Winged Foot Golf Club

The U.S. Opens at Winged Foot: Looking Back

Four of the nine USGA Championships conducted at Winged Foot Golf Club have been U.S. Opens. All of the past Opens have been played on the famed West Course, which has posed a difficult test of skill. It was where Bob Jones won the third of his four Opens and where Hale Irwin earned his first of three. We take a moment now to recall the four Opens previously held here.

1929: Jones Wins by 23 Strokes
Bob Jones took two 7s in his final round and had to hole a 12-foot putt on the last green to tie AI Espinosa at the West Course in June. Jones’ score was 69-75-71-79-294,6 over par. In the ensuing playoff, however, he was invincible; his 72-69-141 was 23 strokes better than Al Espinosa,who posted 84-80-164.

That was when the playoff for the national championship was 36 holes. It was Jones’ third Open title in his illustrious amateur career. Before his victory at Winged Foot, Jones had been beaten in two previous playoffs for the title and finished second twice.

This victory put Jones one Open championship title behind Willie Anderson’s four. Jones would match Anderson’s record by successfully defending his title the following year and completing the Grand Slam, the only golfer to do so in the history of the game. He was and probably will be the only man to win the U.S. and British Amateurs and the U.S. and British Opens in the same year. He retired at the end of 1930 at the age of 28 with 13 major championship victories.

1959: Thunder Rolls for Casper
Twenty seven year old Billy Casper won the championship with a 71-68-69-74-282. The 212 pound Casper was one stroke better than Bob Rosburg and two strokes ahead of Mike Souchak and Claude Harmon, the host professional.

Casper took the lead in the second round and held it thereafter. A series of thunderstorms struck on the third day and the final round was postponed until the following day for the first time in Open history. The fourth round was played Sunday in chilly, gusty weather. The players cooperated wonderfully with some not starting until nearly 5 p.m.

James R. English of Denver was low amateur with a 299. Defending champion Tommy Bolt registered a 301.

Approximately 43,377 fans set an attendance record for the three regularly scheduled days. Prize money was increased 20 percent and totaled $49,200 for the championship, plus $1,300 for 13 sectional qualifying championships. Casper’s prize for winning was $12,000. The entry of 2,385 was a record and for the first time double qualifying was held. Fifty-seven districts held first local qualifying rounds and 13 sections held the final qualifying, all at 36 holes.

1974: Irwin Stampedes His Way to Victory
Hale Irwin, 29, won the first of his three U.S. Opens by two strokes over Forrest Fezler with a 7-over-par 287 on the West Course. Fezler shot a 289 while Lou Graham and Bert Yancey tied for third at 290.

Prior to his victory, Irwin’s best Open finish was in 1971 when he tied for 19th. At Winged Foot, he had 18-hole scores of 73, 70, 71 and 73, with 13 birdies, 18 bogeys and one double bogey. His score was the highest in relation to par since 1963 when a score of 9 over par tied after 72 holes and led to a playoff.

The 1974 Open was decided on the last two holes when Irwin holed a 100 foot putt for par on the 17th as Fezler was making a bogey 5 on the 18th. Irwin secured his victory by playing a 2-iron approach to the 18th, 20 feet from the hole and making a par 4.

Winged Foot was a difficult course for the field. Gary Player was the only golfer to equal par in the first round; he led by one stroke over Graham and Mike Reasor. Irwin was three strokes behind at that time.
Of the 150 who started play that day, only 23 were under 75 for the first round. Scoring was a bit better the next day, though. Hubert Green shot a 67, which was the lowest round of the championship, and three others were under par 70. In all, 38 players were under 75 and four matched par 70.

Player maintained a share of the lead after 36 holes with a 73 in the second round and 143 for the championship. Also at 143 were Irwin, Raymond Floyd and Arnold Palmer.

Among those who failed to survive the 36-hole cut, which fell at 153, were former Open champions Billy Casper, Tony Jacklin, Gene Littler, Lee Trevino and Ken Venturi; 1973 U.S. Amateur winner Craig Stadler; and John Schlee, runner-up to John Miller in the 1973 Open.

