Author: Honest Golfers

On This Day, In 1974 Lee Trevino wins the Greater New Orleans Open by incredibly not making a single bogey in the 72 holes of the event. He birdied four of the first six holes en route to a final-round 65 to beat runners-up Ben Crenshaw and Bobby Cole by eight shots. Trevino and Cole…

The first staging of the U.S. Amateur was immediately followed by the first staging of the U.S. Open at the same club, Newport Golf Club. Horace Rawlins of England emerged victorious over competitor Willie Dunn also of England by two strokes while they marched four rounds on Newport Golf Clubs 9 hole course. Rawlins would…

Augusta National Golf Club, one of the most famous golf clubs in the world was officially opened on this day. The club is known as the home of The Masters Tournament which started the following year. The course itself was the brainchild of prodigy Bobby Jones. The club opened in December but formally opened on…

Sadly, it was on this day 21 years ago that Payne Stewart’s chartered Learjet crashed in a field in Mina, South Dakota. The cause of the accident was the depressurization of the cabin causing all on board to become incapacitated. Meanwhile, the jet never made a westward turn towards Dallas Love Airfield and continued north…

On this day, August 10, 1975, Jack Nicklaus won the 57th PGA Championship at the South Course of Firestone Golf Club, in Akron, Ohio. Having captured the Masters Tournament for fifth time in April, this was his second major of the season, his fourth Wanamaker trophy and 16th major title. He shot rounds of 70,…

On Tuesday, June 28th, 1949 a young Wake Forest sophomore named Arnold Palmer took top honors in the annual National Collegiate golf tournament. The Latrobe, PA native fired a par 71 to go along with his 1st round of one under 70 to defeat Fred Wampler of Purdue. Wampler was up after the 1st round…

A fellow by the name of Jack Burns won the 1888 Open Championship on this date 129 years ago. Burns himself was a St. Andrews native and head professional at Warwick in central England. Burns grew up in an Irish laboring family and started his early work in plastering. However, there is a reference to…

On this day, In 1951 tragedy struck the Scioto Country Club clubhouse when a fire broke loose sometime during the evening of December 16. Scioto Country Club is in Upper Arlington, Ohio, and was designed by Donald Ross. Twelve members were having dinner at the time and all made it out safely. Reports cite that…

The PGA Championship. A Celebration of golfs major championships The PGA Championship is one of the four major championships and is hosted by the Pro Golfers Association of America. The first PGA Championship was played around 100 years ago in 1916 at Siwonoy Country Club in Bronxville, New York and was won by up and…

On May 26, 1948 Ben Hogan won the PGA Championship, his third professional major in his career, previously winning the 1942 wartime Hale American Open Championship (yes, we count this as a major win) and the 1946 PGA and earned $3,500.00 at the Norwood Hills Country Club in St. Louis, MO, by defeating Mike Turnesa…

Clifford Roberts was the image-maker, the co-founder along with Bob Jones of Augusta National Golf Club, who liked everything so neat and tidy that it contrasted with reality. He walked out on to the course, pulled a revolver and killed himself, but not before visiting the clubhouse barber for a haircut. A year after stepping…

For most, 1999 was an eventful year for major championships as the PGA Championship was just after the famous Jean Van de Velde’s epic collapse at Carnoustie at the British Open. The 1999 PGA Championship at Medinah featured a showdown of two of the best young players in the game in Tiger Woods and Sergio…

On this day, Steve Elkington dazzled the crowds of 35,000 on the final day of The 1997 Players Championship by winning by seven strokes. To top that dominance Elkington finished it off in style by holing out a 30 foot chip sending the crowd into a frenzy. Elkington finished with a 16-under-par 272, and was…

On June 16, 1951 Ben Hogan shot a final round 67 to win the US Open, his seventh major and fourth US Open (We, of course, count the 1942 US Open, aka the Hale America Open as his first) at Oakland Hills Country Club in Birmingham Michigan by two strokes over Clayton Heafner. This Day…

According to the World Health Organization, there are 466 million people worldwide who have disabling hearing loss. By 2050, it is said that over 900 million people will experience hearing loss too. One of those people struggling is Kevin Hall, a professional PGA Tour golfer. For someone who is deaf, it might seem surprising they…

On June 10, 1939, Sam Snead made the most talked about 8 ever taken in Golf’s History and lost the 43rd United States Open at the Spring Mills course of the Philadelphia Country Club, in Gladwyne, Philadelphia. Sam began with 68 and 71 to lead by one shot after the second round. As a result…

Shute defends hit title at the 1937 PGA Championship On this day, May 30, 1937, Densmore “Denny” Shute defeated Harold “Jug” McSpaden on the first extra hole final match of the 20th PGA Championship at the Pittsburgh Field Club, in Fox Chapel, a suburb northwest of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. In view of 5,000 onlookers, McSpaden sprint into…

Shute wins The Open at St. Andrews On this day, In 1933 Denny Shute won The 68th Open Championship which was held at the Old Course at St. Andrews. Shute defeated Craig Wood in a 36 hole playoff for the 1st of his three major championships. The Old Course was playing 6,572 yards, par 73…

The 1936 PGA Championship was the 19th PGA Championship, held in mid November at Pinehurst Resort in Pinehurst, North Carolina. Then a match play championship, Denny Shute won the first of his consecutive PGA Championships, defeating Jimmy Thomson 3 & 2 on the No. 2 Course. On this day, In 1936 Denny Shute won the…

Tony Manero triumphs at Baltusrol CC On this day, June 6, 1936, Tony Manero came out of nowhere to win the 40th United States Open at Baltusrol Country Club in Springfield, New Jersey. He shot a 67 in the Upper Course to set a course record. His total of 282 broke a 20-year-old Open record….

