Al Abrams was the sports editor of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. He wrote a column every day, and also served as the president of the Dapper Dan Club of Pittsburgh.
Abrams "went to the Oakmont Country Club, hat in hand, with a proposition. Mr. John Jackson, then Oakmont's president, was most kind and said he would get back to me. He did a few days later, saying that Oakmont was agreeable provided the Dapper Dans would assume full financial responsibility.
"This meant, according to PGA officials, that a $45,000 cash guarantee had to be put up six months in advance of the tournament. To the bank we went, O.E. 'Sparky' Adams, I. Elmer Ecker and I, backed by Lou Abrams as a note co-signer for a $45,000 loan."
On June 25, 1950, the Professional Golfers Association voted to hold their 1951 tournament at Oakmont Country Club. It would be the first PGA tourney there since Gene Sarazen won in 1922, although the course had hosted the 1925 and 1938 U.S. Amateurs, as well as the 1927 and 1935 U.S. Opens.
The deal was signed on June 26, with the Dapper Dan Club as the sponsor. Abrams wrote in his column that "Dapper Dan officials have been talking to the PGA about the 1951 tournament for almost two years. The PGA gave its approval early but signing of contracts was delayed until a suitable championship course was available."
The $45,000 guarantee broke 1950's record by $5,000. The tournament was originally scheduled to take place from June 28 to July 4; it was eventually moved to June 27 to July 3.
The field was comprised of former champions, the host pro (Lew Worsham) and survivors of sectional qualifying tournaments. Those 140 golfers would shoot 36 holes of medal play Wedensday and Thursday, and the low 63 scorers would join the defending champion (Chandler Harper, the pro at a Portsmouth, Va. municipal course) in a match play tournament. The first two rounds would be 18-hole matches Friday morning and afternoon, then 36-hole matches the next four days would end the tournament.
A ten-day ticket, covering three practice days and all seven days of tournament play, was $12. Daily tickets were $1.50 for the practice rounds, and $2.50 for tournament play. By the week of the tournament, the practice tickets were $1.25.
Sarazen announced that he would enter. Ben Hogan skipped it for health reasons.
The Post-Gazette ran preview articles most days in June, about past championships at Oakmont, historic PGA championships, and some short profiles of golfers who would be appearing.
Pros started practicing at Oakmont Sunday. More arrived Monday, after the weekend's four-ball tournament in Toledo. At 8:00 p.m. Monday, Kaufmann's sponsored "Golf Pro Party" on WDTV, with Sam Snead, Lloyd Mangrum, Gene Sarazen, Jim Ferrier and Chandler Harper. (When it aired, Claude Harmon was on instead of Snead.) The downtown department store also announced that they'd show scores in their windows.
At the end of Tuesday's practice rounds, there was a clinic and long-driving contest. Ed (Porky) Oliver's drive of 293 yards, 1 foot, 8 inches was an inch longer than Harold Williams. So Oliver won $100, Williams got $60, and third place Chick Harbert earned $40. Despite some rain, there was a gallery of close to 1,000 fans.
In the June 26 Post-Gazette, Phil Gundelfinger identified Mangrum, Snead and Ferrier as the co-favorites. His next tier was former U.S. Open champion Lawson Little, host pro Worsham, Argentina's Roberto de Vincenzo and Jackie Burke, a youngster from Texas.
Defending champion Harper was still getting over various injuries and serious illnesses that he'd suffered in the last year. "I'm just getting back into stride but I am far from top form," he admitted. "After all, the champion should put in an appearance and defend his title if at all possible." The PG's Jack Sell noted that "Harper is moaning about his health and his game being bad but he still collected $11 from his practice round partners."
The tournament officially started June 27. A midday rain, which started at 1 p.m., put a crimp in the first round.
Ferrier led after one round with a 3-under 69, one off the competitive course record. He started with four birdies, making putts of 4, 15, 25 and 3 feet. After a conventional par on No. 5, Ferrier one-putted from 5 feet to save par at No. 6, then hit a trap to bogey No. 7. Two pars gave him a 3-under 34 for the front nine.
