The 1947 PGA Championship was the 29th
PGA Championship
The PGA Championship (often referred to as the US PGA Championship or USPGA outside the United States) is an annual golf tournament conducted by the Professional Golfers' Association of America. It is one of the four men's major championships ...
, held June 18–24 at
Plum Hollow Country Club in
Southfield, Michigan
Southfield is a city in Oakland County in the U.S. state of Michigan. As of the 2010 census, the city had a population of 76,618.
As a northern suburb of Detroit, Southfield shares part of its southern border with Detroit. The city was original ...
, a suburb northwest of
Detroit
Detroit ( , ; , ) is the largest city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is also the largest U.S. city on the United States–Canada border, and the seat of government of Wayne County. The City of Detroit had a population of 639,111 at th ...
.
Jim Ferrier
James Bennett Elliott Ferrier (24 February 1915 – 13 June 1986) was an Australian professional golfer from Manly, New South Wales. After compiling a fine record as an amateur golfer in Australia during the 1930s, he moved to the United States ...
won the
match play
Match play is a scoring system for golf in which a player, or team, earns a point for each hole in which they have bested their opponents; as opposed to stroke play, in which the total number of strokes is counted over one or more rounds of 18 h ...
championship, 2 & 1 over
Chick Harbert
Melvin R. "Chick" Harbert (February 20, 1915 – September 1, 1992) was an American professional golfer.
Harbert won seven times on the PGA Tour, including one major championship, the 1954 PGA Championship, then a match play event. A three-tim ...
in the Tuesday final; the winner's share was
$3,500 and the runner-up's was $1,500.
The match was tied after the first round,
and again after 22 holes. Ferrier won the next three and local resident Harbert could get no closer than two holes down for the rest of the match.
It was the only
major title for Ferrier, a
naturalized U.S. citizen born in
Australia
Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...
.
Defending champion
Ben Hogan
William Ben Hogan (August 13, 1912 – July 25, 1997) was an American professional golfer who is generally considered to be one of the greatest players in the history of the game. He is notable for his profound influence on golf swing theory an ...
was defeated 3 & 1 in the first round by
Toney Penna, who was seven-under for the 17 holes, but then lost in the next round.
Jimmy Demaret
James Newton Demaret (May 24, 1910 – December 28, 1983) was an American professional golfer. He won 31 PGA Tour events in a long career between 1935 and 1957, and was the first three-time winner of the Masters, with titles in 1940, 1947, and ...
earned $250 as the medalist in the stroke play qualifier at 137 (−7),
but was also eliminated in the first round.
Sam Snead
Samuel Jackson Snead (pronounced English_phonology">sni:d.html" ;"title="English_phonology.html" ;"title="nowiki/>English phonology">sni:d">English_phonology.html" ;"title="nowiki/>English phonology">sni:d May 27, 1912 – May 23, 2002) was an ...
lost in the second round to three-time champion
Gene Sarazen.
[ Hogan regained the title the ]next year
"Next Year" is a song released as the last single from the third Foo Fighters' album ''There Is Nothing Left to Lose''.
History
A shorter version (running at just 3:21 compared to the original's 4:36) was released as a single in 2000 and wa ...
.
The last three majors were held within several weeks in 1947: the U.S. Open was concluded several days earlier in St. Louis
St. Louis () is the second-largest city in Missouri, United States. It sits near the confluence of the Mississippi and the Missouri Rivers. In 2020, the city proper had a population of 301,578, while the bi-state metropolitan area, which e ...
, Missouri
Missouri is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. Ranking List of U.S. states and territories by area, 21st in land area, it is bordered by eight states (tied for the most with Tennessee ...
. Lew Worsham
Lewis Elmer Worsham, Jr. (October 5, 1917 – October 19, 1990) was an American professional golfer, the U.S. Open champion
Life and career
Worsham was born on October 5, 1917, in Pittsylvania County, Virginia. He grew up in Long Island, Vi ...
defeated Sam Snead
Samuel Jackson Snead (pronounced English_phonology">sni:d.html" ;"title="English_phonology.html" ;"title="nowiki/>English phonology">sni:d">English_phonology.html" ;"title="nowiki/>English phonology">sni:d May 27, 1912 – May 23, 2002) was an ...
by a stroke in an 18-hole playoff on Sunday, June 15. The British Open
The Open Championship, often referred to as The Open or the British Open, is the oldest golf tournament in the world, and one of the most prestigious. Founded in 1860, it was originally held annually at Prestwick Golf Club in Scotland. Later th ...
was played the first week of July in England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...
.
This was the first PGA Championship scheduled to conclude on Tuesday, which continued through 1956. Two-time champion Byron Nelson
John Byron Nelson Jr. (February 4, 1912 – September 26, 2006) was an American professional golfer between 1935 and 1946, widely considered one of the greatest golfers of all time.
Nelson and two other legendary champions of the time, Ben Hoga ...
did not compete; his final PGA Championship was the previous year.
Format
The match play
Match play is a scoring system for golf in which a player, or team, earns a point for each hole in which they have bested their opponents; as opposed to stroke play, in which the total number of strokes is counted over one or more rounds of 18 h ...
format at the PGA Championship in 1947 called for 12 rounds (216 holes) in seven days:[
* Wednesday and Thursday – 36-hole stroke play qualifier, 18 holes per day;
**defending champion ]Ben Hogan
William Ben Hogan (August 13, 1912 – July 25, 1997) was an American professional golfer who is generally considered to be one of the greatest players in the history of the game. He is notable for his profound influence on golf swing theory an ...
and top 63 professionals advanced to match play
* Friday – first two rounds, 18 holes each
* Saturday – third round – 36 holes
* Sunday – quarterfinals – 36 holes
* Monday – semifinals – 36 holes
* Tuesday – final – 36 holes
Past champions in the field
Failed to qualify
Runyan did not advance in the eleven-way playoff for the one final spot in the match play field.
Source:
Final results
''Tuesday, June 24, 1947''
Final eight bracket
Final match scorecards
''Morning''
''Afternoon''
Source:[
]
References
External links
PGA Media Guide 2012
– 1947 PGA Championship
{{coord, 42.451, -83.262, type:event, display=title
PGA Championship
Golf in Michigan
Southfield, Michigan
PGA Championship
The PGA Championship (often referred to as the US PGA Championship or USPGA outside the United States) is an annual golf tournament conducted by the Professional Golfers' Association of America. It is one of the four men's major championships ...
PGA Championship
The PGA Championship (often referred to as the US PGA Championship or USPGA outside the United States) is an annual golf tournament conducted by the Professional Golfers' Association of America. It is one of the four men's major championships ...
PGA Championship
The PGA Championship (often referred to as the US PGA Championship or USPGA outside the United States) is an annual golf tournament conducted by the Professional Golfers' Association of America. It is one of the four men's major championships ...
PGA Championship
The PGA Championship (often referred to as the US PGA Championship or USPGA outside the United States) is an annual golf tournament conducted by the Professional Golfers' Association of America. It is one of the four men's major championships ...