Player was out in 36 in the third round, and then shot a 41 on the second nine for a 77. He fell from contention after that. Palmer shot a 73 and fell to third at 216. Twenty-three-year-old Tom Watson grabbed the lead after shooting a 69 for a 54-hole score of 213.

At the 18th, Watson saved a bogey 5 and his lead with a superb bunker shot within 6 inches of the hole. At this point, Irwin was lurking one stroke off the lead with a 214 after shooting a 71 in the third round. Fezler was in sixth place at 219, behind Frank Beard and Yancey, who were sitting on 218s.

Palmer dropped from contention early in the final round. He three-putted the second hole from 12 feet and his approach to the short sixth dropped into a bunker. Watson holed two sizeable putts for pars on the first two holes and then three-putted the fourth and fifth. Irwin three-putted the fourth along with Watson, but he made a par 5 on the fifth to catch up.Then Irwin holed a 35-foot birdie putt on No. 9 to go ahead to stay.

At this point, Irwin was 5 over par for the 63 holes, Watson 6 over and Felzer 9 over.

Watson’s game collapsed entirely on the second nine. He shot 41 and 79 for a 72-hole score of 292. Irwin faltered slightly, too. He bogeyed four of the next seven holes, offset by two birdies, and he was 7 over par playing the 17th.

Fezler, meanwhile, had saved pars on both 16 and 17 by holing difficult putts, but he missed the 18th green and took a 5, giving him 70 for the round and 289 for 72 holes.

At this point, Irwin stroked in a 10-foot putt to save par on No. 17. He followed with another par on the final hole and won by two strokes.

The entry of 3,914 was the third largest in Open history. Prize money totaled $227,700.

1984: Zoeller Champions Over Norman
Fuzzy Zoeller, 32, shot a 67 and defeated Greg Norman in an 18-hole playoff. Norman shot a 75.

By shooting 276 for the 72 holes, Zoeller and Norman became the first players to finish under par in the four Opens played at Winged Foot. Par is 280. The lowest previous score was 282 by Billy Casper, in 1959.

Zoeller and Norman finished five strokes in front of Curtis Strange, whose 69-70-74-68-281 would have won any previous Open at Winged Foot. Johnny Miller, the 1973 Open champion, and Jim Thorpe shared fourth at 282, while Hale Irwin, who led for most of the first three rounds, shot a 79 on the final day and finished sixth at 284.

In the first round, 18 players bettered or equaled par. With 68s, Irwin and Thorpe shared the lead with 1977 Open champion Hubert Green and Mike Donald. Seve Ballesteros, Strange and 1982 and 1983 U.S. Amateur winner Jay Sigel were at 69, with Norman at par 70.

Irwin, 39, added a 68 and led after the first 36 holes with a 136, but Zoeller shot a 66, the lowest round ever at an Open at Winged Foot, to stand at 137. Norman had a 68 for 138, along with David Canipe.
Both Irwin and Zoeller shot 69s in the third round, and Irwin led by one stroke at 205; Norman and Thorpe finished at 207.

While Irwin and Thorpe faded in thc fourth round, Zoeller and Norman pulled away. Zoeller holed consecutive birdie putts of 20, 22, 20 and 15 feet on thc third through sixth holes, gaining five strokes on Irwin. By then only Zoeller and Norman were in contention.

Zoeller led by three strokes with nine holes to play, but Norman pulled even at the 17th and saved par on the 18th by holing a 45-foot putt after hitting his approach into a grandstand before being given relief without penalty.

After both players birdied the first hole of the playoff, Zoeller birdied the second hole from 68 feet and gained three strokes when Norman took a 6. Zoeller made the turn in 34 and led by five strokes, went ahead by seven on the 14th, by eight after 15 holes, and by nine after 16. Norman’s birdie at No.
17 trimmed the margin to eight.

Sigel, a contender for 36 holes, and Richard Fehr were low amateurs. Prize money reached a record $596,925, with $95,000 going to Zoeller.

Source: USGA Record Book. Compiled by Ken Klavon, USGA.