After finding a trap on No. 10, he one-putted to save bogey, then sank a 15-footer to birdie No. 11. After an orthodox par on the twelfth hole, Ferrier sank a 35-footer to birdie No. 13. On No. 14, he found two traps on his way to a bogey 5, then hit rough and a trap on his first two shots on No. 15 on his way to a double-bogey 6. But a 35-foot putt and a pitch to within 18 inches allowed him to birdie the next two holes, before he just missed another 35-footer on 18 and settled for par.
"If I hadn't pushed my woods out on the fourteenth and fifteenth I might have had a real good round," he said.
Ferrier was an Australian who, after winning several amateur tournaments there in the '30s, came to the USA in 1940 and won the Chicago Amateur. He then wrote a book about golf, which was enough for him to lose his amateur status. He stayed in the States, settling in San Francisco, and was the second-leading money-winner in 1950.
Five golfers were tied at 71 -- Mangrum, Worsham, Harper, Oliver and Walter Burkemo, "slightly-known Detroit district pro from Franklin, Mich." While Harper's place in match play was secure, he wanted the practice on the course as well as a shot at the $250 prize for low score.
Mangrum birdied 6 and 9, and bogeyed 12. Worsham birdied 1, 10 and 17, the last by sinking a 75-foot wedge from a trap, while he lost strokes on 8 and 15. Harper birdied 1, 12 and, by holing a 90-foot wedge from a trap, 15. He bogeyed 3 and 4. Oliver eagled 1 and the 292-yard 17, the latter where he drove two feet from the pin. Porky birdied 6, 7 and 9, but bogeyed 4, 8, 14 and 16, and double-bogeyed 13. Burkemo chipped in for an eagle on 1, birdied 4, 6 and 17, but lost strokes at 5, 8, 15 and 18.
6,000 fans attended, including former Notre Dame quarterback Harry Stuhldreher of Four Horsemen fame.
Medal play finished on June 28, after the course had been softened by a heavy overnight rain. There were 12 rounds below par, as opposed to six in the first round.
Harmon won a playoff on the third hole of sudden death to win the $250 prize. He outlasted Mangrum and Pete Cooper, a former truck driver from White Plains, N.Y.
The three all finished 36 holes with scores of 142, two under par. Mangrum could have won outright with a par on No. 18, but pulled his second shot into a trap and took a bogey 5.
Vic Ghezzi had the best round of the day with a 69. He finished in a four-way tie at 143 with Ferrier, Worsham and Chuck Klein. Had Worsham parred No. 18, he'd have joined the playoff, but he three-putted.
"I blew my chance on the last hole," said Ghezzi. "I had a swell drive, but was too anxious with my wood on the second shot and went into the rough. Ended up with a five."
But he was still happy. "I guess Pittsburgh will always be my lucky town. I always seem to play well here for some reason or other."
Ferrier wasn't as happy with his 74. "Can you just imagine," he grumbled. "I had five three-putt greens. It hasn't happened to me in a long, long time.
"Guess I'll go out and practice a little more."
Oliver and Harper finished at even-par 144.
The cutoff was 154, and the six players tied at that score participated in a playoff for the 64th match-play spot. Walter Ambo of Overland, Mo. birdied the second hole to qualify and collect the $100 that all qualifiers received.
The only one of Gundelfinger's favorites to miss the cut was de Vincenzo, who shot 158 for the two days, but he wasn't too despondent. In The Press, Bob Drum quoted him as saying, "After all, eet is nice scenery, bella girls and beauty trees around here."
In the battle for the Alex Smith Memorial Trophy, on the first hole of sudden death, each player reached the green in a regulation three shots. Cooper missed a 15-foot putt, Harmon missed a five-footer, and Mangrum missed from three feet. On the second hole, Cooper missed an eight-foot birdie putt. Harmon made his from seven feet and Mangrum sank his six-footer. Harmon two-putted No. 3 for par and the medal, while Mangrum's three-putt from 40 feet was a bogey.
