# Steve Spray

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{{Short description|American professional golfer (1940–2020)}}
{{use mdy dates|date=November 2025}}
{{Infobox golfer
| name              = Steve Spray
| image             = 
| imagesize         = <!-- e.g. 250px (default is 200px) -->
| caption           = 
| fullname          = John Stephen Spray
| nickname          = 
| birth_date        = {{Birth date |1940|12|16}}
| birth_place       = [Des Moines, Iowa](/source/Des_Moines%2C_Iowa), U.S.
| death_date        = {{Death date and age|2020|5|15|1940|12|16}}
| death_place       = [Chesterfield, Missouri](/source/Chesterfield%2C_Missouri), U.S.
| height            = {{height|ft=6|in=1}}
| weight            = {{convert|170|lb|kg st|abbr=on}}
| nationality       = {{USA}}
| residence         = 
| spouse            = 
| partner           = 
| children          = 2
| college           = [University of Iowa](/source/University_of_Iowa)<br>[Eastern New Mexico University](/source/Eastern_New_Mexico_University)
| yearpro           = 1964
| extour            = [PGA Tour](/source/PGA_Tour)<br>[Champions Tour](/source/Champions_Tour)
| prowins           = 8
| pgawins           = 1
| otherwins         = 7
| majorwins         = <!-- Number of Major Championship wins -->
| masters           = 43rd: 1969
| usopen            = T5: 1968
| open              = DNP
| pga               = T78: 1971
| wghofid           = <!-- World Golf Hall of Fame member ID -->
| wghofyear         = <!-- World Golf Hall of Fame year inducted -->
| award1            = <!-- Achievement or award details -->
| year1             = <!-- Year(s) of achievement or award -->
| award2            = 
| year2             = 
| awardssection     = <!-- location of awards page or section -->
}}
'''John Stephen Spray''' (December 16, 1940 – May 15, 2020) was an American [professional golfer](/source/professional_golfer). He played on the [PGA Tour](/source/PGA_Tour) in the 1960s and 1970s.

== Early life and amateur career ==
In 1940, Spray was born in [Des Moines, Iowa](/source/Des_Moines%2C_Iowa). He grew up in [Indianola, Iowa](/source/Indianola%2C_Iowa).<ref name="ys">{{cite web |title=statistics from Yahoo Golf |url=https://sports.yahoo.com/golf/pga/players/Steve+Spray/2191 |access-date=May 1, 2009}}</ref><ref name="ighof" /> His first big win as an amateur came in the 1958 Iowa Junior Amateur; the next year he gained national fame by winning the [Western Junior](/source/Western_Junior).

Spray attended the [University of Iowa](/source/University_of_Iowa) initially but transferred to [Eastern New Mexico University](/source/Eastern_New_Mexico_University) where he spent most of his college career.<ref name="ighof">{{cite web |title=Iowa Golf Hall of Fame Induction |url=http://www.iowagolf.org/HTML/News/2009News/news2009HallofFamePR.htm |accessdate=May 1, 2009 }}{{Dead link|date=June 2018 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=no }}</ref><ref name="sfg">{{cite news |title=Spray's win at Harding not list in mists of time |last=Chapin |first=Dwight |newspaper=San Francisco Chronicle |url=https://www.sfgate.com/sports/article/Spray-s-win-at-Harding-not-lost-in-mists-of-time-2604584.php |access-date=May 1, 2009 |date=October 3, 2005}}</ref> In consecutive years, from 1962 to 1963, he won the [NAIA Championship](/source/NAIA_Men's_Golf_Championship) while at Eastern New Mexico.

== Professional career ==
In 1964, Spray turned professional. He began play on the PGA Tour the following year.<ref name="ys" /><ref name="sfg" /> The highlight of Spray's career came in 1969 with a win at the [San Francisco Open Invitational](/source/San_Francisco_Open_Invitational), the last PGA Tour event held at [San Francisco](/source/San_Francisco)'s storied [Harding Park Golf Club](/source/Harding_Park_Golf_Club).<ref name="sfg" /> His best finish in a [major championship](/source/Men's_major_golf_championships) was a T-5 at the [1968 U.S. Open](/source/1968_U.S._Open_(golf)).<ref>{{cite web |title=Steve Spray |website=Golf Major Championships |url=http://www.golfmajorchampionships.com/players/713 |accessdate=May 1, 2009}}</ref> 

Spray was hampered by injuries during the last years of his PGA career including [tendinitis](/source/tendinitis) in his left thumb that forced him to change his grip and back surgery that caused him to miss almost all of 1974.<ref name="sfg" />

After leaving the PGA Tour, Spray began working as the head pro at [St. Louis Country Club](/source/St._Louis_Country_Club) in 1976 – a position he held for more than 30 years.<ref name="sfg" />

== Personal life ==
Spray died in [Chesterfield, Missouri](/source/Chesterfield%2C_Missouri) on May 15, 2020.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.overtonfunerals.com/obituary/john-spray?fbclid=IwAR2SVkmaAS7D8BPo4sx5T3qT-uXQePBqvqwgOAHMHKC3Q6SNiWimdCqP69E |title=John Stephen Spray obituary}}</ref>

== Awards and honors ==

* In 1984, Spray was honored as the Gateway Section PGA Player of the Year.
* In 2009, he was inducted into the Iowa Golf Hall of Fame.<ref name="ighof" />

