Back-to-Back Winners of the Senior PGA Championship

The Senior PGA Championship is, by far, the oldest of the senior majors, dating to 1937. In that history, only a handful of 50-and-over golfers have claimed this tournament in back-to-back years.

There are two golfers who won three consecutive Seniors PGA Championships — back-to-back-to-back victories. There is another golfer who won consecutive titles but did it twice. And there are several more who won two tournaments consecutively.

Back-to-Back-to-Back Wins

These are the two golfers who won the Senior PGA Championship three consecutive years:

• Eddie Williams, 1942, 1945-46: Yes, this was three in a row despite the 3-year gap between Williams' first and second Senior PGA Championship titles. The tournament was not played in 1943-44 due to World War II. Williams is easily the least-known name among the golfers listed here. He was a club pro in Chicago who was 57 years old at the time of his third victory. The Senior PGA was only 36 holes in duration at the time of Williams' wins.

• Hale Irwin, 1996-97-98: Irwin won four Senior PGAs total, also winning in 2004. His first three were consecutive. In 1996, he won by two strokes over Isao Aoki. The second-place finishers in 1997 were Jack Nicklaus and Dale Douglass, but they finished 12 strokes behind Irwin. And in 1998 he beat second-place Larry Nelson by six.

Consecutive Wins, Twice

• Sam Snead, 1964-65 and 1972-73: Snead won a record six overall Senior PGA Championship crowns. And he won back-to-back two different times. He first did it in 1964 and 1965, which were his first two titles in this tournament. Then he did it again in 1972 and 1973, his last two titles. (In-between, Snead also won in 1967 and 1970.) He capped off his Senior PGA Championship victories with one of the most-dominant performances in senior golf history in the 1973 tournament. Snead had the lowest 18-hole score all four days of the 1973 Senior PGA Championship, and won it by a tournament-record 15 strokes over runner-up Julius Boros.

Others Who Won Back-to-Back Senior PGA Championships

Three other golfers have won the Senior PGA Championship in consecutive years:

• Al Watrous, 1950-51: The 8-time PGA Tour winner won this title in 1950 and 1951, when the tournament was still played over just 36 holes. Watrous won again in 1957, when the tournament was 54 holes.
• Paul Runyan, 1961-62: Runyan was also a 2-time PGA Championship winner. By the time of his consecutive Senior PGA victories, the tournament had expanded to its present 72 holes.
• Colin Montgomerie, 2014-15: Monty's consecutive Senior PGA wins were by four strokes over Tom Watson in 2014, and by four strokes over Esteban Toledo in 2015.

Related articles:

• All winners of the Senior PGA Championship
• Golfers who won both PGA Championship, Senior PGA
• Lowest winning scores in Senior PGA Championship

Sources:
PGA of America. Senior PGA Championship Media Guide, Multiple Winners of the Senior PGA Championship.
Universal Press International. "Williams Wins Senior Tourney," The Macon (Ga.) Telegraph, January 14, 1946.