The 1979 Masters Tournament was the 43rd Masters Tournament, held April 12–15 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 n ...

Augusta, Georgia Augusta ( ), officially Augusta–Richmond County, is a consolidated city-county on the central eastern border of the U.S. state of Georgia. The city lies across the Savannah River from South Carolina at the head of its navigable portion. Georgi ...

. Fuzzy Zoeller won his only Masters, the first of his two major titles, with a birdie on the second hole of a playoff with

Ed Sneed Edgar Sneed Jr. (born August 6, 1944) is an American professional golfer, sportscaster and course design consultant, who played on the PGA Tour and the Champions Tour. Sneed was born in Roanoke, Virginia. He graduated from Ohio State University ...

and Tom Watson. Jack Nicklaus climbed up the leaderboard on Sunday with a 69 (−3), but bogeyed 17 to finish a stroke out of the playoff;

Tom Kite Thomas Oliver Kite Jr. (born December 9, 1949) is an American professional golfer and golf course architect. He won the U.S. Open in 1992 and spent 175 weeks in the top-10 of the Official World Golf Ranking between 1989 and 1994. Career Kite w ...

had a double bogey at 16 for an even par 72 in the final round to finish fifth, three strokes back. Second and third round leader Sneed seemed to have a commanding three-shot lead with only three holes to go, but bogeyed the final three holes to card a final round 76 (+4) and fell into the playoff. It was the debut of the sudden-death format at Augusta, adopted by the Masters in

1976 Events January * January 3 – The International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights enters into force. * January 5 – The Pol Pot regime proclaims a new constitution for Democratic Kampuchea. * January 11 – The 1976 ...

. Its last playoff was nine years earlier in

1970 Events January * January 1 – Unix time epoch reached at 00:00:00 UTC. * January 5 – The 7.1 Tonghai earthquake shakes Tonghai County, Yunnan province, China, with a maximum Mercalli intensity of X (''Extreme''). Between 10,000 and ...

, then a full 18-hole round on Monday. The sudden-death playoff began on the tenth hole, a downhill par-4, where all three players missed birdie putts and parred. On the second hole, the par-4 11th, Sneed failed to hole a bunker shot and Watson a birdie putt, and then Zoeller made his from to win. Zoeller, age 27, was the first to win the Masters in his initial attempt since Gene Sarazen in 1935, the second edition of the tournament. In his fifth season on tour, it was Zoeller's second win, the first came less than three months earlier at the

Andy Williams-San Diego Open Invitational The Farmers Insurance Open is a professional golf tournament on the PGA Tour, played in the San Diego, California, area in the early part of the season known as the "West Coast Swing". The tournament was noted for having singer-actor Andy William ...

. He won his other major five years later at the 1984 U.S. Open, also in a playoff. The second round was suspended for two hours Friday afternoon due to heavy rain and tornado warnings. Due to the delay, not all golfers were able to complete their second rounds on Friday and the cut line was not determined until these rounds were completed on Saturday morning. Normally scheduled to conclude on the second Sunday of April, this Masters was held a week later, as was

1984 Events January * January 1 – The Bornean Sultanate of Brunei gains full independence from the United Kingdom, having become a British protectorate in 1888. * January 7 – Brunei becomes the sixth member of the Association of Southeas ...

Field

;1. Masters champions

Tommy Aaron Thomas Dean Aaron (born February 22, 1937) is an American former professional golfer who was a member of the PGA Tour during the 1960s, 1970s and 1980s. Aaron is best known for winning the 1973 Masters Tournament. He is also known for an erro ...

Gay Brewer Gay Robert Brewer Jr. (March 19, 1932 – August 31, 2007) was an American professional golfer who played on the PGA Tour and won the 1967 Masters Tournament. Life Brewer was born in Middletown, Ohio, and raised in Lexington, Kentucky. As an amat ...

