Golf's Greatest Year Ended in Tragedy
1999 was the wildest year professional golf has ever had — and it ended in tragedy.
In twelve months the sport produced the shark's last stand, two of the most infamous collapses in major history, the greatest comeback the Ryder Cup has ever seen, the arrival of the man who would run golf for a decade — and then lost one of its most decent champions. At the Masters, José María Olazábal, who a few years earlier couldn't walk, held off one final Sunday charge from Greg Norman. At Pinehurst, Payne Stewart drained a 15-footer on the 72nd hole to win the U.S. Open, then grabbed Phil Mickelson's face and told him being a father mattered more than any trophy. At Carnoustie, Jean Van de Velde stood in the burn in his bare feet and threw away the Open Championship, while Paul Lawrie came from ten shots back to win it. At Medinah, a 19-year-old Sergio García closed his eyes, hooked a 6-iron around a tree, and chased Tiger Woods to his second major. And at Brookline, the United States stormed back from 10–6 in the most chaotic Ryder Cup ever played.
Then, in October, a Learjet carrying the reigning U.S. Open champion flew on autopilot across America with no one conscious on board. Payne Stewart was 42.
This is the full story of the 1999 golf season — the majors, the meltdowns, the Ryder Cup, and the loss that changed the sport.
Chapters
Next: our year 2000 recap — the greatest season golf has ever seen.
👉 Subscribe to Golf News Network for more golf history.
#golf #golfhistory #1999
Chapters
- The plane that flew itself
- Olazábal, Norman, and the Masters
- Payne Stewart's U.S. Open at Pinehurst
- Carnoustie: Van de Velde's collapse, Lawrie's comeback
- Tiger vs. Sergio at the PGA
- The Battle of Brookline
- Payne concedes to Montgomerie
- The crash, and the loss of Payne Stewart
On GNN
Players
- José María Olazábal
- Greg Norman
- Payne Stewart
- Phil Mickelson
- Jean Van de Velde
- Paul Lawrie
- Sergio García
- Tiger Woods