Doug Ford (golfer)

Douglas Michael Ford Sr. (born Douglas Michael Fortunato; August 6, 1922 – May 14, 2018) was an American professional golfer and two-time major golf champion. Ford turned professional in 1949, later going on to win the 1955 PGA Championship and the 1957 Masters Tournament. He was also a member of four Ryder Cup teams (1955, 1957, 1959, and 1961) and was inducted into the World Golf Hall of Fame in 2011.

Doug Ford
Personal information
Full nameDouglas Michael Ford Sr.
Born(1922-08-06)August 6, 1922
West Haven, Connecticut
DiedMay 14, 2018(2018-05-14) (aged 95)
Palm Beach Gardens, Florida
Height5 ft 11 in (1.80 m)
Weight180 lb (82 kg; 13 st)
Nationality United States
Career
Turned professional1949
Former tour(s)PGA Tour
Champions Tour
Professional wins34
Number of wins by tour
PGA Tour19
Other12 (regular)
3 (senior)
Best results in major championships
(wins: 2)
Masters TournamentWon: 1957
PGA ChampionshipWon: 1955
U.S. OpenT5: 1959
The Open ChampionshipT24: 1964
Achievements and awards
World Golf Hall of Fame2011 (member page)
PGA Player of the Year1955

Biography

Ford was born in West Haven, Connecticut on August 6, 1922.[1][2][3] During World War II, he served in the Coast Guard Air Division.[4] He turned professional in 1949 and won for the first time in 1952 at the Jacksonville Open.[5]

The win in Jacksonville was an unusual one. At the end of regulation play, Ford and Sam Snead were tied for the lead. An 18-hole playoff was scheduled for the next day but rather than play, Snead forfeited.[6] The forfeit stemmed from a ruling Snead received during the tournament's second round of play. On the 10th hole, Snead's drive landed behind an out-of-bounds stake. While Chick Harbert, who was playing with Snead, thought the ball was out-of-bounds,[7] a rules official ruled differently due to the starter not telling players the stakes had been moved since the previous day's play had ended. Afterwards, Snead explained why he forfeited even though Ford suggested they play sudden-death for the title. "I want to be fair about it. I don't want anyone to think I took advantage of the ruling."[8]

Ford's first major was the 1955 PGA Championship. The tournament was still match play at that time, and Ford defeated Cary Middlecoff (4&3) in the final. Ford was that season's PGA Player of the Year.[1] In 1957, he holed out from a plugged lie in the bunker, on the final hole, to come from behind and beat Sam Snead by three strokes at the Masters Tournament. The last of his 19 PGA Tour wins came in 1963.[5]

Ford played in 49 Masters Tournaments, a record that stood until Arnold Palmer played in his 50th tournament three years later. 2001 was his final Masters; he withdrew after an opening-hole double-bogey and was asked not to participate in future tournaments.[9][10]

Ford played on four Ryder Cup teams: 1955, 1957, 1959, and 1961. He was inducted into the Connecticut Golf Hall of Fame in 1972. He was inducted into the National Italian American Sports Hall of Fame in 1992. Ford was inducted into the World Golf Hall of Fame in 2011.[11]

During the induction ceremony, Ford recalled that he showed enough promise as a baseball player that he received a contract offer from the New York Yankees. While he was considering the offer, his father asked how long he might expect to play baseball. When Doug said that he might expect to play professional baseball for about 10 years, his father responded, "Why don't you stay with the golf. You'll last forever." At the time of the ceremony, the 88-year-old Ford still regularly played casual golf.[12]

Ford died in Palm Beach Gardens, Florida on May 14, 2018 at the age of 95.[13][14]

Professional wins (34)

