1970 PGA Tour
| Duration | January 8, 1970 – December 13, 1970 |
|---|---|
| Number of official events | 45 |
| Most wins | Billy Casper (4) |
| Money list | Lee Trevino |
| PGA Player of the Year | Billy Casper |
← 1969 1971 → | |
The 1970 PGA Tour was the 55th season of the PGA Tour, the main professional golf tour in the United States. It was also the second season since separating from the PGA of America.
Schedule
The following table lists official events during the 1970 season.[1]
| Date | Tournament | Location | Purse (US$) |
Winner(s)[a] | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan 11 | Los Angeles Open | California | 100,000 | Billy Casper (44) | |
| Jan 18 | Phoenix Open Invitational | Arizona | 100,000 | Dale Douglass (3) | |
| Jan 25 | Bing Crosby National Pro-Am | California | 125,000 | Bert Yancey (6) | Pro-Am |
| Feb 1 | Andy Williams-San Diego Open Invitational | California | 150,000 | Pete Brown (2) | |
| Feb 8 | Bob Hope Desert Classic | California | 125,000 | Bruce Devlin (5) | Pro-Am |
| Feb 15 | Tucson Open Invitational | Arizona | 100,000 | Lee Trevino (4) | |
| Feb 22 | San Antonio Open Invitational | Texas | 100,000 | Ron Cerrudo (2) | |
| Mar 1 | Doral-Eastern Open Invitational | Florida | 150,000 | Mike Hill (1) | |
| Mar 6 | Florida Citrus Open Invitational | Florida | 25,000 | Bob Stone (n/a) | Second Tour[b] |
| Mar 8 | Florida Citrus Invitational | Florida | 150,000 | Bob Lunn (4) | |
| Mar 15 | Monsanto Open | Florida | 150,000 | Dick Lotz (2) | |
| Mar 23 | Greater Jacksonville Open | Florida | 100,000 | Don January (8) | |
| Mar 29 | National Airlines Open Invitational | Florida | 200,000 | Lee Trevino (5) | |
| Apr 5 | Greater Greensboro Open | North Carolina | 180,000 | Gary Player (13) | |
| Apr 12 | Magnolia Classic | Mississippi | 20,000 | Chris Blocker (n/a) | Second Tour[b] |
| Apr 13 | Masters Tournament | Georgia | 125,000 | Billy Casper (45) | Major championship |
| Apr 20 | Greater New Orleans Open Invitational | Louisiana | 125,000 | Miller Barber (5) | |
| Apr 26 | Tournament of Champions | California | 150,000 | Frank Beard (9) | Winners-only event |
| Apr 26 | Tallahassee Open Invitational | Florida | 50,000 | Harold Henning (2) | Alternate event |
| May 3 | Byron Nelson Golf Classic | Texas | 100,000 | Jack Nicklaus (31) | |
| May 10 | Houston Champions International | Texas | 115,000 | Gibby Gilbert (1) | |
| May 17 | Colonial National Invitation | Texas | 125,000 | Homero Blancas (2) | Invitational |
| May 24 | Atlanta Classic | Georgia | 125,000 | Tommy Aaron (2) | |
| May 31 | Danny Thomas Memphis Classic | Tennessee | 150,000 | Dave Hill (8) | |
| Jun 7 | Kemper Open | North Carolina | 150,000 | Dick Lotz (3) | |
| Jun 7 | Kiwanis Peninsula Open Invitational | Virginia | 25,000 | Jerry Barrier (n/a) | Second Tour[b] |
| Jun 14 | Western Open | Illinois | 130,000 | Hugh Royer Jr. (1) | |
| Jun 21 | U.S. Open | Minnesota | 195,000 | Tony Jacklin (3) | Major championship |
| Jun 28 | Cleveland Open | Ohio | 150,000 | Bruce Devlin (6) | |
| Jul 5 | Canadian Open | Canada | 125,000 | Kermit Zarley (2) | |
| Jul 12 | Greater Milwaukee Open | Wisconsin | 110,000 | Deane Beman (2) | |
| Jul 12 | The Open Championship | Scotland | £40,000 | Jack Nicklaus (32) | Major championship[c] |
| Jul 19 | IVB-Philadelphia Golf Classic | Pennsylvania | 150,000 | Billy Casper (46) | |
| Jul 26 | National Four-Ball Championship | Pennsylvania | 200,000 | Jack Nicklaus (33) and Arnold Palmer (57) |
