Johnny Goodman

Who was Johnny Goodman?

John George Goodman was the last amateur golfer to win the U.S. Open, doing so in 1933; he also won the U.S. Amateur in 1937.

Goodman was born in South Omaha, Nebraska in 1909, to Lithuanian immigrants. He was orphaned at the age of 14 when his mother died after giving birth to her 13th child and his father abandoned the family. He won the Omaha city championship in 1925; four years later, he won the first of three consecutive Nebraska Amateur titles. He won the Trans-Mississippi Amateur three times.

Goodman did not turn professional until 1960; he supported himself throughout his career by selling insurance. There is a golf course in Omaha named after him.