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National Championship History
Year by Year: 1970's

1970's

1979: Birdies for Buddy

Champion: Buddy Whitten, Grand Rapids, Mich.
Site: Callaway Gardens Resort, Pine Mountain, Ga.
Date: Nov. 8 - 11, 1979
Course: Mountain View; Par: 72 (7,040 yards)
Course: Lake View; Par: 72 (6,006 yards)
Course: Gardens View; Par: 72 (6,392 yards)
Purse: $125,000
Entries: 335, Cut at 217 (94 players advanced)

A sudden-death playoff was again the theme as Buddy Whitten of Grand Rapids, Mich., and Jack Lewis of Winston-Salem, N.C., locked irons in a duel for The PGA Club Professional Championship title. Each player finished the final round with a 70 and 72-hole total of 278. Lewis hit his approach on the first extra hole inches from the hole which forced Whitten to make his 27-foot birdie putt. On the second extra hole, Whitten again birdied to earn the victory.

	Average of courses	Rounds of 70 & under	Round leader	Buddy Whitten
Rd. 1	74.1	51	66 - Dave Barber	70 - T25th
Rd. 2	74.7	43	136 - Bob Duden	138 - (68) T2nd
Rd. 3	72.8	72	208 - Buddy Whitten, Jack Lewis Jr.	208 - (70) T1st
Rd. 4	72.9	21	278 - Buddy Whitten, Jack Lewis Jr.	278 - (70) T1st
Totals	73.82	187

1978: A Gentile way to win

Champion: John Gentile, Westport, Conn.
Site: Callaway Gardens Resort, Pine Mountain, Ga.
Date: Nov. 9 - 12, 1978
Course: Mountain View; Par: 72 (7,040 yards)
Course: Lake View; Par: 72 (6,006 yards)
Course: Gardens View; Par: 72 (6,392 yards)
Purse: $110,000
Entries: 350, Cut at 223 (107 players advanced)

For the third time in five years, The PGA Club Professional Championship was decided in a sudden-death playoff. John Gentile of Westport, Conn., birdied the second playoff hole to defeat Jim Ferree, a 47-year-old PGA Professional from Pittsburgh, Pa. The perfect weather conditions made for ripe scoring opportunities. Gentile and Ferree each tied at 10-under-par 276. The Callaway Gardens Resort yielded a four-day stroke average of 73. 59, the second-lowest scoring average in PGA Club Professional Championship history.

	Average of courses	Rounds of 70 & under	Round leader	John Gentile
Rd. 1	73.6	61	64 - Jerry Steelsmith	71 - T62nd
Rd. 2	73.4	72	133 - Bob Leaver	140 - (69) T27th
Rd. 3	73.6	65	204 - Jim Ferree	208 - (68) T4th
Rd. 4	74.1	8	276 - John Gentile, Jim Ferree	276 - (68) T1st
Totals	73.59	206

1977: A wife know best

Champion: Laurie Hammer, Boynton Beach, Fla.
Site: Callaway Gardens Resort, Pine Mountain, Ga.
Date: Nov. 10 - 13, 1977
Course: Mountain View; Par: 72 (7,040 yards)
Course: Lake View; Par: 72 (6,006 yards)
Course: Gardens View; Par: 72 (6,392 yards)
Purse: $110,000
Entries: 354, Cut at 223 (97 players advanced)

Two weeks before the 10th PGA Club Professional Championship, Laurie Hammer of Boynton Beach, Fla., had decided to stay home and open the club for the winter season. But, Hammer’s wife, Marlene, encouraged her husband to try the national stage once more. Hammer gave in to his wife’s wishes, and went on to sprinkle some Hollywood-style dramatics into The Championship. Heading into the 72nd hole with a two-stroke lead, Hammer watched as Steve Benson of Glen Ellyn, Ill., sank a 30-foot birdie putt on the 18th green to trim the deficit to a stroke. Hammer stepped up to his putt on the Mountain View Course, a 10-footer for par, and calmly stroked it into the heart of the cup.

	Average of courses	Rounds of 70 & under	Round leader	Laurie Hammer
Rd. 1	76.6	15	67 - Art Proctor	73 - T40th
Rd. 2	75.3	24	139 - Art Proctor	140 - (67) T2nd
Rd. 3	75.3	32	211 - Laurie Hammer, Charles Volpone Jr., Stan Thirsk	211 - (71) T1st
Rd. 4	74.9	9	282 - Laurie Hammer	282 - (71) 1st
Totals	75.68	80

1976: A win Yogi would enjoy

Champion: Bob Galloway, Rock Hill, S.C.
Site: Callaway Gardens Resort, Pine Mountain, Ga.
Date: Nov. 2 - 5, 1976
Course: Mountain View; Par: 72 (7,040 yards)
Course: Lake View; Par: 72 (6,006 yards)
Course: Gardens View; Par: 72 (6,392 yards)
Purse: $110,000
Entries: 353, Cut at 219 (104 players advanced)

Soft-spoken Bob Galloway of Rock Hill, S.C., was the only player in the field at the 9th PGA Club Professional Championship to better par each of the four days. But Galloway never thought victory was his until he made a 40- foot par-saving putt on the 15th green of the final round. The part-owner of a Rock Hill golf course, Galloway birdied the 16th and 17th holes, then bogeyed the 18th for a 6-under-par 280 to defeat Jim Ferriell Jr., Larry Gilbert and George Lanning by one stroke.

