1977 U.S. Open (golf)
| Tournament information | |
|---|---|
| Dates | June 16–19, 1977 |
| Location | Tulsa, Oklahoma |
| Course(s) | Southern Hills Country Club |
| Organized by | USGA |
| Tour(s) | PGA Tour |
| Statistics | |
| Par | 70 |
| Length | 6,873 yards (6,285 m)[1] |
| Field | 153 players, 60 after cut |
| Cut | 147 (+7) [2] |
| Winner's share | $45,000 |
| Champion | |
 | |
| 278 (−2) | |
The 1977 U.S. Open was the 77th U.S. Open, held June 16–19 at Southern Hills Country Club in Tulsa, Oklahoma. Hubert Green won the first of his two major titles, one stroke ahead of runner-up Lou Graham, the 1975 champion.[1][3]
Green began the final round with the lead, but 11 players were within three shots. Graham made a charge on the back nine, collecting birdies at 12, 14, 15, and 16 en route to a 68 (−2) and a 279 (−1) total. With four holes to play, Green needed to play even-par to win the championship. As he stepped off the 14th green, however, he was approached by tournament officials and a lieutenant with the Tulsa police, who told him that they had received a phone call threatening to assassinate Green while he played the 15th hole.[4] Green decided to play on, then proceeded to hit his drive into a tree--which probably saved it from going out of bounds. He managed to hit his approach to 35 feet (11 m) and two-putt for par without incident. Green birdied the 16th and took a two-stroke lead to the 18th tee. Although he struggled on the hole, he managed to make a 4-footer for bogey and the victory.[5]
This year marked the final U.S. Open appearance by Sam Snead, two-time champion Julius Boros, and Tommy Bolt, who had won the 1958 Open at Southern Hills. All three received exemptions by the USGA, and all three missed the cut. This was the first time that the television broadcast of the U.S. Open covered all 18 holes of the final round.[6]
It was the third major championship at Southern Hills; it previously hosted the U.S. Open in 1958 and the PGA Championship in 1970. The U.S. Open returned in 2001 and the PGA Championship in 1982, 1994, and 2007.
Past champions in the field
Made the cut
| Player | Country | Year(s) won | R1 | R2 | R3 | R4 | Total | To par | Finish |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lou Graham | | 1975 | 72 | 71 | 68 | 68 | 279 | −1 | 2 |
| Jack Nicklaus | | 1962, 1967, 1972 | 74 | 68 | 71 | 72 | 285 | +5 | T10 |
| Gary Player | .svg.png){kind=small} | 1965 | 72 | 67 | 71 | 75 | 285 | +5 | T10 |
| Arnold Palmer | | 1960 | 70 | 72 | 73 | 72 | 287 | +7 | T19 |
| Lee Trevino | | 1968, 1971 | 74 | 70 | 73 | 73 | 290 | +10 | T27 |
| Johnny Miller | | 1973 | 71 | 73 | 70 | 76 | 290 | +10 | T27 |
| Hale Irwin | | 1974 | 73 | 71 | 77 | 72 | 293 | +13 | T41 |
Missed the cut
| Player | Country | Year(s) won | R1 | R2 | Total | To par |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jerry Pate | | 1976 | 72 | 76 | 148 | +8 |
| Julius Boros | | 1952, 1963 | 77 | 76 | 153 | +13 |
| Tommy Bolt | | 1958 | 75 | 78 | 153 | +13 |
| Jack Fleck | | 1955 | 81 | 80 | 161 | +21 |
Source:[7]
Round summaries
First round
Thursday, June 16, 1977
Second round
Friday, June 17, 1977
| Place | Player | Country | Score | To par |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Hubert Green | | 69-67=136 | −4 |
| 2 | Terry Diehl | | 69-68=137 | −3 |
| 3 | Tom Purtzer | | 69-69=138 | −2 |
| T4 | Sam Adams | | 70-69=139 | −1 |
| Rod Funseth | | 69-70=139 | ||
| Gary Player | | 72-67=139 | ||
| T7 | Jay Haas | | 72-68=140 | E |
| Joe Inman | | 70-70=140 | ||
| T9 | Wally Armstrong | | 71-70=141 | +1 |
| Andy Bean | | 71-70=141 | ||
| Al Geiberger | | 70-71=141 | ||
| Peter Oosterhuis |  | 71-70=141 |
Amateurs: Miller (+6), Fought (+7), Zabel (+9), Sander (+14), Choate (+15), Sonnier (+15), Cook (+16), King (+16), Gregg (+20), Rheim (+29).