After he won, 7-year-old Claude Jr. told his father, "Gee, dad, we sure ought to eat steak tonight." Claude Jr. is now well-known as Butch Harmon, the golf teacher.
The crowd that day reached 7,500.
Match play started the next day. The 32 first-round matches took place in the morning. Two of the players who tied for the lead in medal play were eliminated. Harmon lost to Dick Shoemaker of Cleveland, 3 and 1, while two-time PGA champ Denny Shute of Akron beat Cooper, 3 and 2.
Harmon and Shoemaker were even through nine holes, but Shoemaker made a 30-foot birdie putt to go up on No. 10. Harmon bogeyed the 12th, then Shoemaker birdied No. 13. Harmon drained a 25-footer on No. 15 to close the gap, but Shoemaker ended the match with a birdie on No. 17.
"Claude took it very well but his little boy cried a bit and I felt sorry for the lad," said Shoemaker. "However, his dad knows as well as I do that you can't take anything for granted in this game."
Cooper and Shute were also even after nine, but Shute made a long birdie putt on No. 10. He bogeyed No. 12 to bring Cooper back even, but won 14, 15, and 16 to take the match.
Mangrum defeated Henry Ransom of St. Andrews, Ill., 4 and 3. Sammy Snead needed to sink a 10-foot birdie putt on the 18th to defeat Fred Haas of New Orleans, 1 up.
Defending champion Chandler Harper also lost his first-round match when Jim Turnesa beat him with a 25-foot birdie putt on the 23rd hole.
Another exciting finish was Jackie Burke coming out of a trap and sinking a long putt to defeat Klein on the 21st hole of their match.
First round losers each earned $100.
In the afternoon's second round, Little and Worsham were eliminated.
Shoemaker defeated Little, 2 and 1. Worsham lost to Al Brosch, 5 and 4.
Snead needed 21 holes and no action on a protest to vanquish Marty Furgol of Lemont, Ill. Furgol took a two-hole lead at No. 10, but Snead drew even at the 13th. After the two players halved seven straight holes, Snead's 5 1/2-foot birdie putt won the match.
On the 14th hole, Snead was lying to the left of the green while Furgol was on the right. A small fly or flies apparently landed on Snead's ball, and he waved at the ball to chase the insects. Furgol saw this and reacted immediately, coming over to speak sharply to Snead. Sammy's response was a loud "fly," and after a bit of further discussion, play continued. (Oddly, something similar happened during the previous pairing, but Burkemo didn't complain about Harbert's wave.) After 18 holes, Furgol went to talk to the officials. While the committee considered the protest, Sarazen talked to Furgol. "No man would want to win a match because of a fly or a bug. If he did we might as well scrap this game of golf."
Sarazen put an arm around Furgol and continued, "Marty, you're a young fellow in this game. You can go far. You don't want to win a match on a technicality do you? Don't let a fly or bug stand between you and your feloow pros. If you win on a disqualification it will be held against you the rest of your playing days." Furgol considered this and withdrew his protest, so the match resumed after about a half-hour. The rules committee eventually released a statement saying it was satisfied with the referee's decision of "no infraction."
Harbert and Burkemo both had long days. Harbert sank a 10-foot birdie to beat Clayton Heafner on the 22nd hole in the morning, while Burkemo beat Toby Lyons on the 20th hole. Burkemo won their afternoon match on the 19th hole.
Second round losers received $200.
Close to 8,500 fans watched in the humidity.
In the June 30 Press, UPI's Oscar Fraley (better known now as Eliot Ness' co-author) complained about mismanagement of the tournament. There were no announcers at the ninth and eighteenth greens to provide progress reports. He claimed that players had trouble finding where to report their scores, so that those scores weren't available for 30 to 45 minutes after a match.
In his July 5 column, Abrams said that "Oakmont and PGA officials did a magnificent job of conducting the tournament in high class fashion. This, despite the unwarranted criticism of one news service writer who had a personal 'beef' and took it out on the PGA and Oakmont. Worst, was that the local newspaper which used the story, hadn't bothered to print his stuff all week before that."
