1959 PGA Championship
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.
| Tournament information | |
|---|---|
| Dates | July 30 – August 2, 1959 |
| Location | St. Louis Park, Minnesota |
| Course(s) | Minneapolis Golf Club |
| Organized by | PGA of America |
| Tour(s) | PGA Tour |
| Format | Stroke play |
| Statistics | |
| Par | 70 |
| Length | 6,850 yards (6,264 m) |
| Field | 174 players, 100 after 1st cut 64 after 2nd cut |
| Cut | 150 (+10) (1st cut) 221 (+11) (2nd cut) |
| Prize fund | $51,175[1] |
| Winner's share | $8,250 |
| Champion | |
.svg.png.webp){kind=small} Bob Rosburg | |
| 277 (−3) | |
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 $8,000 for the final match play competition.
The Open Championship was played several weeks earlier in Scotland at Muirfield; only four Americans (two amateurs) were in the field and none made the cut.
Round summaries
First round
Thursday, July 30, 1959
| Place | Player | Score | To par |
|---|---|---|---|
| T1 | Jerry Barber | 69 | −1 |
| Jackson Bradley | |||
| Walter Burkemo | |||
| Billy Casper | |||
| Dick Hart | |||
| Chuck Klein | |||
| Mike Krak | |||
| Gene Littler | |||
| Mike Souchak | |||
| T10 | Jack Burke Jr. | 70 | E |
| Buster Cupit | |||
| Don Fairfield | |||
| Al Feminelli | |||
| Billy Maxwell | |||
| Herman Scharlau | |||
| Don Shock | |||
| Ken Venturi | |||
| Art Wall Jr. |
Second round
Friday, July 31, 1959
| Place | Player | Score | To par |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Jerry Barber | 69-65=134 | −6 |
| 2 | Mike Souchak | 69-67=136 | −4 |
| 3 | Doug Sanders | 72-66=138 | −2 |
| T4 | Dow Finsterwald | 71-68=139 | −1 |
| Gene Littler | 69-70=139 | ||
| T6 | Billy Casper | 69-71=140 | E |
| Lionel Hebert | 71-69=140 | ||
| Cary Middlecoff | 72-68=140 | ||
| T9 | Walter Burkemo | 69-71=141 | +1 |
| Fred Hawkins | 72-69=141 | ||
| Bob Goalby | 72-69=141 |
Source:[10]
Third round
Saturday, August 1, 1959
| Place | Player | Score | To par |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Jerry Barber | 69-65-71=205 | −5 |
| 2 | Doug Sanders | 72-66-68=206 | −4 |
| 3 | Mike Souchak | 69-67-71=207 | −3 |
| T4 | Dow Finsterwald | 71-68-71=210 | E |
| Cary Middlecoff | 72-68-70=210 | ||
| T6 | Jay Hebert | 72-70-69=211 | +1 |
| Gene Littler | 69-70-72=211 | ||
| Bob Rosburg | 71-72-68=211 | ||
| T9 | Tommy Jacobs | 73-71-68=212 | +2 |
| Sam Snead | 71-73-68=212 | ||
| Ken Venturi | 70-72-70=212 |
Final round
Sunday, August 2, 1959
| Place | Player | Score | To par | Money ($) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Bob Rosburg | 71-72-68-66=277 | −3 | 8,250 |
| T2 | Jerry Barber | 69-65-71-73=278 | −2 | 3,563 |
| Doug Sanders | 72-66-68-72=278 | |||
| 4 | Dow Finsterwald | 71-68-71-70=280 | E | 2,500 |
| T5 | Bob Goalby | 72-69-72-68=281 | +1 | 2,000 |
| Mike Souchak | 69-67-71-74=281 | |||
| Ken Venturi | 70-72-70-69=281 | |||
| T8 | Cary Middlecoff | 72-68-70-72=282 | +2 | 1,600 |
| Sam Snead | 71-73-68-70=282 | |||
| 10 | Gene Littler | 69-70-72-73=284 | +4 | 1,450 |
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 |
| Rosburg | +1 | E | −1 | −1 | −2 | −2 | −2 | −3 | −4 | −4 | −4 | −3 | −3 | −3 | −3 | −3 | −3 | −3 |
| Barber | −5 | −5 | −5 | −5 | −5 | −5 | −5 | −4 | −4 | −4 | −4 | −3 | −3 | −3 | −4 | −4 | −3 | −2 |
| 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
- "Tournament Info for: 1959 PGA Championship". PGA.com. Archived from the original on October 23, 2006. Retrieved December 29, 2012.
- Bartlett, Charles (August 3, 1959). "Rosburg wins P.G.A. title with 277". Chicago Daily Tribune. p. 1, part 4.
- "Rosburg Rallies to Win PGA". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Associated Press. August 3, 1959. pp. 18, 21.
- Brown, Gwilym (August 10, 1959). "Drama at Minneapolis in wind and rain". Sports Illustrated. p. 42.
- Bartlett, Charles (August 2, 1959). "Barber keeps P.G.A. lead by stroke with 205". Chicago Sunday Tribune. p. 1, part 2.
- "Barber keeps lead". Eugene Register-Guard. Oregon. Associated Press. August 2, 1959. p. 1C.
- Bartlett, Charles (July 30, 1959). "Old timer laments match play passing as 41st PGA meet opens". Chicago Daily Tribune. p. 3, part 6.
- "Nine players tied for PGA lead with 69s". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Associated Press. July 31, 1959. p. 17.
- "PGA tournament scoreboard". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Associated Press. July 31, 1959. p. 18.
- "Jerry Barber grabs PGA lead with 134". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Associated Press. August 1, 1959. p. 11.
- "Barber keeps lead on great final shot". Spokesman-Review. Spokane, Washington. Associated Press. August 2, 1959. p. 1, sports.