Mike Small (golfer)

{{short description|American professional golfer, college golf coach (born 1966)}} {{Use mdy dates|date=August 2024}} {{Infobox golfer | name = Mike Small | image = | imagesize =  | caption = | fullname = | nickname = | birth_date = {{birth date and age|1966|3|4}} | birth_place = [[Aurora, Illinois]], U.S. | death_date =  | death_place = | height = {{height|ft=6|in=0}} | weight = {{convert|185|lb|kg st|abbr=on}} | nationality = {{USA}} | residence = [[Champaign, Illinois]], U.S. | spouse = | partner = | children = | college = [[University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign|University of Illinois]] | yearpro = 1990 | tour = | extour = [[PGA Tour]] [[Nationwide Tour]] [[Hooters Tour]] | prowins = 34 | nwidewins = 2 | champwins =  | seneurowins =  | otherwins = 32 | majorwins =  | masters = DNP | usopen = CUT: 1994, 1998, 2007 | open = DNP | pga = T69: 2007, 2011 | wghofid =  | wghofyear =  | award1 = | year1 = | awardssection =  }} '''Mike Small''' (born March 4, 1966) is an American [[professional golfer]] and college golf coach.

==Amateur career== Small was born in [[Aurora, Illinois]] and grew up in [[Danville, Illinois]]. He was a four-time [[letter winner]] at Danville High School. He won the Junior Masters in 1984 and went on to play college golf at the [[University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign|University of Illinois]]. At Illinois, he was a member of the 1988 [[Big Ten]] Championship team, where he finished second behind teammate and current PGA Tour member [[Steve Stricker]]. Small was named to the All-Big Ten squad and won two tournaments during his senior year, the [[Butler National Golf Club|Butler National Intercollegiate]] and the Michigan State Spartan Classic.

==Professional career== In 1990, Small turned professional. He played on various tours before joining the [[PGA Tour]] in 1995. In 1997, he won two [[Nike Tour]] events and finished in the top 15 on the Nike Tour money list, earning his PGA Tour card for the 1998 season. He played on the PGA Tour in 1998, where his best finish was 9th place at the [[Bell Canadian Open]]. In 2003, Small won the Illinois PGA and [[Illinois Open]] titles, becoming the first golfer ever to win both tournaments in the same year. He would repeat that feat three more times on the way to winning twelve IPGA titles and four Illinois Opens. He has played in 96 Nationwide Tour events finishing in the top-10 eight times. Small has also won the [[PGA Professional National Championship]] thrice, in 2005, in 2009, and in 2010. He has played in over 50 PGA Tour events in his career, including thirteen major championships. In 2016, he turned 50 and qualified for his first senior major championship, finishing T-43 at the U.S. Senior Open. He has also finished as the low club professional in the [[PGA Championship]] in 2007 and 2011.

Small has been the head golf coach at the [[Illinois Fighting Illini men's golf|University of Illinois]] since 2000. He was Big Ten Coach of the Year for the 2001–02 season, when Illinois placed 18th in the NCAA Championships. He won the honor again for the 2008–09 season when Illinois won their first Big Ten title in 21 years. He led the Illini to the Big Ten championship in each of the next four seasons, again winning conference coach of the year honors each year. In addition, he has been named Midwest Coach of the Year by the Golf Coaches Association five times, in 2003, 2009, 2010, 2011 and 2013. His 2013 Illini team won the school's first-ever NCAA Regional championship, and finished second in the NCAA Finals after defeating defending champion Texas and #1-ranked California in match play. It marks Illinois' best finish in school history.

== Personal life == Small's father, Bill Small, was captain of the 1963 Big Ten Champion [[Illinois Fighting Illini men's basketball]] team and earned All Big-Ten honors. Small's brother, Andy, was a member of the 1990 Big Ten Champion Illinois baseball squad and won four varsity letters as an infielder.

== Awards and honors == On October 25, 2013, Small was inducted into the Illinois Golf Hall of Fame.

==Amateur wins== *1984 Junior Masters *1987 [[Butler National Golf Club|Butler National Intercollegiate]], Michigan State Spartan Classic

==Professional wins (34)== ===Nike Tour wins (2)=== {| class="wikitable" style="font-size:95%;" !No. !Date !Tournament !Winning score !Margin of victory !Runner(s)-up |- |align=center|1 |align=right|Mar 16, [[1997 Nike Tour|1997]] |[[Nike Monterrey Open]] |−18 (68-67-68-67=270) |1 stroke |{{flagicon|USA}} [[Mark Carnevale]], {{flagicon|USA}} [[Chris DiMarco]], {{flagicon|USA}} [[Brian Kamm]] |- |align=center|2 |align=right|Jun 22, 1997 |[[Nike Cleveland Open]] |−18 (67-70-67-66=270) |1 stroke |{{flagicon|USA}} [[Patrick Sheehan (golfer)|Patrick Sheehan]] |}