The third round, on June 30, was the first with 36-hole matches. A serious rainstorm came along at 3:30. "It prompted PGA officials to halt play for a half-hour and compelled referees to permit balls to be lifted on the greens and in the traps and moved to ground -- or sand -- where it was possible to hit them."
The day's most anticipated duel was between Snead and Mangrum. Snead started out on fire, while Mangrum found five traps on the first nine holes. When Snead eagled No. 10, he was 4 up. But Mangrum cut the lead to 3 up after 18, and got the match to even when Snead took a 6 on No. 10 in the afternoon. But Sammy won the next three holes, making a 10-foot birdie putt on No. 11, a 15-footer on the 12th, and parring No. 13 while Mangrum's drive was short. They halved the next three holes, and Snead had a 3 and 2 victory. After the rain, Sam was permitted to pick up his ball on the ninth and eleventh greens and place it where he would not have to putt through water.
In another match, Westmoreland C.C. pro Johnny Bulla went 3 up on Ferrier after four holes and never looked back. The highlight was on the par-3 eighth hole, when, after Ferrier chipped his second shot to within a foot, Bulla hit a 75-foot putt that went over two ridges and ran downhill into the cup. When he handed Ferrier his ball, the Australian could merely shake his head. Bulla won the match, 9 and 8, and since it was the first match to tee off, only two holes came after the rain.
Reggie Myles trailed Ghezzi by 2 after 27 holes. But Myles won the next three holes, and was able to halve the last six to win, 1 up, despite his rival being more than a foot taller.
Third round losers each won $350.
The Press estimated the gallery at between five and seven thousand.
On Sunday, July 1, the quarterfinals took place.
In the first match, Bulla met Ellsworth Vines. Vines had been a successful tennis player, winning the US championship in 1931 and '32, and Wimbledon in 1932, before turning pro. He later turned to golf, where he wasn't quite so successful, and by 1951, had retired from the tour as he approached his fortieth birthday. Vines had a job with a Los Angeles real estate that included playing golf and tennis with customers, and well as a teaching post at Wilshire Country Club.
Bulla went up on No. 3, but Vines' 25-foot birdie putt on the 5th evened the match. Vines took several leads, but Bulla kept battling back. On the 35th hole, Bulla sank a 7-foot birdie putt to tie the match again. Both players found traps on the 36th hole, but Vines was able to get within a foot from a sand trap, and when Bulla missed a four-foot putt, the match was over.
The second match was Myles vs. Burkemo. Burkemo was 2 up at lunchtime, and a birdie on No. 4 extended the lead to three before Myles mounted his charge. A 45-foot putt after coming out of a trap on No. 15 evened the match. Myles hit into a trap off the 18th tee, and Burkemo's par won the match, 1 up.
After the match, Burkemo sipped on a cold beer and remembered the Michigan sectional. "I had to go three extra holes in the qualifier before getting the fifth and last passport." He added, "This Oakmont Course is a pip. ... it has been nip and tuck every match. Yep, this is a real golf course."
The two remaining touring pros met in the third match, as Snead took on Burke. This was the match that drew the big gallery. Snead jumped out to a five-hole lead after 13 holes, and he was 4 up after the morning round. But three bogeys, a Burke birdie, and one Burke bogey left Snead 1 up after 33 holes. They both bogeyed No. 16, then Snead's 12-foot birdie putt at the 17th gave him a 2 and 1 win.
The final match pitted Charles Bassler and Brosch. Bassler was 1 up through 18. After Brosch tied it on the third hole of the afternoon, Bassler won the next two holes. But when Brosch came within two inches of a hole-in-one on No. 16, he evened the match. Brosch put his second shot into a trap on the 17th, and that was all the advantage Bassler needed to win, 1 up.
Quarterfinal losers made $500.
The crowd was 10,000.
