# Sam Parks Jr.

Samuel McLaughlin Parks Jr. (June 23, 1909 – April 7, 1997) was an American professional golfer, the winner of the U.S. Open in 1935, his only major title.
Born in Bellevue, Pennsylvania, near Pittsburgh, Parks used his knowledge of the nearby Oakmont Country Club to win in June 1935 at age 25. Although a comparatively recent convert from college and amateur ranks and little-known nationally, Parks, the professional at the nearby South Hills Country Club, was the only player to negotiate Oakmont's furrowed bunkers and shaved greens in less than 300. After winning the U.S. Open, Parks played for the U.S. Ryder Cup team, matched against Alf Perry (the reigning British Open champion), the first time the U.S. Open champion would play the British Open Champion of the same year in the Ryder Cup Match. During that event, at the 36th hole, Parks made a 30-foot (9 m) birdie putt to win the hole and tie the match, so that both he and the British champ remained undefeated in Ryder Cup play.
Parks, a University of Pittsburgh alumnus who helped found the school's golf team in the 1920s, died in 1997 at age 87 in Clearwater, Florida.

## Professional wins (5)
### PGA Tour wins (1)

| Year | Tournament | Winning score | Margin | Runner-up |
| 1935 | U.S. Open | +11 (77-73-73-76=299) | 2 strokes | Jimmy Thomson |

### Other wins (4)

this list may be incomplete
* 1937 Tri-State PGA Championship
* 1940 Pennsylvania Open Championship
* 1943 Tri-State PGA Championship
* 1945 Tri-State PGA Championship

## Major championships
### Wins (1)

| Year | Championship | 54 holes | Winning score | Margin | Runner-up |
| 1935 | U.S. Open | Tied for lead | +11 (77-73-73-76=299) | 2 strokes | Jimmy Thomson |

### Results timeline

| Tournament | 1931 | 1932 | 1933 | 1934 | 1935 | 1936 | 1937 | 1938 | 1939 |
| Masters Tournament | NYF | NYF | NYF | T46 | T15 | T20 | T36 | 24 | |
| U.S. Open | CUT | T66 | | T37 | 1 | CUT | T16 | CUT | T38 |
| PGA Championship | | | | | R16 | | R32 | R64 | R64 |
| Tournament | 1940 | 1941 | 1942 | 1943 | 1944 | 1945 | 1946 | 1947 |
| Masters Tournament | | T19 | | NT | NT | NT | | |
| U.S. Open | T29 | T33 | NT | NT | NT | NT | CUT | CUT |
| PGA Championship | | | R32 | NT | | | | |
| Tournament | 1951 | 1953 | 1954 | 1955 | 1956 | 1957 | 1958 | 1959 |
| Masters Tournament | | 50 | 72 | 61 | T65 | CUT | CUT | CUT |
| U.S. Open | CUT | | | | | | | |
| PGA Championship | | | | | | | | |
| Tournament | 1960 | 1961 | 1962 |
| Masters Tournament | CUT | CUT | CUT |
| U.S. Open | | | |
| PGA Championship | | | |
Note: Parks never played in The Open Championship.
NYF = tournament not yet founded NT = no tournament CUT = missed the half-way cut R64, R32, R16, QF, SF = round in which player lost in PGA Championship match play "T" indicates a tie for a place

### Summary

| Tournament | Wins | 2nd | 3rd | Top-5 | Top-10 | Top-25 | Events | Cuts made |
| Masters Tournament | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 16 | 10 |
| U.S. Open | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 13 | 7 |
| The Open Championship | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| PGA Championship | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 5 | 5 |
| Totals | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 9 | 34 | 22 |
* Most consecutive cuts made – 7 (twice)
* Longest streak of top-10s – 2 (1935 U.S. Open – 1935 PGA)