The 1981 Tournament Players Championship was a
golf
Golf is a club-and-ball sport in which players use various clubs to hit balls into a series of holes on a course in as few strokes as possible.
Golf, unlike most ball games, cannot and does not use a standardized playing area, and coping wi ...
tournament in
Florida
Florida is a state located in the Southeastern region of the United States. Florida is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the northwest by Alabama, to the north by Georgia, to the east by the Bahamas and Atlantic Ocean, and to ...
on the
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 k ...
, held March 19–23 at
Sawgrass Country Club
Sawgrass Country Club is a private member owned country club in the southeastern United States, located at Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida, southeast of Jacksonville. A Distinguished 5 Star Platinum Club of America and a Premier Private Country Club of ...
in
Ponte Vedra Beach
Ponte Vedra Beach is a wealthy unincorporated seaside community and suburb of Jacksonville, Florida in St. Johns County, Florida, United States. Located southeast of downtown Jacksonville and north of St. Augustine, it is part of the Jackso ...
, southeast of
Jacksonville
Jacksonville is a city located on the Atlantic coast of northeast Florida, the most populous city proper in the state and is the List of United States cities by area, largest city by area in the contiguous United States as of 2020. It is the co ...
. The eighth
Tournament Players Championship, it was the fifth consecutive at Sawgrass and the champion was
Raymond Floyd
Raymond Loran Floyd (born September 4, 1942) is an American retired golfer who has won numerous tournaments on both the PGA Tour and Senior PGA Tour, including four majors and four senior majors. He was inducted into the World Golf Hall of Fame ...
.
The final round on Sunday was washed-out by thunderstorms and played on Monday.
After 72 holes, three players were tied at 285 (−3): Floyd,
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 Sc ...
, and
Curtis Strange
Curtis Northrup Strange (born January 30, 1955) is an American professional golfer and TV color commentator. He is the winner of consecutive U.S. Open titles and a member of the World Golf Hall of Fame and Virginia Sports Hall of Fame. He spent ...
. The playoff began at the par-3 15th hole, where Floyd made par and the other two had bogeys.
In addition to the winner's share of $72,000, Floyd won a $250,000 bonus for consecutive victories during the tour's Florida swing; he won at
Doral near
Miami
Miami ( ), officially the City of Miami, known as "the 305", "The Magic City", and "Gateway to the Americas", is a East Coast of the United States, coastal metropolis and the County seat, county seat of Miami-Dade County, Florida, Miami-Dade C ...
the previous week.
[
Defending champion ]Lee Trevino
Lee Buck Trevino (born December 1, 1939) is an American retired professional golfer who is regarded as one of the greatest players in golf history. He was inducted to the World Golf Hall of Fame in 1981. Trevino won six major championships and ...
finished four strokes back, in a tie for twelfth place.
Venue
This was the fifth and last Tournament Players Championship held at Sawgrass Country Club; it moved to the nearby TPC at Sawgrass
The Tournament Players Club at Sawgrass (TPC at Sawgrass) is a golf course in the southeastern United States, located in Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida, southeast of Jacksonville. Opened in the autumn of 1980, it was the first of several Tournament ...
Stadium Course in 1982
Events January
* January 1 – In Malaysia and Singapore, clocks are adjusted to the same time zone, UTC+8 (GMT+8.00).
* January 13 – Air Florida Flight 90 crashes shortly after takeoff into the 14th Street bridges, 14th Street Bridge in ...
. The new course was scheduled to make its debut in 1981, but heavy rains during construction pushed it back a year.
Eligibility requirements
1. All designated players
2. Winners of major 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 k ...
co-sponsored or approved events beginning with the 1980 Tournament Players Championship and concluding with the tournament immediately preceding the 1981 TPC
Lee Trevino
Lee Buck Trevino (born December 1, 1939) is an American retired professional golfer who is regarded as one of the greatest players in golf history. He was inducted to the World Golf Hall of Fame in 1981. Trevino won six major championships and ...
, Doug Tewell
Douglas Fred Tewell (born August 27, 1949) is an American professional golfer who has won several tournaments at both the PGA Tour and Champions Tour level, including two senior major championships.
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, Craig Stadler
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Early life
Stadler was bo ...
, Seve Ballesteros
Severiano Ballesteros Sota (; 9 April 1957 – 7 May 2011) was a Spanish professional golfer, a World No. 1 who was one of the sport's leading figures from the mid-1970s to the mid-1990s. A member of a gifted golfing family, he won 90 inte ...
, Roger Maltbie
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, Tom Watson (3), Mark Pfeil
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, Curtis Strange
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, Bruce Lietzke
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, David Graham, John Mahaffey
John Drayton Mahaffey Jr. (born May 9, 1948) is an American professional golfer who has won numerous tournaments including 10 PGA Tour events.
