1970 Masters Tournament Winner and Scores

The 1970 Masters was the 34th time the tournament was played. Billy Casper and Gene Littler, who were childhood friends growing up in California, met in an 18-hole playoff. Casper was the winner.

Winner: Billy Casper, 279

Where it was played: Augusta National Golf Club, Augusta, Georgia

Tournament dates: April 9-13, 1970

Leader after first round: Tommy Aaron, 68

Leader after second round: Gene Littler and Bert Yancey, 139

Leader after third round: Billy Casper, 208

What Happened In the 1970 Masters Tournament

Gene Littler and Billy Casper were born one year apart in San Diego, California, played junior and amateur golf together, played the PGA Tour together, were lifelong friends. Both wound up in the World Golf Hall of Fame.

At the 1970 Masters, Casper and Littler were tied after 72 holes at 9-under, so the two friends went into a playoff for the Green Jacket. And it was an 18-hole playoff, the last time an 18-hole playoff was used in The Masters.

Casper birdied the first playoff hole and never looked back. He built a five-stroke lead on the front nine and maintained it on the back nine. In the end, Casper scored 69 in the playoff to Littler's 74.

Casper won 51 times on the PGA Tour in his career. This was the 45th of those wins, and was the last of his three major championship victories. For Littler (who won 29 times on the PGA Tour, including one major), this was the first of two losses in playoffs at majors. He also lost the 1977 PGA Championship to Lanny Wadkins in a sudden-death playoff.

Future two-time champion Tom Watson played The Masters for the first time in 1970, missing the cut as an amateur after shooting 77-76. At the other end of the career spectrum, 57-year-old Sam Snead made the cut and finished tied for 23rd. Henry Picard, 2-time major winner and victor at the 1938 Masters, withdrew during the first round in his final appearance.

The 18-hole playoff format was still in place through 1975, but wasn't used in any of the years after 1970. In 1976, the format was changed to sudden death, and the first sudden-death playoff at The Masters took place in 1979.

1970 Masters Final Scores

x-Billy Casper 72-68-68-71—279
Gene Littler 69-70-70-70—279
Gary Player 74-68-68-70—280
Bert Yancey 69-70-72-70—281
Tommy Aaron 68-74-69-72—283
Dave Hill 73-70-70-70—283
Dave Stockton 72-72-69-70—283
Jack Nicklaus 71-75-69-69—284
Frank Beard 71-76-68-70—285
Bob Lunn 70-70-75-72—287
Chi Chi Rodriguez 70-76-73-68—287
Charles Coody 70-74-67-77—288
Bert Greene 75-71-70-72—288
Tony Jacklin 73-74-70-71—288
Don January 76-73-69-70—288
Takaaki Kono 75-68-71-74—288
Bob Charles 75-71-71-72—289
Howie Johnson 75-71-73-71—290
Dick Lotz 74-72-72-72—290
Orville Moody 73-72-71-74—290
Miller Barber 76-73-77-65—291
Terry Wilcox 79-70-70-72—291
Deane Beman 74-72-72-74—292
Julius Boros 75-71-74-72—292
a-Charlie Coe 74-71-72-75—292
Bob Murphy 78-70-73-71—292
Sam Snead 76-73-71-72—292
Tom Weiskopf 73-73-72-74—292
Yung Yo Hsieh 75-75-69-74—293
Jimmy Wright 75-72-71-75—293
George Archer 73-72-74-75—294
Gay Brewer 78-70-72-74—294
Bruce Devlin 72-74-78-70—294
Larry Hinson 72-72-71-79—294
Ken Still 74-73-74-73—294
Arnold Palmer 75-73-74-73—295
Dan Sikes 70-77-71-77—295
Maurice Bembridge 77-72-70-77—296
Bruce Crampton 75-71-75-75—296
Dale Douglass 76-74-72-74—296
a-Vinny Giles 78-72-72-74—296
Grier Jones 73-75-73-75—296
a-Steve Melnyk 73-76-71-77—297
Bob Rosburg 77-73-75-73—298
Al Geiberger 73-77-74-75—299
George Knudson 73-72-78-76—299
R.H. Sikes 70-75-77-78—300
Dean Refram 76-74-78-75—303

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1969 Masters - 1971 Masters

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