Article

Dan Halldorson

Published Online January 13, 2008

Last Edited May 13, 2019

Daniel Albert Halldorson, golfer (born 2 April 1952 in Winnipeg, MB; died 19 November 2015 in Cambridge, Illinois). Dan Halldorson was one of Canada’s best and most influential golfers. He won seven Canadian Tour events and finished in the Top 10 in 28 PGA Tour events, amassing career earnings just shy of US$1.2 million. He was named Canada’s professional golfer of the year in 1981 and 1983 and is the only Canadian golfer to be a part of two World Cup victories (1980 and 1985). He served as deputy director of the Mackenzie Tour – PGA Tour Canada from 2005 to 2011 and was a mentor to such Canadian golf greats as Mike Weir and Ian Leggatt. Halldorson is a member of the Canadian Golf Hall of Fame, the Manitoba Sports Hall of Fame and the Professional Golfers’ Association (PGA) of Canada Hall of Fame.

Early Years and Career

Halldorson grew up in Shilo, Brandon and Sandy Hook, Manitoba. He first golfed at the Sandy Hook Golf Club across the road from his house and won the Manitoba Junior Championship in 1970.  

Canadian Tour Highlights

Known for his dependable, effortless swing, Halldorson played the US tour full-time, but as a strong supporter of Canadian golf he often played Canadian events as well. He turned professional in 1971, winning the Manitoba PGA Championship later that year. He won the Saskatchewan Open in 1977 and the Manitoba Open in 1977 and 1978. He won the Quebec Open in 1980 and was again crowned the Manitoba Open champion in 1983 and 1984. He was named Canada’s professional golfer of the year in 1981 and 1983 and was awarded the PGA Tour Canada Order of Merit in 1983. In 1986, he won the Canadian PGA Championship in Brantford, Ontario.  

PGA Tour Highlights

Halldorson played on the PGA Tour from 1975 to 2004. He competed in more than 400 tournaments, finished in the Top 10 in 28 events and retired with career earnings of nearly US$1.2 million. His only PGA Tour victory came at the 1980 Pensacola Open, though he also won the 1986 Deposit Guaranty Classic, an unofficial PGA Tour event. Following his retirement, he briefly played on the PGA Tour Champions (formerly the Senior PGA Tour).  

International Tournaments

Halldorson and Jim Nelford of Burnaby, BC, took the team title in the 1980 World Cup in Bogota, Colombia. Skin ailments interfered with Halldorson’s play from 1982 until 1985, by which time he had fully recovered. That year, he and Dave Barr of Kelowna, BC, won the team title in the World Cup in La Quinta, California.

Post-Retirement Career

Halldorson wrote an instructional book, Dan Halldorson’s Keys to Effortless Golf, which was published in 1994. After retiring from the PGA Tour in 2004, Halldorson served as deputy director of the Mackenzie Tour – PGA Tour Canada from 2005 to 2011. He was also director of golf at Oak Island Resort in Virden, Manitoba. He died of a stroke at the age of 63.  

Awards

  • Professional Golfer of the Year, PGA of Canada (1981, 1983)  
  • Order of Merit, PGA Tour Canada (1983)
  • Inductee, Canadian Golf Hall of Fame, Golf Canada (2002)  
  • Inductee, Manitoba Golf Hall of Fame & Museum (2003)
  • Inductee, Manitoba Sports Hall of Fame (2007)
  • Inductee, Professional Golfers’ Association (PGA) of Canada Hall of Fame (2014)

Interested in sports?