The 1948 Masters Tournament was the 12th
Masters Tournament
The Masters Tournament (usually referred to as simply The Masters, or the U.S. Masters outside North America) is one of the four major championships in professional golf. Scheduled for the first full week of April, the Masters is the first maj ...
, held April 8–11 at
Augusta National Golf Club
Augusta National Golf Club, sometimes referred to as Augusta or the National, is a golf club in Augusta, Georgia, United States. Unlike most private clubs which operate as non-profits, Augusta National is a for-profit corporation, and it does no ...
in
Augusta, Georgia
Augusta ( ), officially Augusta–Richmond County, is a consolidated city-county on the central eastern border of the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia. The city lies across the Savannah River from South Carolina at the head of its navig ...
.
Claude Harmon
Eugene Claude Harmon Sr. (July 14, 1916 – July 23, 1989) was an American professional golfer and golf instructor.
Born in Savannah, Georgia, Harmon spent much of his boyhood in Florida, in the Orlando area. A youthful prodigy, he qualified for ...
shot a record-tying 279 (−9) and finished five strokes ahead of runner-up
Cary Middlecoff
Emmett Cary Middlecoff (January 6, 1921 – September 1, 1998) was an American professional golfer on the PGA Tour from 1947 to 1961. His 39 Tour wins place him tied for tenth all-time, and he won three major championships. Middlecoff graduated as ...
, a future champion in
1955
Events January
* January 3 – José Ramón Guizado becomes president of Panama.
* January 17 – , the first nuclear-powered submarine, puts to sea for the first time, from Groton, Connecticut.
* January 18– 20 – Battle of Yijian ...
. The Sunday gallery in 1948 was estimated at 10,000 spectators, and the tournament purse was $10,000. Harmon won $2,500 and his four-round score tied the record set by
Ralph Guldahl
Ralph J. Guldahl (November 22, 1911 – June 11, 1987) was an American professional golfer, one of the top five players in the sport from 1936 to 1940. He won sixteen PGA Tour-sanctioned tournaments, including three majors (two U.S. Opens and one ...
in
1939
This year also marks the start of the Second World War, the largest and deadliest conflict in human history.
Events
Below, the events of World War II have the "WWII" prefix.
January
* January 1
** Third Reich
*** Jews are forbidden to ...
.
Primarily a club professional, it was Harmon's first tour victory.
[
This was the final appearance as a player in the Masters for host Bobby Jones, then age 46. It was also the last Masters that did not immediately present the iconic green jacket to the winner. The nine winners of the first twelve tournaments received their green jackets in ]1949
Events
January
* January 1 – A United Nations-sponsored ceasefire brings an end to the Indo-Pakistani War of 1947. The war results in a stalemate and the division of Kashmir, which still continues as of 2022.
* January 2 – Luis ...
.
The five-stroke victory margin was matched by 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 and ...
in 1953
Events
January
* January 6 – The Asian Socialist Conference opens in Rangoon, Burma.
* January 12 – Estonian émigrés found a Estonian government-in-exile, government-in-exile in Oslo.
* January 14
** Marshal Josip Broz Tito i ...
; the record was raised to seven in 1955
Events January
* January 3 – José Ramón Guizado becomes president of Panama.
* January 17 – , the first nuclear-powered submarine, puts to sea for the first time, from Groton, Connecticut.
* January 18– 20 – Battle of Yijian ...
by Cary Middlecoff
Emmett Cary Middlecoff (January 6, 1921 – September 1, 1998) was an American professional golfer on the PGA Tour from 1947 to 1961. His 39 Tour wins place him tied for tenth all-time, and he won three major championships. Middlecoff graduated as ...
, nine in 1965
Events January–February
* January 14 – The Prime Minister of Northern Ireland and the Taoiseach of the Republic of Ireland meet for the first time in 43 years.
* January 20
** Lyndon B. Johnson is Second inauguration of Lyndo ...
by Jack Nicklaus
Jack William Nicklaus (born January 21, 1940), nicknamed The Golden Bear, is a retired American professional golfer and List of golf courses designed by Jack Nicklaus, golf course designer. He is widely considered to be one of the greatest go ...
, and twelve by Tiger Woods
Eldrick Tont "Tiger" Woods (born December 30, 1975) is an American professional golfer. He is tied for first in PGA Tour wins, ranks second in men's major championships, and holds numerous golf records.