Robert Tyre Jones was born on this day, in Atlanta, Georgia to Clara Thomas and Robert Purmedus Jones. As a young boy, young Bobby was prescribed golf to strengthen him after battling health issues. He was a natural at the sport, winning his first tournament at East Lake Golf Club at age six. He won…

In 1936, Sam Snead won his first tournament, the West Virginia Closed Pro, contested at The Greenbrier’s Championship Course and Old White Course. He shot rounds of 70-61 to rout Logan, West Virginian, pro Clem Weichman by 16 strokes (74-73). His margin of victory, 16 strokes is tied for a PGA Tour record. The late…

It was on this day, 89 years ago when Bobby Jones captured his second consecutive U.S. Open title on his way to completing the “Grand Slam.” Bobby Jones continues his grand year at Interlachen The setting was Interlachen Country Club located in Edina, Minnesota. Jones had already won the British Amateur and the British Open…

On this day, In 2000 … Starting the day with a six-stroke lead at the Memorial Tournament, Tiger Woods eased to a five-stroke victory over Els and Justin Leonard in an event that ended one day late because of rain. Tiger Woods wins The Memorial  The victory was worth $558,000 for Woods, and the wait was…

April 6: In 1952, as the defending champion, Ben Hogan started one of the great traditions at the Masters Tournament, the Past Champions Dinner “to reminisce, swap banter and relax”, held prior to the start of the match. Members of the Masters Club are the only people invited to attend, an elite group that includes…

The surf tumbled and crashed along the South Carolina coastline. The white froth lapped the tan beaches of the Kiawah Island resort community and receded into the choppy waves. Overhead, the shrill cry of seagulls pierced the roar, as the birds circled above the wind-swept dunes that overlooked the ocean. In the distance was the…

Gary Player wins his 2nd PGA Championship On this day, August 6, 1972, Gary Player mastered the Monster in order to win his second PGA Championship at the Oakland Hills Country Club, South Course, in Birmingham, Michigan. He finished with 72 for a total of 281, one over par at the 7,054 yards golf course…

Ken Venturi catches fire in final round and cards a -63- to take the L.A. Open On this day In 1959, Ken Venturi fashioned an eight under par 63 in an amazing comeback and captured the $35,000 Los Angeles Open golf tournament. Eight strokes behind the leader, Art Wall Jr., going into the final round,…

Three strokes back of the lead, Jeff Sluman’s chances were slim… The 1988 PGA Championship marked the 70th Anniversary of the event and this year the setting was Oak Tree Golf Club in Edmond, Oklahoma. All the regular names populated the leaderboard like past champions Raymond Floyd and David Graham but it was the consistent…

456 days had passed before Arnie returned to the limelight at the 1st annual Heritage Classic The Heritage Classic was first held in 1969 and won by none other than The King, Arnold Palmer. It didn’t come easy for Arnie… he was at the end of his career and his window was closing. It’s truly…

Ben Hogan beats Ed Oliver 6 & 4 at Portland Golf Club to win the 1946 PGA Championship Ben Hogan, often thought as the architect of the modern swing, a man who worked harder and spent so much time thinking about the game won his maiden major on this day. It was in August 22nd when…

“After Hogan’s Accident, Doctors Initially Told Him He’d Never Play Again” On February 2, 1949 at 8:30 AM, Ben and his wife Valerie were driving east on Highway 80 near Van Horn, Texas in very foggy conditions. An oncoming Greyhound Bus trying to pass a truck hit the Hogan’s car head on. Ben stretched across…

The King & The Golden Bear win the National 4 Ball Championship On this day, In 1970 two of the games greatest talents combined forces too not only stun the golf world but their fellow peers. Arnold Palmer and Jack Nicklaus teamed up for the 1970 National Four Ball Team Championship played at Laurel Valley…

With Nicklaus, Palmer, and Zoeller standing behind him, Trevino aces #17 and cashes in $175,000 A hole in one is an amazing feat, I simply do not care who you are. Better players have better chances, of course, but how much skill is involved with using an instrument to hit a 2 inch ball into…

The Open Championship is the oldest and one of the most storied golfing events in the world. It was founded and is still administers by the Royal and Ancient Golf Club of St. Andrews. The first Open was held in 1860 and has been played over the last 150 years with minor interruptions. In 1871,…

Bobby Jones completed the historic grand slam in 1930 by capturing his final U.S. Amateur It was on this day that Amateur phenomenon Bobby Jones captured his fourth straight national victory completing the first possible “Grand Slam” as we know it. Jones had defeated the 22-year-old Eugene Vanderpool Homans of Englewood, New Jersey to complete…

Ben Hogan hits a 1 iron approach on the 18th hole at Merion during the 1950 US Open.The photograph taken became one of the most famous golf photographs of all time. On June 10, 1950 Ben Hogan played in the third and fourth round of the U.S. Open (the final two rounds were played in…

Demaret & Hogan win Miami Four Ball; 2nd Year Straight On March 9, 1947 Ben Hogan teamed with Jimmy Demaret to win their second consecutive Miami Four-Ball Tournament at the Miami Spring Course in Florida and earned $1,250.00 each. The Hogan/Demaret team defeated Lloyd Mangrum and Lawson Little 3-2 in the finals. Neither Sam Snead…

This Day in Hogan History: Hogan & Demaret… Masters of Four-Ball From June 24 – 27, 1948 Ben Hogan teamed with Jimmy Demaret to win the Inverness Four-Ball Tournament at the Inverness Country Club in Toledo, Ohio, earning $3,000 ($1,500 each). Both Hogan and Demaret won an additional $250 for having the lowest score in…