Third round
Saturday, June 18, 1977
| Place | Player | Country | Score | To par |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Hubert Green | | 69-67-72=208 | −2 |
| 2 | Andy Bean | | 71-70-68=209 | −1 |
| T3 | Terry Diehl | | 69-68-73=210 | E |
| Gary Jacobsen | | 73-70-67=210 | ||
| Don Padgett | | 70-74-66=210 | ||
| Gary Player | | 72-67-71=210 | ||
| Tom Purtzer | | 69-69-72=210 | ||
| Tom Weiskopf | | 71-71-68=210 | ||
| T9 | Wally Armstrong | | 71-70-70=211 | +1 |
| Rod Funseth | | 69-70-72=211 | ||
| Lou Graham | | 72-71-68=211 | ||
| Jay Haas | | 72-68-71=211 |
Final round
Sunday, June 19, 1977
| Place | Player | Country | Score | To par | Money ($) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Hubert Green | | 69-67-72-70=278 | −2 | 45,000 |
| 2 | Lou Graham | | 72-71-68-68=279 | −1 | 23,500 |
| 3 | Tom Weiskopf | | 71-71-68-71=281 | +1 | 16,000 |
| 4 | Tom Purtzer | | 69-69-72-72=282 | +2 | 13,000 |
| T5 | Jay Haas | | 72-68-71-72=283 | +3 | 10,875 |
| Gary Jacobsen | | 73-70-67-73=283 | |||
| T7 | Terry Diehl | | 69-68-73-74=284 | +4 | 8,000 |
| Lyn Lott | | 73-73-68-70=284 | |||
| Tom Watson | | 74-72-71-67=284 | |||
| T10 | Rod Funseth | | 69-70-72-74=285 | +5 | 4,100 |
| Al Geiberger | | 70-71-75-69=285 | |||
| Mike McCullough | | 73-73-69-70=285 | |||
| Jack Nicklaus | | 74-68-71-72=285 | |||
| Peter Oosterhuis | | 71-70-74-70=285 | |||
| Gary Player | | 72-67-71-75=285 |
Amateurs: Lindy Miller (+19), John Fought (+22)
References
- 1 2 "Green meets pressure test en route to first major win". Spokesman-Review. Spokane, Washington. Associated Press. June 20, 1977. p. 13.
- ↑ "U.S. open results (second round)". Deseret News. Salt Lake City, Utah. Associated Press. June 18, 1977. p. 8A.
- ↑ Bunch, Ken (June 20, 1977). "Green beats threats in Open". Milwaukee Sentinel. p. 1, part 2.
- ↑ Grimsley, Will (June 17, 1977). "Analysis: Green death threat macabre and warped". Nashua Telegraph. New Hampshire. Associated Press. p. 22.
- ↑ Jenkins, Dan (June 27, 1977). "Talk about total pressure". Sports Illustrated. p. 14.
- ↑ Lasswell, Doug (June 17, 1977). "U.S. Open coverage to include all 18 holes". Sarasota Herald-Tribune. Florida. p. 3E.
- ↑ "1977 U.S. Open". databasegolf.com. Retrieved June 17, 2012.
External links
| Preceded by 1977 Masters |
Major Championships | Succeeded by 1977 Open Championship |