*
*
* Woods is widely regarded as ...
in 1997
File:1997 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The movie set of ''Titanic'', the highest-grossing movie in history at the time; ''Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone'', is published; Comet Hale-Bopp passes by Earth and becomes one of t ...
.
Field
;1. Masters champions
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 ...
(7,9), Ralph Guldahl
Ralph J. Guldahl (November 22, 1911 – June 11, 1987) was an American professional golfer, one of the top five players in the sport from 1936 to 1940. He won sixteen PGA Tour-sanctioned tournaments, including three majors (two U.S. Opens and one ...
(2), Herman Keiser
Herman W. Keiser (October 7, 1914 – December 24, 2003) was an American professional golfer on the PGA Tour, best known for winning the Masters Tournament in 1946, his only major title.
Keiser was born and raised in Springfield, Missouri. Li ...
(7,9), 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 Hog ...
(2,6,7,9), Henry Picard
Henry Gilford Picard (November 28, 1906 – April 30, 1997) was an American professional golfer.
Born in Plymouth, Massachusetts, Picard learned to play golf while caddying at the Plymouth Country Club. Already a talented player by his early 20s ...
(6,9), Gene Sarazen
Gene Sarazen (; born Eugenio Saraceni, February 27, 1902 – May 13, 1999) was an American professional golfer, one of the world's top players in the 1920s and 1930s, and the winner of seven major championships. He is one of five players (along ...
(2,4,6), Horton Smith
Horton Smith (May 22, 1908 – October 15, 1963) was an American professional golfer, best known as the winner of the first and third Masters Tournaments.
Tournament career
Born in Springfield, Missouri, Smith turned professional in 1926 and w ...
(9), Craig Wood (2)
;2. U.S. Open champions
Billy Burke, Johnny Farrell
John Joseph Farrell (April 1, 1901 – June 14, 1988) was an American professional golfer, best known for winning the U.S. Open in 1928. Over the course of his career, he won 22 PGA Tour events.
Early life
Born in White Plains, New York, Farrell ...
, Bobby Jones (3,4,5), Lawson Little
William Lawson Little Jr. (June 23, 1910 – February 1, 1968) was an American professional golfer who also had a distinguished amateur career.
Little was born in Newport, Rhode Island, and lived much of his early life in the San Francisco area, ...
(3,5,9), Lloyd Mangrum
Lloyd Eugene Mangrum (August 1, 1914 – November 17, 1973) was an American professional golfer. He was known for his smooth swing and his relaxed demeanour on the course, which earned him the nickname "Mr. Icicle." Early life and family
Mangrum ...
(7,9,10,12), 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 ...
(7,10,12)
;3. U.S. Amateur
The United States Amateur Championship, commonly known as the U.S. Amateur, is the leading annual golf tournament in the United States for amateur golfers. It is organized by the United States Golf Association and is currently held each August ov ...
champions
Dick Chapman
Richard Davol Chapman (March 23, 1911 – November 15, 1978) was an American amateur golfer. ''Time'' magazine crowned Chapman "the Ben Hogan of amateur golf".
Chapman was born in Greenwich, Connecticut. He was the 1940 U.S. Amateur golf cha ...
(8,9,a), Skee Riegel
Robert Henry "Skee" Riegel (November 25, 1914 – February 22, 2009) was an American professional golfer.
Riegel attended West Point, Hobart College, and Lafayette College where he played football and baseball but not golf. He took up golf at t ...
(8,11,a)
;4. 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 ...
champions
Denny Shute
Herman Densmore "Denny" Shute (October 25, 1904 – May 13, 1974) was an American professional golfer who won three major championships in the 1930s.
Life and career
Born in Cleveland, Ohio, Shute was the son of a golf pro from England; Hermon ...
(6,9), 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 ...
(6,7,9,10)
;5. British Amateur
The Amateur Championship (sometimes referred to as the British Amateur or British Amateur Championship outside the UK) is a golf tournament which has been held annually in the United Kingdom since 1885 except during the two World Wars, and in 19 ...
champions
;6. PGA PGA is an acronym or initialism that may stand for:
Aviation
* IATA code for Page Municipal Airport, Coconino County, Arizona
* ICAO designator for Portugália, regional airline based in Lisbon, Portugal
* Abbreviation for Prince George Airport ...
champions
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 ...