==Amateur wins==
*1958 Iowa Junior Amateur
*1959 [Western Junior](/source/Western_Junior)
*1962 Northwest Amateur, Central States Amateur, [NAIA Championship](/source/NAIA_Men's_Golf_Championship)
*1963 [http://www.iowaamateur.org/ Iowa Amateur], Central States Amateur, Tournament of Champions, [NAIA Championship](/source/NAIA_Men's_Golf_Championship)

==Professional wins (8)==
===PGA Tour wins (1)===
{| class="wikitable" style="font-size:95%"
! No.
! Date
! Tournament
! Winning score
! Margin of<br>victory
! Runner-up
|-
|align=center|1
|align=right|Oct 26, [1969](/source/1969_PGA_Tour)
|[San Francisco Open Invitational](/source/San_Francisco_Open_Invitational)
|−15 (70-63-66-70=269)
|1 stroke
|{{flagicon|USA}} [Chi-Chi Rodríguez](/source/Chi-Chi_Rodr%C3%ADguez)
|}
Source:<ref>{{Cite web |title=Steve Spray |url=https://www.pgatour.com/player/02130/steve-spray |access-date=2025-11-20 |publisher=PGA Tour}}</ref>

===Other wins (7)===
*1964 [Iowa Open](/source/Iowa_Open)
*1966 [Waterloo Open Golf Classic](/source/Waterloo_Open_Golf_Classic)
*1972 [https://web.archive.org/web/20120327164654/http://www.iowagolf.org/HTML/Scholarships/Sani.html Herman Sani]
*1973 [New Mexico Open](/source/New_Mexico_Open), [Arizona Open](/source/Arizona_Open)
*1977 Gateway Section PGA Championship
*1979 Gateway Section PGA Championship

== Results in major championships ==
{| class="wikitable" style="font-size:95%;text-align:center;"
!Tournament
!1964
!1965
!1966
!1967
!1968
!1969
!1970
!1971
!1972
!1973
!1974
!1975
!1976
|-
|align="left" |[Masters Tournament](/source/Masters_Tournament)
|CUT
|style="background:#eeeeee;"|
|style="background:#eeeeee;"|
|style="background:#eeeeee;"|
|style="background:#eeeeee;"|
|42
|style="background:#eeeeee;"|
|style="background:#eeeeee;"|
|style="background:#eeeeee;"|
|style="background:#eeeeee;"|
|style="background:#eeeeee;"|
|style="background:#eeeeee;"|
|style="background:#eeeeee;"|
|-
|align="left" |[U.S. Open](/source/U.S._Open_(golf))
|style="background:#eeeeee;"|
|style="background:#eeeeee;"|
|style="background:#eeeeee;"|
|CUT
|style="background:yellow;"|T5
|CUT
|T51
|style="background:#eeeeee;"|
|CUT 
|style="background:#eeeeee;"|
|style="background:#eeeeee;"|
|style="background:#eeeeee;"|
|style="background:#eeeeee;"|
|-
| align="left" |[PGA Championship](/source/PGA_Championship)
|style="background:#eeeeee;"|
|style="background:#eeeeee;"|
|style="background:#eeeeee;"|
|style="background:#eeeeee;"|
|style="background:#eeeeee;"|
|style="background:#eeeeee;"|
|style="background:#eeeeee;"|
|T79
|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
!1977
!1978
!1979
!1980
!1981
!1982
!1983
!1984
!1985
!1986
!1987
!1988
!1989
|-
|align="left" |[Masters Tournament](/source/Masters_Tournament)
|style="background:#eeeeee;"|
|style="background:#eeeeee;"|
|style="background:#eeeeee;"|
|style="background:#eeeeee;"|
|style="background:#eeeeee;"|
|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" |[U.S. Open](/source/U.S._Open_(golf))
|CUT
|style="background:#eeeeee;"|
|CUT
|style="background:#eeeeee;"|
|style="background:#eeeeee;"|
|CUT
|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](/source/PGA_Championship)
|style="background:#eeeeee;"|
|style="background:#eeeeee;"|
|style="background:#eeeeee;"|
|CUT
|style="background:#eeeeee;"|
|style="background:#eeeeee;"|
|style="background:#eeeeee;"|
|style="background:#eeeeee;"|
|style="background:#eeeeee;"|
|style="background:#eeeeee;"|
|style="background:#eeeeee;"|
|style="background:#eeeeee;"|
|CUT
|}
''Note: Spray never played in the Open Championship.''
{{legend|yellow|Top 10}}
{{legend|#eeeeee|Did not play}}
CUT = missed the half-way cut<br>
"T" = tied for place

==References==
{{reflist}}

==External links==
*{{PGATour player|02130}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Spray, Steve}}
Category:American male golfers
Category:PGA Tour golfers
Category:PGA Tour Champions golfers
Category:Golfers from Iowa
Category:Iowa Hawkeyes men's track and field athletes
Category:Eastern New Mexico Greyhounds men's track and field athletes
Category:Sportspeople from Des Moines, Iowa
Category:People from Indianola, Iowa
Category:1940 births
Category:2020 deaths
Category:20th-century American sportsmen

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Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Steve Spray](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Steve_Spray) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Steve_Spray?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.