PGA Tour wins (19)
Legend
Major championships (2)
Other PGA Tour (17)
No.DateTournamentWinning scoreMargin of
victory		Runner(s)-upRef
1 Mar 24, 1952 Jacksonville Open −8 (69-68-70-73=280) Playoff Sam Snead [15]
2 Apr 19, 1953 Virginia Beach Open −14 (63-65-67-67=262) 2 strokes Ansel Snow [16]
3 Aug 23, 1953 Labatt Open −15 (67-69-64-65=265) 5 strokes Walter Burkemo [17]
4 Dec 13, 1953 Miami Open −8 (68-67-70-67=272) 4 strokes Sam Snead [18]
5 Apr 5, 1954 Greater Greensboro Open −1 (71-69-73-70=283) Playoff Marty Furgol [19][20]
6 Aug 22, 1954 Fort Wayne Open −18 (70-69-66-65=270) 3 strokes Mike Souchak [21]
7 Jul 26, 1955 PGA Championship 4 & 3 Cary Middlecoff [22]
8 Aug 7, 1955 All American Open −11 (69-69-69-70=277) 3 strokes Leo Biagetti [23]
9 Sep 26, 1955 Carling Golf Classic −12 (70-69-68-69=276) 1 stroke Art Wall Jr. [24]
10 Jan 7, 1957 Los Angeles Open −4 (69-71-71-69=280) 1 stroke Jay Hebert [25]
11 Apr 7, 1957 Masters Tournament −5 (72-73-72-66=283) 3 strokes Sam Snead [26]
12 Jun 30, 1957 Western Open −5 (69-71-67-72=279) Playoff George Bayer, Gene Littler,
Billy Maxwell		 [27]
13 Mar 16, 1958 Pensacola Open Invitational −10 (70-65-70-73=278) 2 strokes Ken Venturi, Art Wall Jr. [28]
14 Jun 20, 1959 Canadian Open −12 (68-69-69-70=276) 2 strokes Dow Finsterwald, Art Wall Jr.,
Bo Wininger		 [29]
15 May 29, 1960 500 Festival Open Invitation −14 (66-68-68-68=270) 2 strokes Jerry Barber [30]
16 May 28, 1961 500 Festival Open Invitation −11 (69-69-67-68=273) Playoff Arnold Palmer [31]
17 Jan 22, 1962 Bing Crosby National Pro-Am −2 (70-73-69-74=286) Playoff Joe Campbell [32]
18 Jun 24, 1962 Eastern Open Invitational −9 (69-65-73-72=279) 1 stroke Bob Goalby [33]
19 Jul 6, 1963 Canadian Open −4 (69-67-74-70=280) 1 stroke Al Geiberger [34]

Source:[1][5]

Other wins (12)

Source:[1]

Other senior wins (3)
  • 1981 Merrill Lynch/Golf Digest Commemorative Pro-Am
  • 1987 Liberty Mutual Legends of Golf - Legendary Division (with Jerry Barber)
  • 1996 Liberty Mutual Legends of Golf - Demaret Division (with Art Wall)

Source:[1]

Major championships

Wins (2)
YearChampionship54 holesWinning scoreMarginRunner-up
1955PGA Championshipn/a4 & 3 Cary Middlecoff
1957Masters Tournament3 shot deficit−5 (72-73-72-66=283)3 strokes Sam Snead

Results timeline
Tournament 1949 1950 1951 1952 1953 1954 1955 1956 1957 1958 1959
Masters Tournament T21 T21 T33 T6 1 T2 T25
U.S. Open CUT CUT 41 T19 T21 T35 T7 T9 T17 34 T5
The Open Championship
PGA Championship 1 R32 R16 T11 T11
Tournament 1960 1961 1962 1963 1964 1965 1966 1967 1968 1969
Masters Tournament T25 T32 T44 T11 T46 T31 T17 T31 T48 CUT
U.S. Open T33 T6 T8 CUT CUT CUT
The Open Championship T24
PGA Championship T7 T5 5 T27 CUT T20 CUT CUT CUT CUT
Tournament 1970 1971 1972 1973 1974 1975 1976 1977 1978 1979
Masters Tournament CUT T46 CUT CUT CUT CUT CUT CUT CUT WD
U.S. Open CUT CUT
The Open Championship
PGA Championship CUT CUT CUT T56 CUT CUT CUT CUT CUT CUT
Tournament 1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989
Masters Tournament CUT CUT CUT WD CUT WD CUT CUT CUT CUT
U.S. Open
The Open Championship
PGA Championship CUT WD
Tournament 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999
Masters Tournament CUT WD CUT CUT WD WD CUT CUT WD WD
U.S. Open
The Open Championship
PGA Championship
Tournament 2000 2001
Masters Tournament WD WD
U.S. Open
The Open Championship
PGA Championship
  Win
  Top 10
  Did not play

CUT = missed the halfway cut
WD = withdrew
R64, R32, R16, QF, SF = Round in which player lost in PGA Championship match play
"T" indicates a tie for a place.

Source:[35]

Summary
TournamentWins2nd3rdTop-5Top-10Top-25EventsCuts made
Masters Tournament1102394917
U.S. Open0001581912
The Open Championship00000111
PGA Championship1003592611
Totals210613279541
  • Most consecutive cuts made – 31 (1951 U.S. Open – 1963 Masters)
  • Longest streak of top-10s – 4 (1955 U.S. Open – 1956 U.S. Open)

