The 1921 PGA Championship was played from September 26 to October 1 at Inwood Country Club at Far Rockaway, New York, and won by Walter Hagen for the third time. He beat two-time champion Jim Barnes, 3 and 2, in the final. And a pair of Ryder Cup matches ended on this date. In 1997 at Valderrama Golf Club in Spain, Europe won 14½-13½ for the first of seven straight victories at home by the Europeans. And in one of those victories in 2014, at Gleneagles in Scotland, Europe won 16½-11½.
On this day in 1930, Bobby Jones completed his revered Grand Slam of winning four major championships in the same year. The four were the U.S. Open, The Open (or British Open), and U.S. Amateur and The Amateur. Jones was the first and only golfer in history to win the four big events of his time in the same calendar year. On this date he beat Gene Homans, 8 and 7, at the U.S. Amateur at Merion. And on this date in 1987, one of the most pivotal Ryder Cups concluded at Muirfield Village in Ohio, Jack Nicklaus’ course. The European team, captained by Tony Jacklin, beat the Nicklaus-led Americans, 15-13, for the first loss by the U.S. on home soil in 60 years of competition. The U.S. had been 13-0 at home.
The 1861 Open Championship ended on this date at Prestwick Golf Club, Ayrshire, Scotland. It was the second Open Championship and had a field of 10 professionals and eight amateurs. The winner was Tom Morris, Sr., aka Old Tom, by four shots over Willie Park, Sr. with a score of 163. A pair of close U.S. victories in the Ryder Cup on this date in the 1990s are a couple of the latest grand moments the Americans have had to celebrate as Europe is now the dominating team in the biennial series. In 1993 at The Belfry, the U.S. won 15-13, for captain Tom Watson, with Davis Love III clinching the Cup with a 1-up victory over Italy’s Costantino Rocca. And in 1999, the Americans won the fabled match at The Country Club, 14½-13½, after trailing 10-6 going into the singles and making a monumental comeback. The victory didn’t come without a price, though. The U.S. players were chastised for poor team sportsmanship during a major celebration while play was still ongoing.
On this week of observing the President’s Cup, special note is made of today’s date being the day in 2016 Arnold Palmer died at age 87. In addition to his seven majors, Palmer is one of the most memorable figures in team golf history and led the Ryder Cup in numerous statistical categories and was a two-time winning captain. Also, the 1926 PGA Championship ended on this date, at Salisbury Golf Club on Long Island in East Meadow, New York, with Walter Hagen beating Leo Diegel, 5 and 3, in the final. The victory was Hagen’s third straight, fourth overall and he would eventually win five.
A pair of Ryder Cups concluded on this date. The 31st Ryder Cup Match ended in 1995, with the European team beating the U.S. in a thriller, 14½-13½, at Oak Hill County Club in Rochester, N.Y. It was a stinging defeat for the Americans to lose on home ground. with Irishman Philip Walton beating Jay Haas for the clinching point. And in 2006, at the K Club, Ireland, Europe won a third straight time, this one in a breeze, 18½-9½.
A pair of Open Championships ended on this date in the 1800s. In 1868, at Prestwick, Young Tom Morris won the ninth Open by three shots over his father, Tom Morris, Sr., at just age 17 when he shot 154. And in 1892, at Muirfield, Harold Hilton also won by three over John Ball, Hugh Kirkaldy and Sandy Herd.
On this date in 1905, the 11th U.S. Open concluded at the Myopia Hunt Club, with Willie Anderson winning for the third straight year, two shots in front of runner-up Alex Smith with a 314 score.
The 21st Ryder Cup Match ended on this date in 1975 at Laurel Valley Golf Club in Ligonier, Pennsylvania. The United States team won over Great Britain and Ireland, 21 to 11 points. And the 2008 Ryder Cup ended on this date at Valhalla Golf Club with the American team, utilizing captain Paul Azinger’s “pod” coaching method, winning over the European team, 16½-11½.
One of the milestone moments in golf history took place on today’s date in 1913. After tying at 12 over par for four rounds, American Francis Ouimet and England’s Harry Vardon and Ted Ray played a playoff on this date at The Country Club in Brookline, Massachusetts. The outcome remained in doubt after nine holes when all three shot an even-par 38. From there, the hometown Ouimet shot a bogey-free 34 coming in for a 72, one under par. Vardon faltered with 77 and Ray had 78. The result was viewed as a major upset to have an American defeat the normally more talented players from England and Scotland. And on this date in 1981, the Ryder Cup ended at Walton Heath Golf Club in Walton-on-the-Hill, Surrey, England, southwest of London, with the United States winning 18½ to 9½ points. It was the largest margin of victory by the U.S. over a European team (since 1979).