Team event |
| Aug 2 | Westchester Classic | New York | 250,000 | Bruce Crampton (8) | |
| Aug 9 | American Golf Classic | Ohio | 150,000 | Frank Beard (10) | |
| Aug 16 | PGA Championship | Oklahoma | 200,000 | Dave Stockton (4) | Major championship |
| Aug 24 | AVCO Golf Classic | Massachusetts | 160,000 | Billy Casper (47) | |
| Aug 30 | Dow Jones Open Invitational | New Jersey | 300,000 | Bobby Nichols (9) | New tournament |
| Sep 7 | Greater Hartford Open Invitational | Connecticut | 100,000 | Bob Murphy (3) | |
| Sep 20 | Robinson Open Golf Classic | Illinois | 100,000 | George Knudson (7) | |
| Sep 27 | Green Island Open Invitational | Georgia | 60,000 | Mason Rudolph (5) | New tournament |
| Oct 4 | Azalea Open Invitational | North Carolina | 60,000 | Cesar Sanudo (1) | |
| Oct 25 | Kaiser International Open Invitational | California | 150,000 | Ken Still (3) | |
| Nov 1 | Sahara Invitational | Nevada | 100,000 | Babe Hiskey (1) | |
| Nov 28 | Sea Pines Open Invitational | South Carolina | 30,000 | Larry Wood (n/a) | Second Tour[b] |
| Nov 29 | Heritage Golf Classic | South Carolina | 100,000 | Bob Goalby (10) | Invitational |
| Dec 6 | Coral Springs Open Invitational | Florida | 125,000 | Bill Garrett (1) | New tournament |
| Dec 13 | Bahama Islands Open | Bahamas | 130,000 | Doug Sanders (19) | New tournament |
Unofficial events
The following events were sanctioned by the PGA Tour, but did not carry official money, nor were wins official.
| Date | Tournament | Location | Purse ($) |
Winner(s) | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nov 15 | World Cup | Argentina | 6,300 | Bruce Devlin and David Graham |
Team event |
| World Cup Individual Trophy | Roberto De Vicenzo |
Money list
The money list was based on prize money won during the season, calculated in U.S. dollars.[2][3]
| Position | Player | Prize money ($) |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Lee Trevino | 157,037 |
| 2 | Billy Casper | 147,372 |
| 3 | Bruce Crampton | 142,609 |
| 4 | Jack Nicklaus | 142,149 |
| 5 | Arnold Palmer | 128,853 |
| 6 | Dick Lotz | 125,023 |
| 7 | Frank Beard | 124,689 |
| 8 | Larry Hinson | 120,897 |
| 9 | Bob Murphy | 120,638 |
| 10 | Dave Hill | 118,415 |
Awards
| Award | Winner | Ref. |
|---|---|---|
| PGA Player of the Year | Billy Casper | [4] |
| Scoring leader (Vardon Trophy) | Lee Trevino | [5] |
Notes
- ^ The number in parentheses after each winner's name is the number of PGA Tour events they had won up to and including that tournament. This information is only shown for PGA Tour members.
- ^ a b c d Official money; unofficial win.
- ^ Unofficial money event at the time, but retrospectively counted as an official win.
References
- ^ "1971 PGA Tour Media Guide" (PDF). PGA Tour. Retrieved November 8, 2023.
- ^ "Golf PGA | Top money winners". The Palm Beach Post. West Palm Beach, Florida. December 15, 1970. p. 24 (C2 in paper). Retrieved November 8, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Trevino's $157,037 Tops Golf Earnings". The News-Messenger. Fremont, Ohio. December 15, 1970. p. 14. Retrieved November 8, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Billy Casper PGA Player of the Year". Reno Gazette-Journal. Reno, Nevada. October 28, 1970. p. 31. Retrieved November 8, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ Durden, Chauncey (January 28, 1971). "Pars and Pickups". Richmond Times-Dispatch. Richmond, Virginia. p. 53. Retrieved November 8, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.