1959 PGA Championship

1959 PGA Championship
Tournament information
DatesJuly 30 – August 2, 1959
LocationSt. Louis Park, Minnesota
Course(s)Minneapolis Golf Club
Organized byPGA of America
Tour(s)PGA Tour
FormatStroke play
Statistics
Par70
Length6,850 yards (6,264 m)
Field174 players,
100 after 1st cut
64 after 2nd cut
Cut150 (+10) (1st cut)
221 (+11) (2nd cut)
Prize fund$51,175[1]
Winner's share$8,250
Champion
United States Bob Rosburg
277 (−3)
← 1958
1960 →

The 1959 PGA Championship was the 41st PGA Championship played from July 30 to August 2 at Minneapolis Golf Club in St. Louis Park, Minnesota, a suburb west of Minneapolis.

Six strokes back at the start of the final round, Bob Rosburg shot a 66 (−4) to win his only major championship at 277 (−3), one stroke ahead of runners-up Jerry Barber and Doug Sanders.[2][3][4] Rosburg had managed only five birdies in the first three rounds,[5] but had five in the first nine on Sunday to go out in 30, then a record.[2] Barber shot a 65 on Friday and was the 36-hole and 54-hole leader at 205 (−5), with Sanders a stroke back.[6] Barber won the title two years later, in a Monday playoff in 1961. Tied for fourteenth at 286 (+6) was Arnold Palmer.[3]

This was the second year of stroke play at the PGA Championship, a match play event through 1957. Daily admission was three dollars on Thursday and Friday, and five dollars per day on the weekend.[7] The winner's share was increased fifty per cent to $8,250; two years earlier, it was $8,000 for the final match play competition.

The Open Championship was played several weeks earlier in Scotland at Muirfield; only four Americans (two amateurs) were in the field and none made the cut.

Round summaries

First round

Thursday, July 30, 1959

Place Player Score To par
T1 United States Jerry Barber 69 −1
United States Jackson Bradley
United States Walter Burkemo
United States Billy Casper
United States Dick Hart
United States Chuck Klein
United States Mike Krak
United States Gene Littler
United States Mike Souchak
T10 United States Jack Burke Jr. 70 E
United States Buster Cupit
United States Don Fairfield
United States Al Feminelli
United States Billy Maxwell
United States Herman Scharlau
United States Don Shock
United States Ken Venturi
United States Art Wall Jr.

Source:[8][9]

Second round

Friday, July 31, 1959

Place Player Score To par
1 United States Jerry Barber 69-65=134 −6
2 United States Mike Souchak 69-67=136 −4
3 United States Doug Sanders 72-66=138 −2
T4 United States Dow Finsterwald 71-68=139 −1
United States Gene Littler 69-70=139
T6 United States Billy Casper 69-71=140 E
United States Lionel Hebert 71-69=140
United States Cary Middlecoff 72-68=140
T9 United States Walter Burkemo 69-71=141 +1
United States Fred Hawkins 72-69=141
United States Bob Goalby 72-69=141

Source:[10]

Third round

Saturday, August 1, 1959

Place Player Score To par
1 United States Jerry Barber 69-65-71=205 −5
2 United States Doug Sanders 72-66-68=206 −4
3 United States Mike Souchak 69-67-71=207 −3
T4 United States Dow Finsterwald 71-68-71=210 E
United States Cary Middlecoff 72-68-70=210
T6 United States Jay Hebert 72-70-69=211 +1
United States Gene Littler 69-70-72=211
United States Bob Rosburg 71-72-68=211
T9 United States Tommy Jacobs 73-71-68=212 +2
United States Sam Snead 71-73-68=212
United States Ken Venturi 70-72-70=212

Source:[5][11]

Final round

Sunday, August 2, 1959

Place Player Score To par Money ($)
1 United States Bob Rosburg 71-72-68-66=277 −3 8,250
T2 United States Jerry Barber 69-65-71-73=278 −2 3,563
United States Doug Sanders 72-66-68-72=278
4 United States Dow Finsterwald 71-68-71-70=280 E 2,500
T5 United States Bob Goalby 72-69-72-68=281 +1 2,000
United States Mike Souchak 69-67-71-74=281
United States Ken Venturi 70-72-70-69=281
T8 United States Cary Middlecoff 72-68-70-72=282 +2 1,600
United States Sam Snead 71-73-68-70=282
10 United States Gene Littler 69-70-72-73=284 +4 1,450

Source:[2][3]

Scorecard

Final round

Hole 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18
Par 4 4 5 3 4 3 4 4 4 3 4 4 4 4 5 3 4 4
United States Rosburg +1 E −1 −1 −2 −2 −2 −3 −4 −4 −4 −3 −3 −3 −3 −3 −3 −3
United States Barber −5 −5 −5 −5 −5 −5 −5 −4 −4 −4 −4 −3 −3 −3 −4 −4 −3 −2
United States Sanders −4 −4 −4 −3 −2 −2 −2 −2 −3 −3 −3 −2 −2 −2 −2 −2 −1 −2

Cumulative tournament scores, relative to par

Birdie Bogey Double bogey

Source:[3]

References

  1. ^ "Tournament Info for: 1959 PGA Championship". PGA.com. Archived from the original on October 23, 2006. Retrieved December 29, 2012.
  2. ^ a b c Bartlett, Charles (August 3, 1959). "Rosburg wins P.G.A. title with 277". Chicago Daily Tribune. p. 1, part 4.
  3. ^ a b c d "Rosburg Rallies to Win PGA". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Associated Press. August 3, 1959. pp. 18, 21.
  4. ^ Brown, Gwilym (August 10, 1959). "Drama at Minneapolis in wind and rain". Sports Illustrated. p. 42.
  5. ^ a b Bartlett, Charles (August 2, 1959). "Barber keeps P.G.A. lead by stroke with 205". Chicago Sunday Tribune. p. 1, part 2.
  6. ^ "Barber keeps lead". Eugene Register-Guard. Oregon. Associated Press. August 2, 1959. p. 1C.
  7. ^ Bartlett, Charles (July 30, 1959). "Old timer laments match play passing as 41st PGA meet opens". Chicago Daily Tribune. p. 3, part 6.
  8. ^ "Nine players tied for PGA lead with 69s". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Associated Press. July 31, 1959. p. 17.
  9. ^ "PGA tournament scoreboard". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Associated Press. July 31, 1959. p. 18.
  10. ^ "Jerry Barber grabs PGA lead with 134". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Associated Press. August 1, 1959. p. 11.
  11. ^ "Barber keeps lead on great final shot". Spokesman-Review. Spokane, Washington. Associated Press. August 2, 1959. p. 1, sports.

44°57′50″N 93°23′42″W / 44.964°N 93.395°W / 44.964; -93.395