Billy Casper William Earl Casper Jr. (June 24, 1931 – February 7, 2015) was an American professional golfer. He was one of the most prolific tournament winners on the PGA Tour from the mid-1950s to the mid-1970s. In his youth, Casper started as a caddie a ...

Charles Coody Billy Charles Coody (born July 13, 1937) is an American professional golfer, best known for winning the 1971 Masters Tournament. Coody was born in Stamford, Texas and raised in Abilene, Texas. He attended Abilene Christian University before tran ...

, Raymond Floyd (8,9,11,12),

Doug Ford Douglas Robert Ford Jr. (born November 20, 1964) is a Canadian politician and businessman who has served as the 26th and current premier of Ontario since June 2018 and leader of the Progressive Conservative (PC) Party since March 2018. He ...

, Bob Goalby, Jack Nicklaus (3,4,8,9,11,12),

Arnold Palmer Arnold Daniel Palmer (September 10, 1929 – September 25, 2016) was an American professional golfer who is widely regarded as one of the greatest and most charismatic players in the sport's history. Dating back to 1955, he won numerous ev ...

Gary Player Gary James Player DMS, OIG (born 1 November 1935) is a South African retired professional golfer who is widely considered to be one of the greatest golfers of all time. During his career, Player won nine major championships on the regular tou ...

(3,8,9,11),

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 ...

Art Wall Jr. Arthur Jonathan Wall Jr. (November 25, 1923 – October 31, 2001) was an American professional golfer, best known for winning the Masters Tournament in 1959 Masters Tournament, 1959. Early life Wall was born and raised in Honesdale, Pennsylvania ...

, Tom Watson (3,8,9,10,11,12) *''

George Archer George William Archer (October 1, 1939 – September 25, 2005) was an American professional golfer who won 13 events on the PGA Tour, including one major championship, the Masters in 1969. Early years Born in San Francisco, California, Arc ...

, Jack Burke Jr.,

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 ...

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 ...

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 ...

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 ...

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 ...

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 a ...

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 ...

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 ...

, and Gene Sarazen did not play.'' ;The following categories only apply to Americans ;2. U.S. Open champions (last five years)

Lou Graham Louis Krebs Graham (born January 7, 1938) is an American professional golfer who won six PGA Tour tournaments including the 1975 U.S. Open. Most of his wins were in the 1970s. Lou Graham was born in Nashville, Tennessee. He started playing g ...

(12),

Hubert Green Hubert Myatt Green (December 28, 1946 – June 19, 2018) was an American professional golfer who won 29 professional golf tournaments, including two major championships: the 1977 U.S. Open and the 1985 PGA Championship. He was inducted into the ...

(8,11,12),

Hale Irwin Hale S. Irwin (born June 3, 1945) is an American professional golfer. He was one of the world's leading golfers from the mid-1970s to the mid-1980s. He is one of the few players in history to win three U.S. Opens, becoming the oldest ever U.S. Op ...

(8,9,12),

Andy North Andrew Stewart North (born March 9, 1950) is an American professional golfer who had three wins on the PGA Tour, including the U.S. Open twice. Since 1992, he has served as a golf analyst for ESPN. Early years North was born in Thorp, Wisconsin ...

(9),

Jerry Pate Jerome Kendrick Pate (born September 16, 1953) is an American professional golfer on the PGA Tour Champions, formerly on the PGA Tour. As a 22-year-old rookie, he won the U.S. Open in 1976. Early years Born in Macon, Georgia, Pate grew up in the ...

(8,9,10,11) ;3.

The 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 (last five years)

Johnny Miller John Laurence Miller (born April 29, 1947) is an American former professional golfer. He was one of the top players in the world during the mid-1970s. He was the first to shoot 63 in a major championship to win the 1973 U.S. Open, and he ran ...

(9) ;4. PGA champions (last five years)

Dave Stockton David Knapp Stockton (born November 2, 1941) is an American retired professional golfer who has won tournaments on both the PGA Tour and the Champions Tour. Stockton was born in San Bernardino, California. He attended the University of Souther ...

