The TOUR Insider: Will the Hall of Fame open for Perry?

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Three of Kenny Perry's 13 PGA TOUR victories have come at the Memorial.

There's a pretty good chance you'll find Kenny Perry somewhere on the first page of the leaderboard Sunday afternoon at The Memorial. He's won the tournament three times and since 1991 has missed the cut there only once. It's been his go-to event.

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Perry has won 13 times on the PGA TOUR, the first coming at Jack's place back in 1991, when he beat Hale Irwin on the first playoff hole. With his 50th birthday only 15 months away, there's a question to consider about Perry's legacy: Is he worthy of induction into the World Golf Hall of Fame?

The first qualification in that regard should be major championships. A player who has won fewer tournaments on the PGA TOUR will get more respect from the voters if they've won majors. That's why Curtis Strange was an automatic selection; 17 TOUR victories is generally a borderline figure, but when two of the wins came at the U.S. Open, it usually means an appointment with the museum curator to determine which of your artifacts will be on display in St. Augustine.

Winning a major championship helped get Ralph Guldahl and Jackie Burke in the Hall of Fame, but kept Jim Ferrier and E.J. Harrison out, even though the latter both have two more victories. Major championships -- and an international reputation -- will get Ernie Els in the Hall of Fame even if he never wins another PGA TOUR event.

Where does this leave Perry? Unfortunately, he's on the outside looking in. His failure to win the 1996 PGA Championship hurt. His inability to close the deal in Augusta after leading the 2009 Masters for 70 holes is a killer. It may have been his last true chance to win a major.

The second qualification for the Hall of Fame should be career victories. Perry has 13 of those, although after last year's career year it seems like he should have more. If a player in the modern era can get to 20 wins, he's virtually assured of election.

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Perry stated an ambitious goal of finishing his PGA TOUR career with 20 victories.

It worked for Lanny Wadkins (21) and will eventually work for Davis Love III. The 20-win ceiling has probably kept Masters champion Doug Ford (19 wins) out of the Hall. Although he's still playing well, it would be difficult for Perry to claw his way to 20 wins.

The final qualification would be whether he was, at any time in his career, considered the best player in the game. Sorry, but Mr. Woods has held that honor for the last 11 years. Only three times has Perry been among the top 10 in season earnings, the highest at No. 5 in 2008. It's like being named to the all-star team in baseball, but never being voted the MVP for the season.

Barring the addition of a major title or another five or six wins, Perry isn't going to make it. The knee injury that required surgery in 2006 essentially robbed him of 18 potentially productive months. And his contributions to two Ryder Cup teams and three Presidents Cup teams won't be enough to put him over the top.

So where does that leave him? Probably standing with another pretty solid group of players, guys like Tom Weiskopf or Johnny Revolta, who were usually in contention, enjoyed success for many years, but were never quite the absolute best. And in the case of Weiskopf (British Open, 16 career wins) and Revolta (U.S. Open, 18 career wins), they have superior credentials, aren't in the Hall of Fame and generate no support from the voters.

(How about this: Will 15 wins and one major get you in the Hall? Probably so, if you're Fred Couples. But that's another subject for another day.)

So may we please respect and admire Perry for being the type of player he's been for nearly two decades. That's especially easy this week at The Memorial, where he's finished in the top 10 in four of the last six times he's played. He became the event's oldest winner last year, when at age 47 years, 3 months and 29 days, he lifted the crystal trophy.

And please respect and admire Perry for being the type of individual he's been over the years. Always friendly and approachable, he's been a model son, father and civic leader. He might not belong in the World Golf Hall of Fame as a player, but he definitely deserves a slot as a humanitarian.

Stan Awtrey is a freelance columnist for PGATOUR.COM. His views do not necessarily reflect the views of the PGA TOUR.