In the July 2 semifinals, Vines took on Burkemo. The former tennis star was 3 up after eight holes. Burkemo won the next two, but Vines got those back to take a 3 up lead into lunch. Burkemo battled back, and when he made a 6-foot putt on No. 13 while Vines missed one, he had a one-hole lead after 31 holes. But Vines parred the 14th while Burkemo three-putted for bogey. On No. 15, Vines hit two bad woods, then came up short of the green with his third shot. "But he ran a No. 5 iron chip dead from 100 feet." Burkemo hit into the big trap with his second shot, took two to get out, and his double-bogey 6 lost the hole. Vines' 14-footer saved par on the 16th, and Burkemo's bogey after hitting a trap left him two down with two holes to play. He responded, hitting a wedge to within a foot on No. 17, and he won the hole when Vines missed a 15-footer. On the 18th, both hooked their second shots. Vines pitched to within 10 feet from a trap but missed the putt, while Burkemo found himself on the No. 10 tee, put his shot three feet from the hole, and made the putt to extend the match.
On the first extra hole, Vines found sand with his second shot and missed a 12-foot putt. Burkemo got on in two and two-putted from 40 feet to win, 1 up.
"Well, I squeezed through again," said Burkemo. Billy Conn was among the people congratulating him. Ralph Kiner was also around in the afternoon.
Snead got off to a torrid start in his match with Bassler. He was 5 up after the morning round, with Bassler's only winning hole coming when he holed a 60-foot wedge out of a trap on No. 17. There was no letup in the afternoon; after they halved the first five holes, Bassler bogeyed four of the next five to give Snead a 9 and 8 win.
Losing the semifinal was worth $750.
The Monday attendance was back around 5,000.
The final took place July 3.
The first hole set the tone for the day. Burkemo chipped to within two feet of the pin and knocked in his birdie putt. Snead then put his 45-foot chip in the cup to win the hole.
On No. 2, Burkemo three-putted to lose the hole. On the 4th, Snead pitched to within inches for an easy birdie, while Burkemo missed his 12-foot birdie putt. Snead's first two shots on No. 5 found the rough and a trap. His shot out of the trap went into the hole. And when Burkemo bogeyed the sixth, Snead was 5 up.
Burkemo finally won a hole on No. 11 with a five-foot birdie putt. He three-putted the 13th to give a hole back, but then Burkemo got hot. He made a 16-foot birdie put to win No. 14 and another 16-footer to halve No. 15. He hit in into a trap on the 16th and lost the hole, but was able to put a 6-footer by Snead's ball to win No. 17 with a birdie, and Burkemo's 15-footer on the 18th cut Snead's lead to 3 up as the morning round ended.
After lunch, Snead came out sizzling again. He birdied No. 1 while Burkemo saved par after driving into a trap. Snead sank a 15-foot birdie putt on the 2nd while Burkemo missed a 25-footer, and when Burkemo missed a 6-foot par putt on No. 3, Snead was 6 up. "That was when I knew I was sure of winning," said Snead.
Burkemo got a hole back by pitching to within seven feet and birdieing No. 4. But he hit traps on the 7th and 8th, and Snead won both. A pitch to five feet and a birdie on No. 9 kept Burkemo alive, but Snead chipped to one foot on the 10th while Burkemo three-putted from 50 feet. They halved the next two holes, with Burkemo missing a 5-footer on the 12th, and that gave Snead his third PGA championship, 7 and 6.
"My approach putting was particularly good," said Snead. "In fact, I was better on the greens than I expected, even though several long ones just missed."
He was also happy with his short game. "I had a real, fine, relaxed touch around the greens and that's why I wasn't too surprised when I sank that chip on the first hole today."
The champion won $3,500, while the runner-up got $1,500. With the $250 award for the medalist, the total purse was $17,950. (The champion was also guaranteed $250 for each PGA-sponsored tournament at which he appeared during the next year.)
The crowd for the final was 6,500. The total attendance of about 51,500 was just short of the record 52,000 at Plum Hollow, Detroit, in 1947.
In Abrams' July 5 column, he said the tournament grossed more than $100,000, including ticket sales, concessions, program advertising and radio rights, despite the rain. This would leave a nice profit, even after the $45,000 to the PGA. He added, "From an artistic angle, the PGA was a howling success."
(All quotes are from the original newspaper coverage. Please note that The Press and Post-Gazette often disagreed on putt distances.)