(9,12), Lee Trevino (8,9,10,11),

Lanny Wadkins Jerry Lanston "Lanny" Wadkins Jr. (born December 5, 1949) is an American professional golfer. He ranked in the top 10 of the Official World Golf Ranking for 86 weeks from the ranking's debut in 1986 to 1988. Early years Born in Richmond, Virgini ...

(8,11,12) *'' John Mahaffey (10,11) withdrew because of injury.'' ;5. 1978

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 ...

semi-finalists

Bobby Clampett Robert Daniel Clampett Jr. (born April 22, 1960) is an American television golf analyst, golf course architect, writer, and professional golfer, who played on the PGA Tour from 1980 to 1995. Clampett began playing on the Champions Tour in April ...

(7,a), John Cook (6,7,a),

Scott Hoch Scott may refer to: Places Canada * Scott, Quebec, municipality in the Nouvelle-Beauce regional municipality in Quebec * Scott, Saskatchewan, a town in the Rural Municipality of Tramping Lake No. 380 * Rural Municipality of Scott No. 98, Sask ...

(7,a), Mike Peck (a) ;6. Previous two

and Amateur champions *''

John Fought John Fought III (born January 28, 1954) is an American golf course architect and professional golfer who has played on the PGA Tour, Nationwide Tour and Champions Tour. Amateur career Fought (rhymes with "boat") was born in Portland, Oregon. Hi ...

forfeited his exemption by turning professional.'' ;7. Members of the 1978 U.S.

Eisenhower Trophy The Eisenhower Trophy (World Men's Amateur Team Championships) is the biennial World Amateur Team Championship for men organized by the International Golf Federation. Since the tournament was first played in 1958, it is named after Dwight D. Eise ...

team

Jay Sigel Robert Jay Sigel (born November 13, 1943) is an American professional golfer. He enjoyed one of the more illustrious careers in the history of U.S. amateur golf, before turning pro in 1993 at age 50, when he became a member of the Senior PGA Tou ...

(a) ;8. Top 24 players and ties from the

1978 Masters Tournament The 1978 Masters Tournament was the 42nd Masters Tournament, held April 6–9 at Augusta National Golf Club in Augusta, Georgia. Gary Player overcame a 7-shot deficit going into the final round to win his third Masters and ninth major championship ...

Wally Armstrong Walter Armstrong, III (born June 19, 1945) is an American professional golfer who played on the PGA Tour during the 1970s and 1980s. Armstrong was born in New London, Connecticut. He attended the University of Florida in Gainesville, Florida, w ...

Miller Barber Miller Westford Barber, Jr. (March 31, 1931 – June 11, 2013) was an American professional golfer who enjoyed significant success on the PGA Tour in the 1960s and 1970s, and a greater degree of success on the Senior PGA Tour (now the Champions ...

, Andy Bean (9,10,11),

Rod Funseth James Rodney Funseth (April 3, 1933 – September 9, 1985) was an American professional golfer who played on the PGA Tour and the Senior PGA Tour (now PGA Tour Champions). Amiable and low-key but less than confident, Funseth was one of longest ...

(11),

Joe Inman Joseph Cooper Inman, Jr. (born November 29, 1947) is an American professional golfer who has played on the PGA Tour and the Champions Tour. Amateur career Inman was born in Indianapolis, Indiana and is the eldest of six children. After gradu ...

(9),

Don January Donald Ray January (born November 20, 1929) is an American retired professional golfer, best known for winning the 1967 PGA Championship. Early life Born in Plainview, Texas, January graduated from Sunset High School in Dallas. He was a member ...

(12),

(11),

Billy Kratzert William August Kratzert III (born June 29, 1952) is an American professional golfer and sportscaster, who has played on both the PGA Tour and the Champions Tour. Early life Kratzert was born in Quantico, Virginia when his father was in the serv ...

