1979 U.S. Amateur: Mark O'Meara wins at Canterbury Golf Club
Mark O'Meara won the 1979 U.S. Amateur at Canterbury Golf Club in Cleveland, Ohio, beating John Cook 8 & 7 in the final.
Updated October 22, 2026
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- Edition
- 79th
- Dates
- August 28, 1979 to September 2, 1979
- Course
- Canterbury Golf Club, Cleveland, Ohio
- Stroke-play co-host
- Shaker Heights Country Club, Shaker Heights, Ohio
- Format
- stroke-play qualifying (36 holes) + match play
- Champion
- Mark O'Meara · age 22 · United States · California State University, Long Beach
- Champion's title
- 1st U.S. Amateur
- Runner-up
- John Cook · age 21
- Final
- 8 & 7
- Losing semifinalists
- Cecil Ingram and Joe Rassett
- Stroke-play medalist
- Bobby Clampett (134)
- Defending champion
- John Cook · runner-up (lost final)
- Entries
- 3,916
What happened at the 1979 U.S. Amateur
O'Meara rallied from two down with four to play to beat David Ogrin with a par on the 20th hole (quarterfinal).
Final: O'Meara won the 23rd-26th holes (three birdies and a par) to go 8 up and ended it with a birdie at the 29th.
Quarterfinal, Mark O'Meara v David Ogrin, won on 20th hole. O'Meara was two down with four to play and won with a par on the 20th
Round of 16, John Cook v Lennie Clements, won on 26th hole. Defending champion Cook needed eight extra holes, the longest match of the week
The draw
Every match is recorded through the round of 64.
The final, 1979 U.S. Amateur
| Winner | Beaten | Result | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mark O'Meara | def. | John Cook | 8 & 7 |
Semifinals, 1979 U.S. Amateur
| Winner | Beaten | Result | |
|---|---|---|---|
| John Cook | def. | Cecil Ingram | 5 & 3 |
| Mark O'Meara | def. | Joe Rassett | 3 & 1 |
Quarterfinals, 1979 U.S. Amateur
| Winner | Beaten | Result | |
|---|---|---|---|
| John Cook | def. | Gary Hallberg | 4 & 3 |
| Cecil Ingram | def. | Michael Gove | 1 up |
| Mark O'Meara | def. | David Ogrin | won on 20th hole |
| Joe Rassett | def. | Dick Siderowf | unknown |
Round of 16, 1979 U.S. Amateur
| Winner | Beaten | Result | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Gary Hallberg | def. | Bobby Clampett | won on 21st hole |
| John Cook | def. | Lennie Clements | won on 26th hole |
| Michael Gove | def. | Michael Peck | 4 & 3 |
| Cecil Ingram | def. | George Zahringer | 3 & 2 |
| David Ogrin | def. | Stephen Goldstein | 4 & 2 |
| Mark O'Meara | def. | Thomas Carlton | 3 & 2 |
| Dick Siderowf | def. | William Stewart | 2 & 1 |
| Joe Rassett | def. | Tom Kelley | 6 & 4 |
Round of 32, 1979 U.S. Amateur
| Winner | Beaten | Result | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bobby Clampett | def. | Timmy Baker | 5 & 4 |
| Gary Hallberg | def. | Martin West III | 1 up |
| John Cook | def. | Wayne Player | 1 up |
| Lennie Clements | def. | Rick Fehr | 6 & 5 |
| Michael Gove | def. | Clyde Rego | 4 & 3 |
| Michael Peck | def. | Rick Borg | won on 20th hole |
| George Zahringer | def. | William Morgan | 5 & 4 |
| Cecil Ingram | def. | William McLaughlan | 5 & 4 |
| Stephen Goldstein | def. | Tim Graham | 3 & 2 |
| David Ogrin | def. | William Wood | 1 up |
| Thomas Carlton | def. | Frank Fuhrer | unknown |
| Mark O'Meara | def. | Hal Sutton | 1 up |
| Dick Siderowf | def. | Scott Hoch | 6 & 5 |
| Tom Kelley | def. | Donald Bliss | 2 up |
| William Stewart | def. | Doug Fischesser | 3 & 2 |
| Joe Rassett | def. | Fred Couples | 2 & 1 |
Round of 64, 1979 U.S. Amateur
| Winner | Beaten | Result | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bobby Clampett | def. | Bryan Pini | 1 up |
| Timmy Baker | def. | John Salamone | 1 up |
| Gary Hallberg | def. | Dan Croonquist | 4 & 3 |
| Martin West III | def. | Kevin Arnold | 5 & 4 |
| John Cook | def. | Robert Wrenn Jr. | 3 & 1 |
| Wayne Player | def. | Tom Henderson | 3 & 1 |
| Lennie Clements | def. | John Grace | 5 & 3 |
| Rick Fehr | def. | Marshall Steward | 2 & 1 |
| Michael Gove | def. | Jon Morse | won on 19th hole |
| Clyde Rego | def. | David Lane | won on 19th hole |
| Michael Peck | def. | Mark Hendrickson | 2 & 1 |
| Rick Borg | def. | Mitch Mooney | 1 up |
| George Zahringer | def. | Bob Tway | 4 & 3 |
| William Morgan | def. | John McKey | 2 up |
| Cecil Ingram | def. | Brian Gaddy | 1 up |
| William McLaughlan | def. | Scott Stoner | won on 19th hole |
| Tim Graham | def. | Tom Reynolds | 3 & 2 |
| Stephen Goldstein | def. | Larry Lis | 3 & 1 |
| William Wood | def. | Jodie Mudd | won on 19th hole |
| David Ogrin | def. | A.D. Gray | 4 & 3 |
| Frank Fuhrer | def. | David Ojala | 6 & 4 |
| Thomas Carlton | def. | Mitchell Camp | 2 & 1 |
| Mark O'Meara | def. | Kel Devlin | 4 & 3 |
| Hal Sutton | def. | Jay Sigel | 2 & 1 |
| Scott Hoch | def. | Rafael Alarcon | won on 19th hole |
| Dick Siderowf | def. | Joel Peattie | 4 & 3 |
| Doug Fischesser | def. | Tom Inskeep | 5 & 4 |
| Donald Bliss | def. | Nicholas Beauvy | 2 up |
| Tom Kelley | def. | Griff Moody III | 4 & 3 |
| Fred Couples | def. | Scott Nicholas | 4 & 3 |
| Joe Rassett | def. | Jerry Courville Jr. | 3 & 2 |
| William Stewart | def. | Brent Murray | won on 19th hole |
How this was built
Every value is shown as recorded in GNN's U.S. Amateur data set (research collected through October 20, 2026). "unknown" means no source confirmed it; nothing is estimated. Where sources disagree, the USGA's own record is used.
Data: us-amateur.json.