Payne Stewart (January 30, 1957 - October 25, 1999) was an American golfer.

Born in Springfield, Missouri, he attended Southern Methodist University; a year later he joined the PGA TOUR. He won eleven Tour events, including the 1989 PGA Championship, and the US Open in 1991 and 1999. He was a two-time winner of the Hassan II Trophy in Morocco. He represented the United States on five Ryder Cup teams and three World Cup teams.

He was always popular with fans, especially for his stylish clothing, and was reputed to have the biggest wardrobe of all professional golfers. He was a continual target for photographers especially because of his rakish tam o'shanter caps and elegant patterned trousers which were a combination of plus fours and knickerbockers.

A month after his United States team rallied to win the Ryder Cup in Brookline, Massachusetts, Stewart lost his life during a airplane flight from Orlando to Texas. Investigators believe that the plane suffered a sudden loss of cabin pressure early in the flight, killing all on board. The plane, on autopilot, continued flying until it ran out of fuel and crashed from a great height in South Dakota.

Among the five other people aboard the plane was Bruce Borland , a highly regarded golf architect with the Jack Nicklaus golf course design company.

External link

• Payne Stewart at Golf Stars Online http://www.golfstarsonline.com/S/Payne_Stewart/ Directory of interviews, websites and feature articles with or about him.