(9),

Gene Littler Gene Alec Littler (July 21, 1930 – February 15, 2019) was an American professional golfer and a member of the World Golf Hall of Fame. Known for a solid temperament and nicknamed "Gene the Machine" for his smooth, rhythmical swing, he once said ...

, Jerry McGee (12), Lindy Miller,

Gil Morgan Gilmer Bryan Morgan II, OD (born September 25, 1946) is an American professional golfer. Morgan was born in Wewoka, Oklahoma. He graduated from East Central State College in Ada, Oklahoma in 1968. In 1972, Morgan earned a Doctor of Optometry de ...

(10,11),

(12), Leonard Thompson,

Tom Weiskopf Thomas Daniel Weiskopf (November 9, 1942 – August 20, 2022) was an American professional golfer who played on the PGA Tour and the Champions Tour. His most successful decade was the 1970s. He won 16 PGA Tour titles between 1968 and 1982, inclu ...

(9,10) ;9. Top 16 players and ties from the 1978 U.S. Open Mike McCullough, Artie McNickle,

J. C. Snead Jesse Carlyle "J. C." Snead (born October 14, 1940) is an American professional golfer who won tournaments on both the PGA Tour and Champions Tour. Snead is the nephew of hall of famer Sam Snead. Snead, who prefers that people called him by his ...

;10. Top eight players and ties from 1978 PGA Championship

Craig Stadler Craig Robert Stadler (born June 2, 1953) is an American professional golfer who has won numerous tournaments at both the PGA Tour and Champions Tour level, including one major championship, the 1982 Masters Tournament. Early life Stadler was bor ...

;11. Winners of

PGA Tour The PGA Tour (stylized in all capital letters as PGA TOUR by its officials) is the organizer of professional golf tours in the United States and North America. It organizes most of the events on the flagship annual series of tournaments also ...

events since the previous Masters Bob Byman,

Ben Crenshaw Ben Daniel Crenshaw (born January 11, 1952) is a retired American professional golfer who has won 19 events on the PGA Tour, including two major championships: the Masters Tournament in 1984 and 1995. He is nicknamed '' Gentle Ben''. Profession ...

Lee Elder Robert Lee Elder (July 14, 1934 – November 28, 2021) was an American professional golfer. In 1975, he became the first African-American to play in the Masters Tournament, where he missed the cut. Elder was invited to the tournament after he w ...

Jerry Heard Jerry Michael Heard (born May 1, 1947) is an American professional golfer who won several PGA Tour events in the 1970s. Early life Heard was born in Visalia, California. He attended Fresno State College (now Fresno State University) for a sho ...

Lon Hinkle Lon Hinkle (born July 17, 1949) is an American professional golfer who has played on both the PGA Tour and the Champions Tour. Hinkle was born in Flint, Michigan. He attended Santana High School in Santee, California, graduating in 1967. He then ...

Barry Jaeckel Barry Louis Jaeckel (born February 14, 1949) is an American professional golfer who played on the PGA Tour and the Champions Tour. Jaeckel was born in Los Angeles, California, and is the son of actor Richard Jaeckel. He attended Palisades High ...

Bruce Lietzke Bruce Alan Lietzke (July 18, 1951 – July 28, 2018) was an American professional golfer who won 13 tournaments on the PGA Tour between 1977 and 1994, including two victories in the Canadian Open. His best finish in a major championship was ...

Mark McCumber Mark Randall McCumber (born September 7, 1951) is an American professional golfer who has played on the PGA Tour and Champions Tour. McCumber was born and raised in Jacksonville, Florida, where he attended Robert E. Lee High School. He turned p ...

, Mac McLendon,

Larry Nelson Larry Gene Nelson (born September 10, 1947) is an American professional golfer who has won numerous tournaments at both the PGA Tour and Champions Tour level. Nelson was born in Fort Payne, Alabama and grew up in Acworth, Georgia, northwest of ...

, Jim Simons, Ron Streck, Fuzzy Zoeller ;12. Members of the U.S.

