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Denny Shute

United States · born , Cleveland, Ohio, USA · died

3major championships

Summary

  • First major 1933 The Open
  • Last major 1937 PGA Championship
  • Ryder Cup 3 Cups · 2-2-2 · 3 points (50.0%)
  • Runner-up in majors 3 times

Wins

  1. 1933 The Open Old Course, St Andrews · 292 (E) · won a playoff against Craig Wood
  2. 1936 PGA Championship Pinehurst Resort (No. 2) · won the final 3 & 2 against Jimmy Thomson
  3. 1937 PGA Championship Pittsburgh Field Club · won the final won on 37th hole against Harold McSpaden

Near misses

  1. 1931 PGA Championship Wannamoisett Country Club · runner-up to Tom Creavy · lost the final 2 & 1
  2. 1939 U.S. Open Philadelphia C.C. · runner-up to Byron Nelson · playoff: 36 holes; Nelson 68, 70
  3. 1941 U.S. Open Colonial C.C. · runner-up to Craig Wood

Ryder Cup

3 Cups, 6 matches: 2 won, 2 lost, 2 halved, 3 points. Foursomes 1-1-1, four-ball 0-0-0, singles 1-1-1.

  1. 1931 Scioto Country Club USA · USA won 9–3 · 2-0-0, 2 points
  2. 1933 Southport and Ainsdale Golf Club USA · GB won 6.5–5.5 · 0-2-0, 0 points
  3. 1937 Southport and Ainsdale Golf Club USA · USA won 8–4 · 0-0-2, 1 point

Rivals

Beat him

Beaten in finals and playoffs

Jug McSpadenLost the 1937 PGA Championship final to Denny Shute

Ryder Cup partners

Ryder Cup opponents

Next in the chain: Tom Creavy's rivals →

Moments

  1. 1933 Open Needing to two-putt the 72nd to join the playoff, Leo Diegel missed the ball entirely with his second putt and finished one short.
  2. 1933 Open Shute won with four straight 73s, then won the playoff by five strokes.
  3. 1936 PGA Championship Thomson outdrove Shute by about 60 yards in the final, but Shute got up and down from bunkers nine times.
  4. 1936 PGA Championship Byron Nelson, in his first PGA Championship, failed to get through the stroke-play qualifier.
  5. 1937 PGA Championship In the final McSpaden missed a four-foot birdie putt on the 36th green that would have won the title.
  6. 1937 PGA Championship On the 37th hole McSpaden's roughly eight-foot putt lipped out, giving Shute his second straight PGA title.
  7. 1931 Ryder Cup Walter Hagen and Denny Shute beat George Duncan and Arthur Havers 10 & 9 in foursomes, a record foursomes margin.
  8. 1933 Ryder Cup All square on the 18th (36th) hole, Denny Shute ran his first putt 4 feet past and missed the return; Syd Easterbrook holed his short putt to win 1 up and the Cup.

Records and firsts

  1. 1931 PGA Championship PGA Championship match-play finals (finals, won, lost): 3 · 2 · 1 (1931; 1936; 1937)

Results by championship

    Best day

    1937 PGA Championship

    Pittsburgh Field Club, Fox Chapel, Pennsylvania · won the final won on 37th hole against Harold McSpaden

    In the final McSpaden missed a four-foot birdie putt on the 36th green that would have won the title.

    On the 37th hole McSpaden's roughly eight-foot putt lipped out, giving Shute his second straight PGA title.

    Chosen by rule: his most recent major win. Year page: 1937.

    Career line, 1931–1941

    PGA Championship
    1931 PGA Championship: runner-up to Tom Creavy1936 PGA Championship: won1937 PGA Championship: won
    U.S. Open
    1939 U.S. Open: runner-up to Byron Nelson1941 U.S. Open: runner-up to Craig Wood
    The Open
    1933 The Open: won
    Ryder Cup
    1931 Ryder Cup (USA): 2-0-01933 Ryder Cup (USA): 0-2-01937 Ryder Cup (USA): 0-0-2
    19351940

    9 results. Hover or tap a mark; click it for the year.