Mahaffey was born in Kerrville, Texas. He attended the University of Houston in Houston, Texas. He turn ...
, 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 A ...
, 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 ...
, Bob Gilder
Robert Bryan Gilder (born December 31, 1950) is an American professional golfer. He won six tournaments on the PGA Tour and currently plays on the Champions Tour, where he has ten wins since joining in 2001.
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, Scott Simpson, 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 ...
, 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, Saska ...
, Howard Twitty
Howard Allen Twitty (born January 15, 1949) is an American professional golfer who played on the PGA Tour in the 1970s, 1980s, and 1990s; and played on the Champions Tour from 1999 until 2007.
Twitty was born in Phoenix, Arizona. He graduated fro ...
, Peter Jacobsen
Peter Erling Jacobsen (born March 4, 1954) is an American professional golfer and commentator on Golf Channel and NBC. He has played on the PGA Tour and the Champions Tour. He has won seven events on the PGA Tour and two events on the Champions ...
, Don Pooley
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Wayne John Levi (born February 22, 1952) is an American professional golfer.
Early life
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, Phil Hancock
Phillip Ranson Hancock (born October 30, 1953) is an American professional golfer who formerly played on the PGA Tour.
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Hancock learned to play golf growing up in Greenville, Alabama from his father, a local dentist.Charles Newborn, P ...
, 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''.
Professiona ...
, Mike Sullivan, Dan Halldorson
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Richard Dan "Danny" Edwards (born June 14, 1951) is an American professional golfer who has played on the PGA Tour, Nationwide Tour and Champions Tour. He is the older brother of former PGA Tour player David Edwards.
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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 ra ...
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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 ...
, Andy Bean
Thomas Andrew Bean (born March 13, 1953) is an American professional golfer who played on the PGA Tour and the Champions Tour.
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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.
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Kite wa ...
, Raymond Floyd
Raymond Loran Floyd (born September 4, 1942) is an American retired golfer who has won numerous tournaments on both the PGA Tour and Senior PGA Tour, including four majors and four senior majors. He was inducted into the World Golf Hall of Fame ...
3. The current British Open champion
4. Leaders in the PGA Tour Official Standings as necessary to complete the field, beginning with the 1980 TPC and concluding with the Jackie Gleason-Inverrary Classic, which concludes March 8, 1981
Source:
Field
John Adams
John Adams (October 30, 1735 – July 4, 1826) was an American statesman, attorney, diplomat, writer, and Founding Fathers of the United States, Founding Father who served as the second president of the United States from 1797 to 1801. Befor ...
, Buddy Allin
Brian Thomas ("Bud" or "Buddy") Allin (October 13, 1944 – March 10, 2007) was an American professional golfer who won five PGA Tour events in the 1970s.
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Allin was born in Bremerton, Washington. He learned to play golf at age 13 wh ...
, 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.
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, Butch Baird
Fred "Butch" Baird (born July 20, 1936) is an American professional golfer who played on the PGA Tour and the Senior PGA Tour (now known as the Champions Tour).
Early life
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, Seve Ballesteros
Severiano Ballesteros Sota (; 9 April 1957 – 7 May 2011) was a Spanish professional golfer, a World No. 1 who was one of the sport's leading figures from the mid-1970s to the mid-1990s. A member of a gifted golfing family, he won 90 inte ...
, 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 T ...
, Andy Bean
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, Chip Beck
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, Mike Brannan, Brad Bryant
Bradley Dub Bryant (born December 11, 1954) is an American professional golfer.
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, George Burns
George Burns (born Nathan Birnbaum; January 20, 1896March 9, 1996) was an American comedian, actor, writer, and singer, and one of the few entertainers whose career successfully spanned vaudeville, radio, film and television. His arched eyebr ...
, George Cadle, Rex Caldwell
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, Bill Calfee, Roger Calvin, Antonio Cerda Jr., Jon Chaffee, Bobby Clampett
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, Jim Colbert
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, Bobby Cole, Frank Conner, Charles Coody
Billy Charles Coody (born July 13, 1937) is an American professional golfer, best known for winning the 1971 Masters Tournament.
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, John Cook, 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''.
Professiona ...
, Rod Curl
Rod, Ror, Ród, Rőd, Rød, Röd, ROD, or R.O.D. may refer to:
Devices
* Birch rod, made out of twigs from birch or other trees for corporal punishment
* Ceremonial rod, used to indicate a position of authority
* Connecting rod, main, coupling, ...
, Jim Dent
James Lacey Dent (born May 9, 1939) is an American professional golfer.
Dent was born in the golf mecca of Augusta, Georgia, home of the Masters Tournament, though as an African American he wouldn't have been allowed onto the Augusta National co ...
, Bruce Devlin
Bruce William Devlin (born 10 October 1937) is an Australian professional golfer, sportscaster and golf course designer.
