Jack Nicklaus' PGA Tour Finishes As An Amateur
How often did Jack Nicklaus play in majors and other PGA Tour tournaments before he turned pro? The young Nicklaus made 19 starts in PGA Tour events while still an amateur, beginning at age 17. All of those starts are listed here, along with his scores and placements.
Diles, Dave. "Pro Golfers Delighted, Souchak Rests," The Windsor (Ontario) Star, Associated Press, August 17, 1959.
Hart, Joe. "Souchak Hits Golf Jackpot," The Saginaw (Mich.) News, July 5, 1960.
The Philadelphia (Pa.) Inquirer. "Venturi, 5 Down, Fires 66 To Win Chicago Open By 1," Associated Press, June 29, 1959.
PGATour.com. Players, Jack Nicklaus, Results, https://www.pgatour.com/player/01869/jack-nicklaus.
Slingerland, Lad. "Finsterwald and Wall Go Into Buick Open Playoff," Lansing (Mich.) State Journal, July 6, 1959.
This list is a companion to our article titled "Jack Nicklaus' First PGA Tour Tournaments and Pro Debut," which goes into more detail about a few of the starts listed below. The purpose of this page is to list all of Nicklaus' tour starts as an amateur, and show how he fared in each one.
Related: Tiger Woods' PGA Tour finishes as an amateur
The List: Nicklaus' PGA Tour Finishes Before Turning Pro
1957 (17 years old)
- U.S. Open, 80-80—160 (+20), missed cut
1958 (18 years old)
- U.S. Open, 79-75-73-77—304 (+24), tied 41st
- Rubber City Open Invitational, 67-66-76-68—277 (-7), tied 15th
1959 (19 years old)
- Masters Tournament, 76-74—150 (+6), missed cut
- U.S. Open Championship, 77-77—154 (+14), missed cut
- Gleneagles-Chicago Open Invitational, 67-69-76-73—285 (+15), tied 26th
- Buick Open Invitational, 76-70-70-72—288 (even par), tied 12th
- Western Open, 72-70-74-76—292 (+8), tied 52nd
- Carling Open Invitational, 74-75-73-72—294 (+10), tied 50th
- Motor City Open, 75-74-72-71—292 (+8), tied 45th
1960 (20 years old)
- Masters Tournament, 75-71-72-75—293 (+5), tied 13th
- U.S. Open, 71-71-69-71—282 (-2), second place
- Buick Open Invitational, 73-77-74-74—298 (+10), tied 45th
1961 (21 years old)
- Masters Tournament, 70-75-70-72—287 (-1), tied seventh
- Colonial National Invitation, 75-74-76-72—297 (+17), 38th
- U.S. Open Championship, 75-69-70-70—284 (+4), tied fourth
- Buick Open Invitational, 74-72-72-74—292 (+4), tied 24th
- Milwaukee Open Invitational, 67-72-67-69—275 (-5), tied sixth
- American Golf Classic, 76-73-74-76—299 (+15), tied 55th
- Jack Nicklaus' largest margins of victory
- Jack Nicklaus' holes-in-one
- Nicklaus' playoff record and all the scores
Diles, Dave. "Pro Golfers Delighted, Souchak Rests," The Windsor (Ontario) Star, Associated Press, August 17, 1959.
Hart, Joe. "Souchak Hits Golf Jackpot," The Saginaw (Mich.) News, July 5, 1960.
The Philadelphia (Pa.) Inquirer. "Venturi, 5 Down, Fires 66 To Win Chicago Open By 1," Associated Press, June 29, 1959.
PGATour.com. Players, Jack Nicklaus, Results, https://www.pgatour.com/player/01869/jack-nicklaus.
Slingerland, Lad. "Finsterwald and Wall Go Into Buick Open Playoff," Lansing (Mich.) State Journal, July 6, 1959.