===Hooters Tour wins (1)=== {| class="wikitable" style="font-size:95%;" !No. !Date !Tournament !Winning score !Margin of victory !Runner-up |- |align=center|1 |align=right|May 7, 1995 |Hooters Dallas Classic |−12 (67-65=132){{efn|name=weather|Shortened to 36 holes due to weather.}} |Playoff |{{flagicon|USA}} [[Rick Cramer]] |}

===Other wins (22)=== *2001 [[Illinois PGA Championship]] *2003 [[Illinois PGA Championship]], [[Illinois Open Championship]] *2004 [[Illinois PGA Championship]] *2005 [[Illinois PGA Championship]], [[Illinois Open Championship]], [[PGA Club Professional Championship]] *2006 [[Illinois PGA Championship]], [[Illinois Open Championship]] *2007 [[Illinois PGA Championship]], [[Illinois Open Championship]], Illinois PGA Match Play Championship *2008 [[Illinois PGA Championship]] *2009 [[Illinois PGA Championship]], [[PGA Professional National Championship]] *2010 [[Illinois PGA Championship]], [[PGA Professional National Championship]] *2013 [[Illinois PGA Championship]] *2014 [[Illinois PGA Championship]] *2016 [[Illinois PGA Championship]] *2020 [[Illinois PGA Championship]] *2023 [[Illinois PGA Championship]]

===Other senior wins (9)=== *2017 Illinois Senior PGA Championship *2018 Illinois Senior PGA Championship *2019 Illinois Senior PGA Championship *2020 Illinois Senior PGA Championship *2021 Illinois Senior PGA Championship *2022 Illinois Senior Open *2023 Illinois Senior PGA Championship, Illinois Senior Open *2025 Illinois Senior Open

==Results in major championships== {| class="wikitable" style="font-size:95%;text-align:center;" !Tournament !1994 !1995 !1996 !1997 !1998 !1999 |- |align=left|[[U.S. Open (golf)|U.S. Open]] |CUT |style="background:#eeeeee;"| |style="background:#eeeeee;"| |style="background:#eeeeee;"| |CUT |style="background:#eeeeee;"| |- |align=left|[[PGA Championship]] |style="background:#eeeeee;"| |style="background:#eeeeee;"| |style="background:#eeeeee;"| |style="background:#eeeeee;"| |style="background:#eeeeee;"| |style="background:#eeeeee;"| |} {| class="wikitable" style="font-size:95%;text-align:center;" !Tournament !2000 !2001 !2002 !2003 !2004 !2005 !2006 !2007 !2008 !2009 |- |align=left|[[U.S. Open (golf)|U.S. Open]] |style="background:#eeeeee;"| |style="background:#eeeeee;"| |style="background:#eeeeee;"| |style="background:#eeeeee;"| |style="background:#eeeeee;"| |style="background:#eeeeee;"| |style="background:#eeeeee;"| |CUT |style="background:#eeeeee;"| |style="background:#eeeeee;"| |- |align=left|[[PGA Championship]] |style="background:#eeeeee;"| |style="background:#eeeeee;"| |style="background:#eeeeee;"| |style="background:#eeeeee;"| |CUT |76 |CUT |T69 |style="background:#eeeeee;"| |CUT |} {| class="wikitable" style="font-size:95%;text-align:center;" !Tournament !2010 !2011 !2012 !2013 !2014 !2015 !2016 !2017 |- |align=left|[[U.S. Open (golf)|U.S. Open]] |style="background:#eeeeee;"| |style="background:#eeeeee;"| |style="background:#eeeeee;"| |style="background:#eeeeee;"| |style="background:#eeeeee;"| |style="background:#eeeeee;"| |style="background:#eeeeee;"| |style="background:#eeeeee;"| |- |align=left|[[PGA Championship]] |CUT |T69 |CUT |CUT |style="background:#eeeeee;"| |style="background:#eeeeee;"| |style="background:#eeeeee;"| |CUT |} {{legend|#eeeeee|Did not play}} CUT = missed the half-way cut "T" = tied ''Note: Small never played in the [[Masters Tournament]] or [[The Open Championship]].''

==U.S. national team appearances== *[[PGA Cup]]: 2005, 2007 (winners), 2009 (winners), 2011 (winners), 2013 (tie)

==See also== *[[1997 Nike Tour graduates]]

==Notes== {{notelist}}

==External links== *[https://web.archive.org/web/20070818211915/http://fightingillini.cstv.com/sports/m-golf/mtt/small_mike00.html Profile on Illinois' official athletic site] *{{PGATour player|07707|Mike Small}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Small, Mike}} [[Category:American male golfers]] [[Category:Illinois Fighting Illini men's golfers]] [[Category:PGA Tour golfers]] [[Category:College golf coaches in Illinois]] [[Category:Korn Ferry Tour graduates]] [[Category:Golfers from Illinois]] [[Category:Illinois Fighting Illini men's golf coaches]] [[Category:Gies College of Business alumni]] [[Category:Sportspeople from Danville, Illinois]] [[Category:1966 births]] [[Category:Living people]] [[Category:20th-century American sportsmen]]