1977 Ryder Cup The 22nd Ryder Cup Matches were held at the Royal Lytham & St Annes Golf Club in Lytham St Annes, England. The United States team won the competition by a score of 12 to 7 points. The event was the last time that a Great Britain and Ireland tea ...

team

Dave Hill David John Hill (born 4 April 1946) is an English rock musician. He is the lead guitarist, a backing vocalist and the sole continuous member in the English band Slade. Hill is known for his flamboyant stage clothes and hairstyle. Early life B ...

;13. Foreign invitations

Isao Aoki is a Japanese professional golfer. He was elected to the World Golf Hall of Fame in 2004. Career Aoki was born in Abiko, Chiba, Japan. He was introduced to golf while caddying at the Abiko Golf Club as a schoolboy. He turned professional in 196 ...

, Seve Ballesteros (8,9), Nick Faldo, David Graham (8),

Graham Marsh Graham Vivian Marsh MBE (born 14 January 1944) is a retired professional golfer who was one of the leading Australian players of his generation. During his career he won more than 70 tournaments around the world, including 10 on the European T ...

(10),

Peter McEvoy Peter Aloysius McEvoy OBE (born 22 March 1953) was a leading British amateur golfer for many years, and is now a golf course designer, golf administrator, and golf writer. Early life McEvoy was born in London, but spent much of his childhood l ...

(6,a),

Jack Newton Jack Newton OAM (30 January 1950 – 14 April 2022) was an Australian professional golfer. He won the Buick-Goodwrench Open on the PGA Tour and won three times on the European Tour, including the British PGA Matchplay Championship in 1974. He ...

(11),

Peter Oosterhuis Peter Arthur Oosterhuis (born 3 May 1948) is an English professional golfer and golf broadcaster. Oosterhuis played on the European circuit from 1969 to 1974, winning 10 tournaments and taking the Harry Vardon Trophy for heading the Order of Mer ...

(8),

Simon Owen Simon Owen (born 10 December 1950) is a professional golfer from New Zealand. Early life Owen was born in Wanganui. Professional career He turned professional in 1971 and has won several tournaments in Australasia. He played on the Europe ...

Masashi Ozaki is a Japanese professional golfer. Ozaki is often known as Jumbo Ozaki (ジャンボ尾崎 ''Janbo Ozaki'') on account of his height and length off the tee. He featured in the top ten of the Official World Golf Rankings for almost 200 weeks be ...

Victor Regalado Victor Regalado (born 15 April 1948) is a Mexican professional golfer who played on the PGA Tour. Early life Regalado was born and raised in Tijuana, Mexico. Amateur career As an amateur, he played in tournaments in the San Diego, Californ ...

(11),

Bob Shearer Robert A. Shearer (25 May 1948 – 9 January 2022) was an Australian professional golfer and golf course architect. Early life and amateur career Shearer was born in Melbourne, Victoria. He won the 1969 Australian Amateur, having been a joint ...

(9) *''Numbers in brackets indicate categories that the player would have qualified under had they been American.''

Round summaries

First round

''Thursday, April 12, 1979''

Second round

''Friday, April 13, 1979''
''Saturday, April 14, 1979''

Third round

''Saturday, April 14, 1979''

Final round

''Sunday, April 15, 1979''

Final leaderboard

Sources:

Scorecard

''Cumulative tournament scores, relative to par''
Source:

Playoff

*Sudden-death playoff began on hole #10 and ended at hole #11, when Zoeller birdied.

References

External links

Masters.com
– Past winners and results
Augusta.com
– 1979 Masters leaderboard and scorecards {{DEFAULTSORT:Masters Tournament

1979 Events January * January 1 ** United Nations Secretary-General Kurt Waldheim heralds the start of the '' International Year of the Child''. Many musicians donate to the '' Music for UNICEF Concert'' fund, among them ABBA, who write the so ...

1979 in golf 1979 in American sports 1979 in sports in Georgia (U.S. state) April 1979 sports events in the United States