U.S. national team appearances

See also

References
  1. "Doug Ford". World Golf Hall of Fame. Retrieved October 15, 2017.
  2. Barkow, Al (November 1989). The History of the PGA TOUR. Copyright PGA Tour. Doubleday. p. 269. ISBN 0-385-26145-4.
  3. Elliott, Len; Barbara Kelly (1976). Who's Who in Golf. New Rochelle, New York: Arlington House. p. 66. ISBN 0-87000-225-2.
  4. "For two-time major golf champion Doug Ford, the Hall of Fame finally calls". Palm Beach Post. October 9, 2010. Retrieved December 3, 2017.
  5. "Doug Ford – Profile". PGA Tour. Retrieved May 16, 2018.
  6. "Sam Snead Forfeits First in Jacksonville Open". The Spokesman-Review. Associated Press. March 25, 1952. p. 12 – via Google News.
  7. "Ford Gets First Major Golf Win". Reading Eagle. Reading, Pennsylvania. UP. March 25, 1952. p. 17.
  8. "Snead Forfeits First in Jacksonville Open". The Spokesman-Review. Spokane, Washington. AP. March 25, 1952. p. 12.
  9. Johnson, Martin (April 9, 2002). "The Masters: Augusta bows to change with a pompous flourish". The Telegraph. Retrieved April 10, 2019.
  10. "Doug Ford, Masters Champion in Golf Hall of Fame, Dies at 95". Bloomberg Quint. May 15, 2018. Retrieved April 10, 2019.
  11. "2011 Hall of Fame class: Els, Ford, Bush, Hutchison". PGA Tour. September 22, 2010. Retrieved December 23, 2013.
  12. "Ernie Els, 41, inducted into Hall of Fame". ESPN. Associated Press. May 10, 2011. Retrieved May 12, 2011.
  13. McCabe, Jim (May 15, 2018). "World Golf Hall of Fame member Ford dies at 95". PGA Tour.
  14. Goldstein, Richard (May 15, 2018). "Doug Ford, Oldest Masters Champion, Dies at 95". The New York Times. Retrieved May 15, 2018.
  15. "Sam Snead Forfeits First in Jacksonville Open". The Spokesman-Review. Associated Press. March 25, 1952. p. 12 – via Google News.
  16. Moore, Robert (April 20, 1953). "Ford's 262 Captures Virginia Beach". St. Petersburg Times. Associated Press. p. 17.
  17. Mcauley, Ed. (August 24, 1953). "Doug Ford Wins Labatt Open With 15-under-par 265". The Montreal Gazette. p. 18.
  18. "Ford's Fancy Finish Beats Snead at Miami". The Spokesman-Review. Associated Press. December 14, 1953. p. 8 – via Google News.
  19. "Ford; Furgol In Playoff For Top Greensboro Open Money". St. Petersburg Times. St. Petersburg, Florida. AP. April 5, 1954. p. 17.
  20. "Ford Notes Anniversary With $2,000 Playoff Win". St. Petersburg Times. St. Petersburg, Florida. AP. April 6, 1954. p. 10.
  21. "Ford Is first at Fort Worth; Souchak Second". The Spokesman-Review. Associated Press. August 23, 1954. p. 9 – via Google News.
  22. "Doug Ford Wins PGA Title in His First Try". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Associated Press. July 27, 1955. p. 15.
  23. "Doug Ford Wins All-American golf With 11-Under-Par 277; Biagetti 2d". The Spokesman-Review. Associated Press. August 8, 1955. p. 8 – via Google News.
  24. "Doug Ford Fires Subpar golf to Win Sponsors". The Spokesman-Review. Associated Press. September 27, 1955. p. 8 – via Google News.
  25. "Ford Wins LA Open". Ottawa Citizen. Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. Associated Press. January 8, 1957. p. 9.
  26. "Doug Ford's 283 captures Masters golf". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Associated Press. April 8, 1957. p. 1.
  27. "Doug Ford Wins Golf Playoff". Youngstown Vindicator. UP. July 1, 1955. p. 29 – via Google News.
  28. "Veteran Doug Ford 1st in Pensacola Open". The Spokesman-Review. AP. March 17, 1958. p. 29 – via Google News.
  29. "Ford Grabs Canuck Open on 276 Total". The Spokesman-Review. AP. June 22, 1959. p. 11 – via Google News.
  30. "Ford Grabs "500" Open on 68 Finish". The Spokesman-Review. AP. May 30, 1960. p. 9 – via Google News.
  31. "Ford Snares Playoff Win in 500 Win". The Spokesman-Review. AP. May 29, 1961. p. 10 – via Google News.
  32. "Fast Playing Doug Ford Triumphs Over Campbell in Playoff for Crosby Title". Youngstown Vindicator. UPI. January 23, 1962. p. 10 – via Google News.
  33. "Doug Ford Golf Winner". Youngstown Vindicator. UPI. June 25, 1962. p. 10 – via Google News.
  34. "Ignoring Pressure, Ford Wins Canadian". The Spokesman-Review. AP. July 7, 1963. p. 24 – via Google News.
  35. "Doug Ford". Golf Major Championships. Retrieved May 16, 2018.
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