1959 PGA Championship Winner and Scores

The 1959 PGA Championship was the 41st edition of this major, staged by the PGA of America. Bob Rosburg won his only major championship trophy by one stroke over Jerry Barber and Doug Sanders.

Winner: Bob Rosburg, 277

Where it was played: Minneapolis Golf Club in St. Louis Park, Minnesota

Tournament dates: July 30-Aug. 2, 1959

Leader after first round: Billy Casper, Chuck Klein, Dick Hart, Gene Littler, Jackson Bradley, Jerry Barber, Mike Krak, Mike Souchak and Walter Burkemo, 69

Leader after second round: Jerry Barber, 134

Leader after third round: Jerry Barber, 205

What Happened at the 1959 PGA Championship

Later, he was known to a different generation of golf fans primarily as a longtime broadcaster on ABC's golf telecasts. But Bob Rosburg was a pretty good golfer in his day; he won six times in a long career on the PGA Tour, including the 1959 PGA Championship. And he came from six strokes behind at the start of the final round to do it, firing a fourth-round 66. Jerry Barber was the third-round leader. But Rosburg, who made only five birdies in the first three rounds, made five birdies on the front nine of his final round to tie Barber atop the leaderboard. Rosburg's front-nine 30 was a tournament record that wasn't bettered until 1982.

Barber reclaimed the lead with a birdie on the 15th, but then finished with back-to-back bogeys, and Rosburg was the champion. Doug Sanders, in second place at the start of the final round, birdied the final two holes to tie Barber for second.

The first round ended with nine golfers, including Barber, sharing the lead, and in the second round Barber scored a then-PGA Championship-record 65. Two years later, Barber won the 1961 PGA Championship.

Three-time major champion Denny Shute, winner of the PGA Championship in 1936 and 1937, tied for 44th place. It was the final time he made the cut in a major championship. Bob Goalby tied for fifth in his first appearance in a PGA Championship; he went on to win the 1968 Masters.

1959 PGA Championship Final Scores

Bob Rosburg 71-72-68-66—277
Jerry Barber 69-65-71-73—278
Doug Sanders 72-66-68-72—278
Dow Finsterwald 71-68-71-70—280
Bob Goalby 72-69-72-68—281
Mike Souchak 69-67-71-74—281
Ken Venturi 70-72-70-69—281
Cary Middlecoff 72-68-70-72—282
Sam Snead 71-73-68-70—282
Gene Littler 69-70-72-73—284
Doug Ford 71-73-71-70—285
Billy Maxwell 70-76-70-69—285
Ed Oliver 75-70-69-71—285
Paul Harney 74-71-71-70—286
Tommy Jacobs 73-71-68-74—286
Arnold Palmer 72-72-71-71—286
Tommy Bolt 76-69-68-74—287
Jack Burke Jr. 70-73-72-72—287
Walter Burkemo 69-72-73-73—287
Billy Casper 69-71-73-74—287
Pete Cooper 78-70-68-71—287
Buster Cupit 70-72-72-73—287
Babe Lichardus 71-73-72-71—287
Ernie Vossler 75-71-72-69—287
Jay Hebert 72-70-69-77—288
Ted Kroll 72-74-71-71—288
Art Wall 70-72-73-73—288
Clare Emery 74-74-72-69—289
Chick Harbert 73-71-71-74—289
Fred Hawkins 72-69-72-76—289
Jackson Bradley 69-74-73-74—290
Don Fairfield 70-73-75-72—290
Lionel Hebert 71-69-75-75—290
Eric Monti 74-72-71-73—290
John McMullin 76-71-69-75—291
Dave Ragan 74-69-74-74—291
Dick Stranahan 74-70-72-75—291
Bob Crowley 73-75-71-73—292
Jim Ferree 74-72-71-75—292
Jim Ferrier 73-71-72-76—292
Claude Harmon 73-73-72-74—292
Jim Turnesa 73-72-74-73—292
Don Whitt 71-77-72-72—292
Julius Boros 72-74-73-74—293
Wes Ellis Jr. 76-74-70-73—293
Scudday Horner 74-71-76-72—293
Denny Shute 75-73-70-75—293
Henry Williams 74-73-74-72—293
Don January 73-74-74-73—294
Mac Main 75-70-73-76—294
Bill Ogden 73-69-76-76—294
Bo Wininger 77-73-71-73—294
Al Feminelli 70-77-73-75—295
Bob Gajda 74-71-74-76—295
Frank Stranahan 74-72-70-79—295
Bill Ezinicki 77-67-76-76—296
George Fazio 74-76-69-77—296
John Barnum 75-73-72-77—297
Bud Williamson 72-75-72-78—297
Mickey Homa 71-74-75-78—298
Don Waryan 72-76-72-79—299
Wayne Otis 74-74-73-79—300
Leonard Wagner 72-73-75-85—305

Previous and next:
1958 PGA Championship - 1960 PGA Championship

Popular posts from this blog