Martin Alan Fleckman (born April 23, 1944) is an American professional golfer who played on the PGA Tour in the 1960s and 1970s.
Born in Port Arthur, Texas,[2] Fleckman credits Byron Nelson, Carl Lohren, and Jim Hardy with teaching him how to play golf.[3][4] At the age of 20 in 1964, Fleckman won the individual title at the Texas State Amateur. In 1965, he won the NCAA Championship while at the University of Houston,[2] where he was a three-time All-American member of the golf team: third-team in 1964, first-team in 1965 and 1966.[5] He competed for the United States in Israel in the 1965 Maccabiah Games.[6] He was a member of the Walker Cup team in 1967.
While still an amateur, Fleckman played in the U.S. Open at Baltusrol in 1967. He led after the first and third rounds,[7][8] but shot 80 (+10) on Sunday amid a surge by eventual champion Jack Nicklaus.[3][9][10] The last amateur to lead the U.S. Open at 54 holes was Johnny Goodman, 34 years earlier in 1933.[2] (Seven years earlier in 1960, Nicklaus led as an amateur during the final round.) Fleckman finished in a tie for 18th place and was the low amateur, a stroke ahead of Bob Murphy, who shot 69 in the final round.[9]
Fleckman was inducted into the Texas Golf Hall of Fame in 1986, and into the University of Houston Hall of Honor in 2006.[3][4] He also received the prestigious 2007 Teacher of the Year Award for the Southern Texas Section of the PGA.[4] He currently works as director of golf instruction at Blackhorse Teaching Center in Texas.[5]