On this date in 1913, American Francis Ouimet and Englishmen Harry Vardon and Ted Ray tied at 304 after four rounds of the U.S. Open at The Country Club in Brookline, Massachusetts. The three were tied after 54 holes and each shot 79 in the final round. They were set to play an 18-hole playoff on September 20. Also, Clifford Ann Creed won the 1965 LPGA Visalia Golf Open on this date in California. She shot four under par and won by a stroke over Susie Maxwell.
The 1863 Open Championship was played on this date, with Willie Park, Sr., winning by two shots over Tom Morris, Sr., also known as Old Tom. Park shot 168 in three 12-hole rounds played in one day, beating out the field of 14 players at Prestwick Golf Club. And on this date in 1892, the winner of the 1924 U.S. Open, Cyril Walker, was born in Manchester, England. He came to the U.S. in 1914 and was working out of Englewood Country Club when he won the U.S. Open at Oakland Hills. But he died destitute in 1948 in New Jersey at age 55.
On this date in 1897, the third U.S. Open was held in one day of 36 holes. Joe Lloyd of England won by one shot over Willie Anderson and won $150. The championship was held with 35 players at Chicago Golf Club in Wheaton, Illinois. Anderson would become a four-time winner.
On this date in 1953, 1976 U.S. Open champion Jerry Pate was born in Macon, Georgia. His victory came as a 22-year-old rookie with great promise for many more majors that never came, partly due to a subsequent shoulder injury. Tom Morris, Sr., aka Old Tom Morris, won the Open Championship for the third time when he won on this date in 1864 with a score of 167 at Prestwick Golf Club. He finished two shots ahead of Andrew Strath in the field of 16.
On this date in 1899, the 5th U.S. Open concluded at Baltimore Country Club with Willie Smith of Scotland winning by a landslide, 11 shots over George Low, Val Fitzjohn and Bert Way. And the Open Championship of 1870, the 11th overall, finished on this day with Tom Morris Jr., aka Young Tom, winning with a score of 149 at Prestwick Golf Club. He won by 12 shots over the field of 20 players.
Today’s date in 1868 is usually credited as the day when golf's first recorded hole-in-one was made by Young Tom Morris on Prestwick's eighth hole. And on this date in 1865, the Open Championship was won by Andrew Strath of Scotland, who won over two-time champion Willie Park, Sr., by two shots.
Continuing the recent Open Championship theme, a pair of Open Championships from the 1800s ended on this date. In 1866, at Prestwick, Willie Park, Sr., won for the third time, beating brother Davie Park by two shots. In 1872, also at Prestwick, Tom Morris, Jr., won for the fourth straight time, winning by three strokes over David Strath.
Donna Andrews won the 1993 Ping-Cellular One LPGA Golf Championship on this date at 8 under par, taking home $67,500. And troubled Argentinian star Angel Cabrera was born on this date in 1969. The winner of the 2007 U.S. Open and 2009 Masters, Cabrera had been off his game when he got in trouble for domestic violence and had to serve two years in prison. He was released on parole in December 2023 and has been allowed to resume to tour golf.
A pair of Open Championships from the 1800s ended on this date, playing the entire event in one day each time. In 1862, the third championship was won by Tom Morris, Sr. , in defense of his title, at Prestwick by 13 shots over Willie Park, Sr., with a score of 163. Only eight players competed on the 12-hole course. Morris would be known as Old Tom after his son Young Tom became a legendary player himself. And in 1890, also at Prestwick, amateur John Ball won by three shots over Willie Fernie and Archie Simpson.
At least three famous people were born on this date. Arnold Palmer in 1929 in Latrobe, Pennsylvania; Larry Nelson in 1947 in Fort Payne, Alabama, and William Dale Hynd of Moline, Illinois. Golfers will know who the first two are, but Mr. Hynd? That would be my late father-in-law, who was born on this day in 1933. Rest in Peace, Rodeo Bill! Also on this date, the 1875 Open Championship was held at Prestwick Golf Club, South Ayrshire, Scotland. Yes, the entire tournament was on one day. Eighteen players began at 11:30 a.m. Willie Park, Sr. won by two strokes over runner-up Bob Martin with a score of 166. Park had won the first championship in 1860 and his 1875 victory gave him four wins.
Five years ago on this date, one of the greatest characters in golf history, Englishman Brian Barnes, died of cancer. Barnes won nine times on the European Tour, and never won a major, but his greatest claim to fame was beating Jack Nicklaus twice on the same day in singles at the 1975 Ryder Cup. And the great, feisty Louise Suggs began her march toward winning the St. Louis Golf Open on this date in 1955. Three days later she had shot a four-under 289 to beat Mary Lena Faulk by six shots and win first prize of $900.