    • Major win
    • Runner-up
    • Ryder Cup, USA

    Denny Shute was born on October 25, 1904, in Cleveland, Ohio, USA. Shute won 3 major championships: 2 PGA Championships (1936, 1937) and 1 Open Championship (1933). Shute played in 3 Ryder Cups for USA (1931, 1933, 1937), winning 2, losing 2 and halving 2 of 6 matches for 3 points.

    See Denny Shute in our rooms: U.S. Open, The Open, Greatest Golfer by State and Every Ground.

    Cards you pull this visit stack here. Tap one to go back to it.

    The record

    Wins in the majors (3)

    1. 1933 The Open Old Course, St Andrews · 292 (E) · won a playoff against Craig Wood (Shute 149 (75-74); Wood 154 (78-76))
    2. 1936 PGA Championship Pinehurst Resort (No. 2), Pinehurst, North Carolina · won the final 3 & 2 against Jimmy Thomson
    3. 1937 PGA Championship Pittsburgh Field Club, Fox Chapel, Pennsylvania · won the final won on 37th hole against Harold McSpaden

    Near misses

    1. 1931 PGA Championship Wannamoisett Country Club · runner-up to Tom Creavy · lost the final 2 & 1
    2. 1939 U.S. Open Philadelphia C.C. · runner-up to Byron Nelson · playoff: 36 holes; Nelson 68, 70
    3. 1941 U.S. Open Colonial C.C. · runner-up to Craig Wood

    U.S. Open top-10 finishes in his career: 7 (GNN U.S. Open room data).

    Ryder Cup

    Shute played 3 Ryder Cups for USA: 6 matches, 2 won, 2 lost, 2 halved, 3 points (50.0% of those available). By format: foursomes 1-1-1, four-ball 0-0-0, singles 1-1-1 (won-lost-halved).

    1. 1931 Scioto Country Club USA · USA won 9–3 · 2-0-0, 2 points
    2. 1933 Southport and Ainsdale Golf Club USA · GB won 6.5–5.5 · 0-2-0, 0 points
    3. 1937 Southport and Ainsdale Golf Club USA · USA won 8–4 · 0-0-2, 1 point

    Partners, with matches played together: Walter Hagen (1), Olin Dutra (1), Gene Sarazen (1).

    PGA Championship match play

    Every recorded match in our bracket file, 1916–1957: 34 won, 15 lost, including 2 of 3 finals.

