonia course". Milwaukee Journal. August 28, 1932. p. 3-sports. Retrieved May 9, 2013.
  4. ^ "Wisconsin State Golf Association, Johnny Revolta bio". Archived from the original on August 4, 2014. Retrieved May 9, 2013.