	Average of courses	Rounds of 70 & under	Round leader	Bob Galloway
Rd. 1	74.8	49	65 - Charles Keating, Jay Morelli	71 - T50th
Rd. 2	74.3	43	135 - Jim Ferriell Jr.	140 - (69) T10th
Rd. 3	74.8	34	206 - Jim Ferriell Jr.	209 - (69) T4th
Rd. 4	76.2	3	280 - Bob Galloway	280 - (71) T1st
Totals	74.77	129

1975: It's elementary for Watson

Champion: Roger Watson, Cary, N.C.
Site: Callaway Gardens Resort, Pine Mountain, Ga.
Date: Nov. 13 - 16, 1975
Course: Mountain View; Par: 72 (7,040 yards)
Course: Lake View; Par: 72 (6,006 yards)
Course: Gardens View; Par: 72 (6,392 yards)
Purse: $110,000
Entries: 353, Cut at 223 (94 players advanced)

It was a script Roger Watson could have written in his sleep. Like he had done one year earlier, Watson rallied in the final round to catch the third-round leader and then defended his title with a sudden-death victory. Watson, of Cary, N.C., birdied the 15th hole while leader David Jimenez bogeyed on his way to a 73. Watson parred out for a 2-under-par 70 and headed to the first playoff hole with added confidence. One change in the script, however. Watson didn’t need a par to win. He went a step further by sinking a 20-foot birdie putt to become the first back-to-back winner in PGA Club Professional Championship history.

	Average of courses	Rounds of 70 & under	Round leader	Roger Watson
Rd. 1	77.0	14	68 - Rex Baxter, Rives McBee, Jack Kiefer	72 - T35th
Rd. 2	76.6	14	137 - David Jimenez	142 - (69) T8th
Rd. 3	74.2	42	206 - David Jimenez	209 - (67) T2nd
Rd. 4	74.8	8	279 - Roger Watson, David Jimenez	279 - (70) T1st
Totals	75.93	78

1974: Watson's final - hole thunderbolt catches Snead

Champion: Roger Watson, Cary, N.C.
Site: Pinehurst Country Club, Pinehurst, N.C.
Date: Oct. 24 - 27, 1974
Course: No. 2; Par: 72 (7,051 yards)
Course: No. 3; Par: 71 (6,089 yards)
Course: No. 5; Par: 72 (6,854 yards)
Purse: $110,000
Entries: 372, Cut at 226 (110 players advanced)

By making a 90-foot birdie putt on the 18th green, Roger Watson of Cary, N.C., tied legendary Sam Snead, then 62, who missed a four-foot birdie attempt moments later on his final hole on Pinehurst No. 2 in the 7th PGA Club Professional Championship. Watson’s momentous putt forced the first sudden-death playoff in CPC history. On the first extra hole, Snead’s drive ricocheted off a mound, landed in the second fairway and in a small depression. Watson easily reached the green while Snead punched his shot from the poor lie wide of the green. Watson two-putted for par and victory after Snead was unable to get his ball up and down.

	Average of courses	Rounds of 70 & under	Round leader	Roger Watson
Rd. 1	77.4	3	67 - Bob Benson	71 - T4th
Rd. 2	77.3	3	141 - Sam Snead	144 - (73) T6th
Rd. 3	76.2	12	213 - Sam Snead	215 - (71) T2nd
Rd. 4	74.9	4	282 - Roger Watson, Sam Snead	284 - (69) T1st
Totals	76.80	22

1973: Rives arrives with a win

Champion: Rives McBee, Irving Texas
Site: Pinehurst Country Club, Pinehurst, N.C.
Date: Oct. 18 - 21 1973
Course: No. 2; Par: 72 (7,051 yards)
Course: No. 3; Par: 71 (6,089 yards)
Course: No. 5; Par: 72 (6,854 yards)
Purse: $110,000
Entries: 358, Cut at 223 (92 players advanced)

A former Tour professional, Rives (pronounced "Reeves") McBee of Irving, Texas, fashioned a final-round 71 on Pinehurst No. 2 for a 4-under-par 282 and a three-stroke victory over Stan Brion. McBee picked the right time for a memorable round, making three birdies on the front nine to help carry him to the title.

