1950 U.S. Open Golf Tournament Winner, Scores
The 1950 U.S. Open was the 50th time the tournament was played. Sixteen months after nearly dying in a car crash, Ben Hogan won this tournament in a three-man playoff.
Winner: Ben Hogan, 287
Where it was played: Merion Golf Club in Ardmore, Pennsylvania
Tournament dates: June 8-11, 1950
Leader after first round: Lee Mackey, 64
Leader after second round: Dutch Harrison, 139
Leader after third round: Lloyd Mangrum, 211
What Happened in the 1950 U.S. Open
Early in 1949, driving from Phoenix, Arizona, to Fort Worth, Texas, the car Hogan was driving in dense fog collided head-on with a bus that had veered into his lane. Hogan was severely injured and early on it was uncertain he would survive. After months in the hospital, he was able to resume practicing golf late in the year (although he suffered leg pain and circulatory issues the rest of his life).Hogan had won the 1948 U.S. Open, but, obviously, was unable to defend that title in 1949. So his victory in this, the 1950 U.S. Open, was a grand achievement, completing his comeback to world-class golf. After he beat Lloyd Mangrum and George Fazio in an 18-hole playoff at Merion Golf Club, Hogan's win came to be known as the "Miracle at Merion."
The first round, though, belonged to a little-known golfer named Lee Mackey, whose 64 gave him a three-stroke lead. And it also gave him the 18-hole U.S. Open scoring record: That was the first 64 in this major's history. But Mackey scored 81 in Round 2 and went on to finish 25th.
Hogan scored 72 in the first round, and moved up to solo fifth with a second-round 69. Following a 72 in Round 3, Hogan was tied for third, two shots behind the leader, Mangrum (the 1946 U.S. Open champ). Fazio was tied for eighth, six strokes off Mangrum's lead.
But with a 70, Fazio got into the clubhouse first with a 287 total. Mangrum scored 76 and tied Fazio. Hogan had bogeys on the 15th and 17th holes and needed a birdie on No. 18 to win, a par to get into the playoff. After hitting a 1-iron approach shot, he two putted from 40 feet to match 287.
After 13 holes of the 18-hole playoff, Hogan led by one stroke with Mangrum and Fazio tied behind him. But Fazio bogeyed four of the next five holes and finished with a 75.
Mangrum still trailed Hogan by only one after the 15th hole, but on the 16th green he committed a rules infraction and was penalized two strokes on the 17th tee. What did he do? He lifted his ball on the green to blow away a bug. He marked the ball first, but in USGA championships at that time, golfers were not allowed to mark and lift a ball on the green unless it was in another player's line.
After the 2-stroke penalty to Mangrum, Hogan won the playoff by four strokes. Hogan scored 69, Mangrum wound up at 73. It was the fourth of Hogan's nine career wins in major championships.
1950 U.S. Open Final Scores
| Ben Hogan | 72-69-72-74—287 (69) |
| Lloyd Mangrum | 72-70-69-76—287 (73) |
| George Fazio | 73-72-72-70—287 (75) |
| Dutch Harrison | 72-67-73-76—288 |
| Jim Ferrier | 71-69-74-75—289 |
| Joe Kirkwood Jr. | 71-74-74-70—289 |
| Henry Ransom | 72-71-73-73—289 |
| Bill Nary | 73-70-74-73—290 |
| Julius Boros | 68-72-77-74—291 |
| Cary Middlecoff | 71-71-71-79—292 |
| Johnny Palmer | 73-70-70-79—292 |
| Al Besselink | 71-72-76-75—294 |
| Johnny Bulla | 74-66-78-76—294 |
| Dick Mayer | 73-76-73-72—294 |
| Henry Picard | 71-71-79-73—294 |
| Skee Riegel | 73-69-79-73—294 |
| Sam Snead | 73-75-72-74—294 |
| Skip Alexander | 68-74-77-76—295 |
| Fred Haas | 73-74-76-72—295 |
| Jimmy Demaret | 72-77-71-76—296 |
| Marty Furgol | 75-71-72-78—296 |
| Dick Metz | 76-71-71-78—296 |
| Bob Toski | 73-69-80-74—296 |
| Harold Williams | 69-75-75-77—296 |
| Bobby Cruickshank | 72-77-76-72—297 |
| Ted Kroll | 75-72-78-72—297 |
| Lee Mackey Jr. | 64-81-75-77—297 |
| Paul Runyan | 76-73-73-75—297 |
| Pete Cooper | 75-72-76-75—298 |
| Henry Williams Jr. | 69-76-76-77—298 |
| John Barnum | 71-75-78-75—299 |
| Denny Shute | 71-73-76-79—299 |
| Buck White | 77-71-77-74—299 |
| Terl Johnson | 72-77-74-77—300 |
| Herschel Spears | 75-72-75-78—300 |
| Walter Burkemo | 72-77-74-78—301 |
| Dave Douglas | 72-76-79-74—301 |
| Claude Harmon | 71-74-77-80—302 |
| a-James McHale Jr. | 75-73-80-74—302 |
| Gene Sarazen | 72-72-82-76—302 |
| Jim Turnesa | 74-71-78-79—302 |
| Art Bell | 72-77-78-76—303 |
| Patrick Abbott | 71-77-76-80—304 |
| Joe Thacker | 75-69-83-77—304 |
| Johnny Morris | 74-74-80-77—305 |
| Loddie Kempa | 71-74-78-83—306 |
| a-Frank Stranahan | 79-70-79-78—306 |
| Gene Webb | 75-74-82-75—306 |
| a-P.J. Boatwright | 75-74-79-79—307 |
| George Bolesta | 77-72-84-78—311 |
| John O'Donnell | 76-72-83-85—316 |
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