Jay Haas breaks Sam Snead's record as oldest to make cut on PGA TOUR

NEW ORLEANS – Jay Haas was a little reluctant to take the kudos but the 68-year-old has broken a record Sam Snead held for over 40 years by making the cut at the Zurich Classic of New Orleans.

Haas, who is paired with2011 FedExCup winning son Bill in the team format at TPC Louisiana, had to make a nervous 4-foot, 5-inch par putt on the 18th hole to secure a 1-under 71 and 8-under total to make the weekend on the number. By sinking the putt he became the oldest player in PGA TOUR history to make the cut.

At 68 years, 4 months and 20 days old Haas overtakes Snead’s effort at the 1979 FedEx St. Jude Championship when the co all-time TOUR win leader was 67 years, 2 months, 23 days of age.

“That was probably as nervous as I've ever been over a putt of that length. It sounds silly just to have a chance to make the cut. However, there's a lot of circumstances here that it kind of made it doubly important in my mind,” Haas said after the round.

“To somehow shake that putt in on the last hole was something I'll never forget. But just the whole week, playing with Bill, getting texts from all my kids, it's just been a real charge.”

After the father/son duo shot 7-under 65 in Thursday Four-ball, the chance to break the record became reality and at 10-under through 13 holes during Friday’s Foursomes (alternate shot) format it looked a safe bet.

But they three-putted the par-3 14th hole before 2011 FedExCup winning Bill sent their tee shot on the par-3 17th into the water leading to another bogey. With just the par-5 18th to play it came down to needing one more par. Jay sent the tee shot into a fairway bunker leaving Bill to lay up. Jay’s approach shot finished 47-feet from the hole from where Bill came up a little over four-feet short.

But it wasn’t the cut record that made Jay nervous over the putt. It was the fact his son is fighting to make the FedExCup Playoffs and at 168th in the current standings he needs to accumulate some points.

“I was grinding. 14, he hit an unbelievable hybrid in there on that par-3 and I ran it by five feet and we three-putted, and then the next hole he hit a beautiful 6-iron and I left that three feet short,” Bill Haas explained.

“It's just hard when you're trying so hard. It's one of the hardest things to do in golf is to let that go and quit trying so hard and just execute. I was struggling out there to execute. But it’s fun to hang on, fun for him to make that last putt. I'd feel stick to my stomach if I would have left it short there and we missed, especially hitting it in the water on 17, you just feel like you want to take all the blame if something doesn't go right.”

But plenty continued to go right for them, even if Bill didn’t want his dad to talk of the record before they were officially through to the weekend for fear of bad New Orleans style “juju”. When it did become official Jay was still reluctant to see his name usurp the 82-time TOUR winning Snead.

“I don't think it should be (the record) because Sam Snead did it on his own… but anything that I'm even remotely close to Sam Snead on would be very special,” he said. “I'm not saying it's easy with a partner but I don't know that I should take full credit for that.”

Haas not only played on TOUR with Snead but was often regaled with stories via his uncle, Masters champion Bob Goalby, of the early years. Despite being well past his best years when Jay began his TOUR journey that includes nine wins and now 592 made cuts (also a record) from 799 starts, Snead would often show courtesy to Haas, while being a little gruff with others.

“I probably played at least 15 rounds on TOUR with Sam who was still playing in his 60s and 70s when I was first on the TOUR and he was great. He could still do it. I was jealous of his swing then and he was rolling in 20-footers like it was nothing. He had a modern-day swing back in the 30s and 40s. He was a special athlete,” Haas recalled.

“He was third at a PGA Championship at 62 with only Nicklaus and Trevino beating him and the same year he set the cut record he made the cut at the ‘79 PGA Championship as well. So, it feels like he still deserves it. And I know he’d have been ribbing me a little if he was here saying, “well gosh darn it I didn’t need a partner for mine.”