(9,10,12), Vic Ghezzi
Victor J. Ghezzi (October 19, 1910 – May 30, 1976) was an American professional golfer. (Birth year sometimes listed as 1911 or 1912)
Born in Rumson, New Jersey, Ghezzi won 11 times on the PGA Tour, including one major title, the 1941 PGA Champ ...
(9,10,12), Bob Hamilton
Robert T. Hamilton (January 10, 1916 – December 6, 1990) was an American professional golfer. He was born, raised, and died in Evansville, Indiana. He attended and graduated from Evansville Reitz High School in 1934.
Hamilton won ten profess ...
, 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 and ...
(7,9,10)
;7. Members of the U.S. 1947 Ryder Cup
The 7th Ryder Cup Matches were held November 1–2, 1947 at Portland Golf Club in Portland, Oregon, marking a resumption of the competition after a full decade. World War II forced cancellations from 1939 to 1945; the last competition was in 193 ...
team
Herman Barron
Herman Barron (December 23, 1909 – June 11, 1978) was an American professional golfer best known for being the first Jewish golfer to win a PGA Tour event.
Biography
Barron was born in Port Chester, New York. He was one of barely a dozen pr ...
(9), Dutch Harrison
Ernest Joseph "Dutch" Harrison (March 29, 1910 – June 19, 1982) was an American professional golfer whose career spanned over four decades—one of the longest in the history of the PGA Tour.
Born in Conway, Arkansas and nicknamed "The Arkansa ...
(10)
*'' Ed Oliver (9,10) did not play.''
;8. Members of the U.S. 1947 Walker Cup
The 1947 Walker Cup, the 11th Walker Cup Match, was played on 16 and 17 May 1947, on the Old Course at St Andrews, Scotland. The United States won by 8 matches to 4.
The match should have been played in the United States; the previous match, in 1 ...
team
George Hamer (a), Fred Kammer
August Frederick Kammer Jr. (June 3, 1912 – February 21, 1996) was an American ice hockey player and amateur golfer.
Ice Hockey
In 1936 he was a member of the American ice hockey team, which won the bronze medal in the 1936 Winter Olympics.
G ...
(a), Bud Ward
Marvin Harvey "Bud" Ward (May 1, 1913 – January 2, 1968) was an American golfer best known for twice winning the U.S. Amateur, in 1939 and 1941.
Ward was born in Elma, Washington. He excelled as an amateur golfer, winning the U.S. Amateur tw ...
(3,10,11,a)
*'' Ted Bishop (3,a), Smiley Quick
Lyman Loren "Smiley" Quick (March 19, 1909 – December 23, 1979) was an American professional golfer who played on the PGA Tour in the 1940s and 1950s.
Quick was born in Centralia, Illinois, but lived most of his life in southern California in ...
(a), Frank Stranahan
Frank Richard Stranahan (August 5, 1922 – June 23, 2013) was an American sportsman. He had significant success in both amateur and professional golf. He was ranked number one in his weight class in powerlifting, from 1945 to 1954, and he became ...
(9,10,a) and Willie Turnesa
William P. Turnesa (January 20, 1914 – June 16, 2001) was an American amateur golfer, best known for winning two U.S. Amateur titles and the British Amateur. He was one of seven famous golfing brothers; Phil (1896-1987), Frank (1898-1949), ...
(3,5,a) did not play.''
;9. Top 24 players and ties from the 1947 Masters Tournament
The 1947 Masters Tournament was the 11th Masters Tournament, held April 3–6 at Augusta National Golf Club in Augusta, Georgia. The purse was $10,000 with a winner's share of $2,500.
Jimmy Demaret, the 1940 champion, was the co-leader after both ...
Johnny Bulla
John Guthrie Bulla (June 2, 1914 – December 7, 2003) was an American professional golfer.
Born in Newell, West Virginia, Bulla played on the PGA Tour, winning the 1941 Los Angeles Open, and finished runner-up three times in the majors, inclu ...
, Fred Haas
Frederick Theodore Haas Jr. (January 3, 1916 – January 26, 2004) was an American professional golfer.
Amateur career
Haas was born in Portland, Arkansas. After graduating from Dermott High School, he graduated from Louisiana State University ...
, Chandler Harper
John Chandler Harper (March 10, 1914 – November 8, 2004) was an American professional golfer, best known for winning the PGA Championship in 1950. He won seven times on the PGA Tour and played in the Ryder Cup in 1955.
Harper was born, raised an ...