    1. 1929 Round of 32 lost to Tony Manero 6 & 5
    2. 1930 Round of 32 beat Joe Frank 8 & 6
    3. 1930 Round of 16 lost to Johnny Farrell 1 up
    4. 1931 Round of 32 beat Tony Butler won on 38th hole
    5. 1931 Round of 16 beat Jim Foulis 2 & 1
    6. 1931 Quarterfinal beat Tommy Armour 3 & 1
    7. 1931 Semifinal beat Billy Burke 1 up
    8. 1931 Final lost to Tom Creavy 2 & 1
    9. 1932 Round of 32 lost to Johnny Perelli 3 & 2
    10. 1934 Round of 32 beat Walter Hagen 4 & 3
    11. 1934 Round of 16 beat Ky Laffoon 3 & 2
    12. 1934 Quarterfinal beat Al Houghton 6 & 5
    13. 1934 Semifinal lost to Craig Wood 2 & 1
    14. 1935 Round of 64 beat Gene Kunes 4 & 3
    15. 1935 Round of 32 beat Henry Bontempo 4 & 3
    16. 1935 Round of 16 lost to Horton Smith 2 & 1
    17. 1936 Round of 64 beat Alex Gerlak 5 & 4
    18. 1936 Round of 32 beat Al Zimmerman 3 & 2
    19. 1936 Round of 16 beat Billy Burke 2 & 1
    20. 1936 Quarterfinal beat Horton Smith 3 & 2
    21. 1936 Semifinal beat Bill Mehlhorn 1 up
    22. 1936 Final beat Jimmy Thomson 3 & 2
    23. 1937 Round of 64 beat Joe Turnesa 2 & 1
    24. 1937 Round of 32 beat Olin Dutra 3 & 2
    25. 1937 Round of 16 beat Ed Dudley 3 & 2
    26. 1937 Quarterfinal beat Jimmy Hines 4 & 3
    27. 1937 Semifinal beat Tony Manero 1 up
    28. 1937 Final beat Jug McSpaden won on 37th hole
    29. 1938 Round of 64 beat Clyde Usina 3 & 2
    30. 1938 Round of 32 beat John Thoren 7 & 6
    31. 1938 Round of 16 lost to Jimmy Hines 2 & 1
    32. 1939 Round of 64 beat Ted Luther 1 up
    33. 1939 Round of 32 beat Leo Diegel 3 & 1
    34. 1939 Round of 16 lost to Emerick Kocsis 3 & 2
    35. 1941 Round of 64 beat Ray Mangrum 1 up
    36. 1941 Round of 32 beat Jim Foulis 1 up
    37. 1941 Round of 16 beat Leonard Orr 5 & 3
    38. 1941 Quarterfinal lost to Gene Sarazen 7 & 6
    39. 1942 Round of 32 lost to Ed Dudley 3 & 2
    40. 1945 Round of 32 beat Barney Clark 4 & 3
    41. 1945 Round of 16 beat Bob Kepler 5 & 4
    42. 1945 Quarterfinal lost to Byron Nelson 3 & 2
    43. 1949 Round of 64 lost to Lloyd Mangrum 6 & 5
    44. 1950 Round of 64 beat Augie Nordone 1 up
    45. 1950 Round of 32 beat Ellsworth Vines 4 & 3
    46. 1950 Round of 16 lost to Jimmy Demaret 4 & 3
    47. 1951 Round of 64 beat Pete Cooper 3 & 2
    48. 1951 Round of 32 lost to Jackson Bradley 2 & 1
    49. 1952 Round of 64 lost to Chick Harbert 5 & 4

    Records and firsts

    Rows from our record tables that name this player, worded as the tables word them.

    1. 1931 PGA Championship PGA Championship match-play finals (finals, won, lost): 3 · 2 · 1 (1931; 1936; 1937)

    Sources

    Every fact on this page comes from Golf Network News data sets compiled in October 2026 (Masters, PGA Championship, The Open, U.S. Women's Open, Ryder Cup, PGA Tour 2024–2026, major host sites, Champions Dinner menus, and the U.S. Open and state rooms). These are the sources those rows cite.

    1. where2golf
    2. Golf Today
    3. PGA Tour
    4. World Golf Hall of Fame
    5. Golf Compendium PGA Tour career wins
    6. Golf Compendium winners list
    7. WP: List of American Ryder Cup golfers
    8. R&A 1933
    9. GC 1933
    10. PGA of America winners & venues
    11. Golf Compendium 1936
    12. The Golf News Net history table (2026)
    13. Today's Golfer purse history
    14. Golfdom, Aug 1936 (MSU archive)
    15. PGA of America 2013 media guide, p. 95
    16. Golf Compendium 1937
    17. Golf Compendium 1930
    18. Golf Compendium 1931
    19. Golf Compendium 1934
    20. Golf Compendium 1935
    21. Golf Compendium 1938
    22. Golf Compendium 1939
    23. Golf Compendium 1941
    24. Golf Compendium 1945
    25. Golf Compendium 1950
    26. GC: 1931 ryder cup
    27. Wikipedia: 1931 Ryder Cup
    28. GC: 1933 ryder cup
    29. Wikipedia: 1933 Ryder Cup
    30. GC: 1937 ryder cup
    31. Wikipedia: 1937 Ryder Cup