Biography
Mark John Calcavecchia (born June 12, 1960) is an American professional golfer. Calcavecchia was born in Laurel, Nebraska. He attended the University of Florida and earned All-SEC honors in 1979. He turned professional in 1981 and joined the PGA Tour in 1982. Calcavecchia was at his best in the late 1980s. His most notable achievement was in 1989, when he won The Open Championship, aka the British Open, which is one of golf's four major championships, winning a four hole playoff over Wayne Grady and Greg Norman. Upon being awarded the Claret Jug, Calcavecchia (whose lengthy Italian surname translates to "old crowd") famously said, "How's my name going to fit on that thing?" That year was his only multi-win season on the PGA Tour, with two other titles complementing the Open. He also finished second at the 1988 Masters Tournament to Sandy Lyle. Calcavecchia has won 13 times on the PGA Tour and 11 further times in other professional events. He spent over 100 weeks in the top 10 of the Official World Golf Rankings from 1988 to 1991. In winning the 2001 Phoenix Open, he set the Tour scoring record at that time by making 32 birdies in 72 holes finishing at 28 under par for the tournament. Calcavecchia was a member of the United States Ryder Cup team in 1987, 1989, 1991 and 2002. His performance in 1991 is most remembered, as he lost a four-stroke lead to Colin Montgomerie in the last four holes of his round. Thinking he had cost his team victory, he famously broke down in tears. However, the U.S. still managed to win. Calcavecchia married Brenda Nardecchia on May 5, 2005 in Italy. He has two children, Eric and Britney, with his previous wife Sheryl. On July 25, 2009, Calcavecchia set a PGA Tour record by getting nine consecutive birdies during his second round at the RBC Canadian Open at the Glen Abbey Golf Course in Oakville, Ontario, Canada. The birdies came on the 12th through 18th holes and then on the first and second hole (he started his round on the 10th hole). The previous record of eight consecutive birdies was held by six golfers including J. P. Hayes, who was one of his partners at the time Calcavecchia achieved the new record. Calcavecchia resides in Palm Beach Gardens, Florida. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mark_Calcavecchia