	Average of courses	Rounds of 70 & under	Round leader	Rives McBee
Rd. 1	76.5	21	67 - Carl Owen	73 - T52nd
Rd. 2	76.7	16	138 - Larry Mancour	140 - (67) T3rd
Rd. 3	75.6	21	211 - Rives McBee, Jerry Barber	211 - (71) T1st
Rd. 4	77.3	1	282 - Rives McBee	282 - (71) 1st
Totals	76.39	59

1972: Massengale withstands the cold for CPC title

Champion: Don Massengale, White Plains, N.Y.
Site: Pinehurst Country Club, Pinehurst, N.C.
Date: Oct. 19-22, 1972
Course: No. 2; Par: 72 (7,051 yards)
Course: No. 4; Par: 72 (6,784 yards)
Course: No. 1; Par: 70 (6,129 yards)
Purse: $100,000
Entries: 358, Cut at 222 (94 players advanced)

Playing during an arctic cold front that send temperatures tumbling to an all- time low in North Carolina, 35-year-old Don Massengale of White Plains, N.Y., beat the elements with a back-nine 33 on Pinehurst No. 2 to win the fifth PGA Club Professional Championship. Massengale’s closing 68 was two strokes better than Bob Bruno and four strokes ahead of 1971 Champion Sam Snead, who finished with a 69.

	Average of courses	Rounds of 70 & under	Round leader	Don Massengale
Rd. 1	76.0	19	65 - Jim O'Hern, Ron Letellier	72 - T35th
Rd. 2	76.3	30	138 - Bob Brue, Mal Galletta, Randy Quick, Don Massengale	138 - (66) T1st
Rd. 3	75.1	42	211 - Babe Lichardus	212 - (74) T2nd
Rd. 4	77.2	4	280 - Don Massengale	280 - (68) 1st
Totals	75.92	95

1971: Slammin' Sam makes his mark

Champion: Sam Snead, Greenbrier, W.Va.
Site: Pinehurst Country Club, Pinehurst, N.C.
Date: Oct. 19-22, 1972
Course: No. 2; Par: 72 (7,051 yards)
Course: No. 1; Par: 72 (6,129 yards)
Purse: $100,000
Entries: 252, Cut at 145 (97 players advanced)

Sam Snead always considered Pinehurst No. 2 his favorite course. And, the 59-year-old club professional from The Greenbrier in White Sulfur Springs, W.Va., proved he was at home by opening the fourth PGA Club Professional Championship with a 67 on the 7,051-yard No. 2 Course and followed with a 65 on the No. 1 Course, which played to 6,129 yards. Snead was in cruise control, finishing with rounds of 74 and 69 for a 275 total and a five-stroke victory over Ron Lettelier and Jerry Steelsmith. Snead, who won a first-place check of $15,000, joined Bob Rosburg as the only players to win both a PGA Championship and The PGA Club Professional Championship. The fourth CPC also had its heartbreaking rounds as Eddie Famula opened with a 63 on the No. 1 Course and ballooned to an 81 on No. 2 in the second round, barely making the cut.

	Average of courses	Rounds of 70 & under	Round leader	Sam Snead
Rd. 1	73.5	61	63 - Eddie Famula	67 - T7th
Rd. 2	73.4	69	132 - Sam Snead	132 - (65) 1st
Rd. 3	75.7	4	206 - Sam Snead	206 - (74) 1st
Rd. 4	75.6	5	275 - Sam Snead	275 - (69) 1st
Totals	74.04	139

1970: A tap-in to remember

Champion: Rex Baxter, Cleveland, Ohio
Site: Sunol Valley Country Club, Sunol, Calif.
Date: Nov. 12-15, 1970
Course: Palm; Par: 72 (7,123 yards)
Course: Cypress; Par: 72 (6,356 yards)
Purse: $50,000
Entries: 258, Cut at 150 (106 players advanced)

Some players respond with dramatic results when performing under pressure. Rex Baxter, a 30-year-old PGA Professional from Cleveland, Ohio, had his special moment Nov. 15, 1970, at the 72nd hole of Sunol (Calif.) Valley Country Club. Baxter knocked a 60-yard wedge approach within a foot of the flagstick. A footprint marred the easy putt, but Baxter didn’t flinch and rolled the ball home for a 71 and a one-stroke victory over Ernie George and Bob Duden. Finishing three behind were Mickey Powell and Dick Smith, who would become the respective 24th and 27th presidents of The PGA of America. Just four strokes back was Jim Awtrey, the chief executive officer of The PGA.

	Average of courses	Rounds of 70 & under	Round leader	Rex Baxter
Rd. 1	75.5	20	68 - Dick Whetzle, Francisco Lopez	71 - T21st
Rd. 2	76.3	7	139 - Rex Baxter	139 - (68) 1st
Rd. 3	74.8	8	213 - Bill Johnston	214 - (75) T2nd
Rd. 4	74.5	9	285 - Rex Baxter	285 - (71) 1st
Totals	75.50	44

National Championship History Year by Year: 1970's