, Jug McSpaden
Harold Lee "Jug" McSpaden (July 21, 1908 – April 22, 1996) was an American professional golfer, and golf course architect.
Early career
Born in Monticello, Kansas, McSpaden became interested in golf at the age of ten, after seeing Harry Va ...
, Dick Metz
Richard C. Metz (May 29, 1908 – May 5, 1993) was an American professional golfer.
Metz won 10 times on the PGA Tour in the 1930s and 1940s. He had continued success as a senior golfer winning the Senior PGA Championship and World Seniors Champ ...
(10), Johnny Palmer
John Cornelius Palmer (July 3, 1918 – September 14, 2006) was an American professional golfer.
Born in Eldorado, North Carolina, Palmer won seven times on the PGA Tour in the 1940s and 1950s, and was a member of the Ryder Cup team 1949.
Palme ...
(10), Toney Penna
Toney G. Penna (January 15, 1908 – August 6, 1995) was an Italian-American professional golfer and designer of golf clubs and gear. He won four events on the PGA Tour between 1937 and 1947. He introduced new lines of golf clubs and was the h ...
, Ellsworth Vines
Henry Ellsworth Vines Jr. (September 28, 1911 – March 17, 1994) was an American tennis champion of the 1930s, the World No. 1 player or the co-No. 1 in 1932, 1934, 1935, 1936 and 1937, able to win Pro Slam titles on three different surfaces. ...
;10. Top 24 players and ties from the 1947 U.S. Open
Sammy Byrd
Samuel Dewey Byrd (October 5, 1906 – May 11, 1981) was an American professional baseball outfielder and professional golfer. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) and on the PGA Tour. Byrd is the only person to play in both the World Series ...
, Ed Furgol
Edward Joseph Furgol (March 24, 1917 – March 6, 1997) was an American professional golfer, the winner of the U.S. Open in 1954.
At age twelve, Furgol injured his left elbow when he fell off a set of parallel bars at a playground. Despite sever ...
, Leland Gibson (12), 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-time ...
(12), Claude Harmon
Eugene Claude Harmon Sr. (July 14, 1916 – July 23, 1989) was an American professional golfer and golf instructor.
Born in Savannah, Georgia, Harmon spent much of his boyhood in Florida, in the Orlando area. A youthful prodigy, he qualified for ...
, Joe Kirkwood Sr.
Joseph Henry Kirkwood Sr. (3 April 1897 – 29 October 1970) was a professional golfer who is acknowledged as having put Australian golf on the world map.
Born in Sydney, Australia, Kirkwood left home at age ten to work on a sheep Station (Austr ...
, Gene Kunes, Jim McHale Jr. (a), Bill Nary, Al Smith
Alfred Emanuel Smith (December 30, 1873 – October 4, 1944) was an American politician who served four terms as Governor of New York and was the Democratic Party's candidate for president in 1928.
The son of an Irish-American mother and a C ...
, Harry Todd
Harry Todd (December 13, 1863 – February 15, 1935) was an American actor.
He appeared in nearly 400 films between 1909 and 1935. On Broadway, Todd was a member of the ensemble in '' The American Way'' (1939).
Todd died in Glendale, Cal ...
*'' George Payton and Paul Runyan
Paul Scott Runyan (July 12, 1908 – March 17, 2002) was an American professional golfer. Among the world's best players in the mid-1930s, he won two PGA Championships, and is a member of the World Golf Hall of Fame. Runyan was also a golf instruc ...
did not play.''
;11. 1947 U.S. Amateur
The United States Amateur Championship, commonly known as the U.S. Amateur, is the leading annual golf tournament in the United States for amateur golfers. It is organized by the United States Golf Association and is currently held each August ov ...
quarter-finalists
Bob Rosburg
Robert Reginald "Rossie" Rosburg (October 21, 1926 – May 14, 2009) was an American professional golfer who later became a sports color analyst for ABC television.
Early years, college
Rosburg was born in San Francisco, California. He played gol ...
(a), Jack Selby (a), Felice Torza
Felice Joseph Torza (March 15, 1920 – December 23, 1983) was an American professional golfer who played in the 1940s, 1950s and 1960s.
Biography
Torza was born in Naples, Italy, on March 15, 1920. Like most of the golfers of his generation, ...
, Harvie Ward
Edward Harvie Ward, Jr. (December 8, 1925 – September 4, 2004) was an American golfer best known for his Amateur sports, amateur career. He is best known for winning both the U.S. Amateur (twice) and the British Amateur.