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, Terry Diehl
Terry J. Diehl (born November 9, 1949) is an American professional golfer who played on the PGA Tour from 1973 to 1983.
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, Mike Donald
Michael William Donald (born July 11, 1955) is an American professional golfer.
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, Bruce Douglass, Skip Dunaway, Bob Eastwood
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, Danny Edwards
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Martin Davis Eichelberger, Jr. (born September 3, 1943) is an American professional golfer who has won several tournaments at both the PGA Tour and Champions Tour levels.
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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 ...
, Keith Fergus
Keith Carlton Fergus (born March 3, 1954) is an American professional golfer who has played on the PGA Tour, the Nationwide Tour and the Champions Tour.
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, Ed Fiori
Edward Ray Fiori (born April 21, 1953) is an American professional golfer who has played on the PGA Tour and the Champions Tour.
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, Raymond Floyd
Raymond Loran Floyd (born September 4, 1942) is an American retired golfer who has won numerous tournaments on both the PGA Tour and Senior PGA Tour, including four majors and four senior majors. He was inducted into the World Golf Hall of Fame ...
, 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. H ...
, Buddy Gardner
Frank Webb "Buddy" Gardner, Jr. (born August 24, 1955) is an American professional golfer.
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C.L. "Gibby" Gilbert II (born January 14, 1941) is an American professional golfer who has won tournaments on both the PGA Tour and Champions Tour.
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, Bob Gilder
Robert Bryan Gilder (born December 31, 1950) is an American professional golfer. He won six tournaments on the PGA Tour and currently plays on the Champions Tour, where he has ten wins since joining in 2001.
Early years
Born in Corvallis, Or ...
, Jaime Gonzalez, Mike Gove, David Graham, 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.
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, 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 ...
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, Joe Hager, Gary Hallberg
Gary George Hallberg (born May 31, 1958) is an American professional golfer who has played on the PGA Tour, Nationwide Tour, and Champions Tour.
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, Dan Halldorson
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Phillip Ranson Hancock (born October 30, 1953) is an American professional golfer who formerly played on the PGA Tour.
Early life
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, Dave Hill
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B ...
, Lon Hinkle
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, Scott Hoch
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* Scott, Quebec, municipality in the Nouvelle-Beauce regional municipality in Quebec
* Scott, Saskatchewan, a town in the Rural Municipality of Tramping Lake No. 380
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, Roger Maltbie
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, Rik Massengale
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Rik Massengale (born February 6, 1947) is a former American professional golfer who played full-time on the PGA Tour from 1970–1982.
Massengale was born and raised in Jacksboro, Texas. He developed an interest in golf as a result of his older ...
, Terry Mauney, Mike McCullough, Mark McCumber
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, Pat McGowan
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, Artie McNickle, Steve Melnyk, 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 ra ...
, Jeff Mitchell
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, Gil Morgan
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, Mike Morley
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, Bob Murphy Robert, Rob, Bob or Bobby Murphy may refer to:
Sports Ice hockey
*Robert Ronald Murphy or Ron Murphy (1933–2014), Canadian ice hockey player
* Bob Murphy (ice hockey) (born 1951), Canadian retired professional ice hockey player
*Rob Murphy (ice ...
, Jim Nelford
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, Larry Nelson
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, Jack Newton
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, Bobby Nichols
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, Jack Nicklaus
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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.
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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.
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Calvin Peete (July 18, 1943 – April 29, 2015) was an American professional golfer. He was the most successful African-American to have played on the PGA Tour, with 12 wins, prior to the emergence of Tiger Woods. Peete won the 1985 Tournament ...
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Timothy Jay Simpson (born May 6, 1956) is an American professional golfer who has played on the PGA Tour and the Nationwide Tour, and currently plays on the Champions Tour.
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* Alan (given name), an English given name
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* ...
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People and fictional characters
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* Barney (surname), a list of people
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James Francis Thorpe ( Sac and Fox (Sauk): ''Wa-Tho-Huk'', translated as "Bright Path"; May 22 or 28, 1887March 28, 1953) was an American athlete and Olympic gold medalist. A member of the Sac and Fox Nation, Thorpe was the first Native ...
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Round summaries
First round
''Thursday, March 20, 1981''
Source:
Second round
''Friday, March 20, 1981''
Source:
Third round
''Saturday, March 21, 1981''
Source:
Final round
''Monday, March 23, 1981''
Playoff
The sudden-death playoff began and ended at the par-3 15th hole.
References
External links
The Players Championship website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Tournament Players Championship
1981
Events January
* January 1
** Greece enters the European Economic Community, predecessor of the European Union.
** Palau becomes a self-governing territory.
* January 10 – Salvadoran Civil War: The FMLN launches its first major offensiv ...
1981 in golf
1981 in American sports
1981 in sports in Florida
March 1981 sports events in the United States