Andy Bean, an 11-time winner on the PGA Tour.

Andy Bean, an 11-time winner on the PGA Tour, died after a double lung transplant after a COVID-19 fight.

Andy Bean was a big man on the PGA Tour for almost 30 years. He was 6 feet 4 inches tall and had a shock of red hair. His skills also scared off other rivals. “He’s awesome long, he’s straight, and he can putt,” Raymond Floyd, a Masters and PGA winner, once told Sports Illustrated.

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Bean never won a major; three times he came in second. But the Florida Gator star won 11 times on the PGA Tour during the time when Jack Nicklaus and Tom Watson were the best golfers, and he won three more times on the senior tour. He won 103 races and came in second 15 times on the standard track, which helped him make $10 million over the course of his career.

“Everyone has a chance to have their time.” As Bean told The Ledger in 2015 in his home town of Lakeland, Fla., “You hope you make the most of it.” “I’ve had the chance to see and do things around the world that most people can only dream of.” I’ve been able to do fun things and take care of my family. How could anyone be upset about that?

The PGA Tour announced on Saturday that Bean had died at the age of 70. He was still trying to get better after having a double-lung transplant six weeks ago because his lungs were badly damaged in a battle with COVID-19.

Larry Rinker, a former tour player, wrote on X (formerly Twitter), “So sad to hear of the death of my friend and fellow Gator, Andy Bean.” I met him on a recruiting trip to Gainesville when I was a senior in high school. He seemed like a huge person. A good and kind person.”

Tom Bean was born in 1953 and spent most of his childhood in Jekyll Island, Georgia. When his father Tommy built a golf course in Lakeland, the Bean family moved there. He then went to the University of Florida and played for the Gators. Bean, along with friends Gary Koch, Woody Blackburn, and Phil Hancock, led the Gators to the 1973 NCAA Championship.

Bean turned pro in 1975 and was one of the most steady players on the tour. From 1977 to 1986, he finished in the top 35 on the money list. He was born and raised on Bermuda grass, so he was very good at playing on it and won the Doral-Eastern Open three times. The last time he won on tour was in the Bryon Nelson Golf Classic in 1986.

In 1985, Andy Bean played on the PGA Tour.

PGA TOUR History

Bean was very loud and intimidating, but he was mostly quiet and shy. He was sure of himself, though.

In 1979, when he had five wins, Bean told Sports Illustrated, “I never hit a shot that didn’t look good.” “Sometimes I just don’t think straight.” I will say yes if you ask me if I can beat Watson. I always believe I can beat everyone. That includes Watson, Nicklaus, and everyone else.

Bean switched to the senior tour when he turned 50 and won three times there. He beat everyone else by nine shots to win the Charles Schwab Cup Championship in 2008.

But bad luck struck Bean again when, in 2011, another driver ran a red light and hit his SUV, hurting his hand. After that, Bean’s right index finger was bent, and his arms hurt a lot and swelled up. He told The Ledger in late 2015 that he had told the Champions Tour that he no longer planned to play because he couldn’t train. He was 62 years old.

Bean loved sports and was glad he could fish more and spend time with his wife Debbie, their three daughters, and their grandchildren.

“Giving up something you’ve worked for a long time is hard.” Bean told The Ledger, “But everyone has to do it.”

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