Born in Tarboro, North ...
(a)
*''Johnny Dawson
John W. Dawson (December 20, 1902 – January 6, 1986) was an American amateur golfer and golf course architect.
Dawson was born in Chicago, Illinois. Although he was a lifelong amateur golfer, his amateur status was rescinded by the United State ...
(a) and Frank Strafaci
Frank Strafaci (April 24, 1916 – February 19, 1988) was an American amateur golfer, who competed against the top amateurs of his time. He is remembered as one of Brooklyn's top amateur golfers.
Career
Strafaci was born and raised in Brooklyn ...
(a) did not play.''
;12. 1947 PGA Championship
The 1947 PGA Championship was the 29th PGA Championship, held June 18–24 at Plum Hollow Country Club in Southfield, Michigan, a suburb northwest of Detroit. Jim Ferrier won the match play championship, 2 & 1 over Chick Harbert in the Tuesday f ...
quarter-finalists
Art Bell
Arthur William Bell III (June 17, 1945 – April 13, 2018) was an American broadcaster and author. He was the founder and the original host of the paranormal-themed radio program ''Coast to Coast AM'', which is syndicated on hundreds of ...
, Ky Laffoon
Ky Laffoon (December 23, 1908 – March 17, 1984) was an American professional golfer. (Birthdate also stated as December 24, 1907.) He won 10 times on the PGA Tour, with four of the victories coming in 1934. He played on the 1935 Ryder Cup team. ...
;13. One amateur, not already qualified, selected by a ballot of ex-U.S. Amateur champions
*''Chuck Kocsis Charles R. Kocsis (January 27, 1913 – May 30, 2006) was an American amateur golfer.
Kocsis was introduced to the game as a caddie at the Phoenix Country Club, which is now Rogell Municipal Golf Course. One of fourteen children, he grew up in the ...
(a) did not play''
;14. One professional, not already qualified, selected by a ballot of ex-U.S. Open champions
Skip Alexander
Stewart Murray "Skip" Alexander, Jr. (August 6, 1918 – October 24, 1997) was an American collegiate and professional golfer.
Alexander was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, but was raised in Durham, North Carolina. He attended Duke Univ ...
;15. Two players, not already qualified, with the best scoring average in the winter part of the 1948 PGA Tour
Cary Middlecoff
Emmett Cary Middlecoff (January 6, 1921 – September 1, 1998) was an American professional golfer on the PGA Tour from 1947 to 1961. His 39 Tour wins place him tied for tenth all-time, and he won three major championships. Middlecoff graduated as ...
*''Clayton Heafner
Clayton Vance Heafner (July 20, 1914 – December 31, 1960) was an American golfer, and the father of golfer Vance Heafner.
Heafner was born in Charlotte, North Carolina.
Heafner won seven times on the PGA Tour, played on two Ryder Cup teams ...
did not play.''
;16 Winner of the 1948 Inter-service Invitational tournament
*''Played after the Masters, the winner receiving entry to the 1949 event.''
;17 Home club professional
Ed Dudley
Edward Bishop Dudley (February 19, 1901 – October 25, 1963) was an American professional golfer active in the late 1920s and 1930s. He was given the nickname of "Big Ed" in acknowledgment of his frame.
Biography
Born in Brunswick, Georgia, ...
;18. Foreign invitations
Henry Cotton (4), Bobby Locke
Arthur D'Arcy "Bobby" Locke (20 November 1917 – 9 March 1987) was a South African professional golfer. He is generally regarded as one of the greatest golfers of all time. He won The Open Championship four times and 15 PGA Tour events in total ...
(9,10)
Round summaries
First round
''Thursday, April 8, 1948''
Source:
Second round
''Friday, April 9, 1948''
Source:
Third round
''Saturday, April 10, 1948''
Source:
Final round
''Sunday, April 11, 1948''
Final leaderboard
Sources:
Scorecard
''Cumulative tournament scores, relative to par''
References
External links
Masters.com
– past winners and results
Augusta.com
– 1948 Masters leaderboard and scorecards
{{DEFAULTSORT:Masters Tournament
1948
Events January
* January 1
** The General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) is inaugurated.
** The Constitution of New Jersey (later subject to amendment) goes into effect.
** The railways of Britain are nationalized, to form British ...
1948 in golf
1948 in American sports
1948 in sports in Georgia (U.S. state)
April 1948 sports events in the United States