John Harris, the last mid-amateur to win the U.S. Amateur, dies at 73

John Harris, the last mid-amateur to win the U.S. Amateur championship in 1993 before turning pro to compete on the PGA Tour Champions died Wednesday. He was 73.

Harris' death was confirmed by the USGA and PGA Tour Champions. Harris had Acute Myeloid Leukemia, a type of blood cancer that affects the bone marrow, and he was admitted to hospice on Tuesday.

Harris famously won the 1993 U.S. Amateur at Champions Golf Club in Houston, topping Danny Ellis 5 and 3 in the championship match. He also claimed amateur titles at the Sunnehanna and four times at the Minnesota Amateur.

Born Minneapolis, Minnesota, on June 13, 1952, Harris played hockey at the University of Minnesota, where Herb Brooks, the famous leader for Team USA in the 1980 Winter Olympics, was his coach. Harris was the second-leading scorer on the 1974 team that won the NCAA Championship. That same year, he won the Big 10 Championship. Then that summer, he won his first Minnesota Amateur.

After college, Harris played professional hockey for a short time but earned his PGA Tour card after tying for 11th in the qualifying Tournament at the Walt Disney World Resort. He made three cuts in 10 stats that season but lost his card at the end of 1976, though he did qualify for the U.S. Open in 1977. He regained amateur status in 1993.

After Harris won the U.S. Amateur, he also played on the Walker Cup team in 1993 that defeated Great Britain & Ireland. He played on three more Walker Cup teams, amassing a 4-1-2 record.

He remained an amateur until he turned 50, when he joined the PGA Tour Champions. He struggled early but broke through in 2006 with his lone victory at the 2006 Commerce Bank Championship in a playoff over Tom Jenkins. He served as director of golf at Minnesota for one year, starting in 2010, and played sparingly on the senior circuit for the next decade, making 53 starts.

Just last week, the Minnesota Golf Association says Harris shot even-par 72 at Edina Country Club, per the USGA. But earlier this week, he started feeling sick and was admitted to hospice.

The University of Minnesota inducted Harris into its M Club Hall of Fame in 1994 for his golf and hockey achievements, and the Minnesota Golf Hall of Fame inducted Harris in 1998.