1977 PGA Tour
| Duration | January 6, 1977 – November 6, 1977 |
|---|---|
| Number of official events | 45 |
| Most wins | Tom Watson (5) |
| Money list | Tom Watson |
| PGA Player of the Year | Tom Watson |
← 1976 1978 → | |
The 1977 PGA Tour was the 62nd season of the PGA Tour, the main professional golf tour in the United States. It was also the ninth season since separating from the PGA of America.
Schedule
The following table lists official events during the 1977 season.[1]
| Date | Tournament | Location | Purse (US$) |
Winner(s)[a] | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan 9 | Phoenix Open | Arizona | 200,000 | Jerry Pate (3) | |
| Jan 16 | Joe Garagiola-Tucson Open | Arizona | 200,000 | Bruce Lietzke (1) | |
| Jan 23 | Bing Crosby National Pro-Am | California | 200,000 | Tom Watson (4) | Pro-Am |
| Jan 30 | Andy Williams-San Diego Open Invitational | California | 180,000 | Tom Watson (5) | |
| Feb 6 | Hawaiian Open | Hawaii | 240,000 | Bruce Lietzke (2) | |
| Feb 13 | Bob Hope Desert Classic | California | 200,000 | Rik Massengale (3) | Pro-Am |
| Feb 20 | Glen Campbell-Los Angeles Open | California | 200,000 | Tom Purtzer (1) | |
| Feb 27 | Jackie Gleason-Inverrary Classic | Florida | 250,000 | Jack Nicklaus (62) | |
| Mar 7 | Florida Citrus Open | Florida | 200,000 | Gary Koch (2) | |
| Mar 13 | Doral-Eastern Open | Florida | 200,000 | Andy Bean (1) | |
| Mar 20 | Tournament Players Championship | Florida | 300,000 | Mark Hayes (3) | Special event |
| Mar 27 | Heritage Classic | South Carolina | 225,000 | Graham Marsh (1) | Invitational |
| Apr 3 | Greater Greensboro Open | North Carolina | 235,000 | Danny Edwards (1) | |
| Apr 10 | Masters Tournament | Georgia | 280,477 | Tom Watson (6) | Major championship |
| Apr 10 | Magnolia Classic | Mississippi | 35,000 | Mike McCullough (n/a) | Second Tour[b] |
| Apr 17 | MONY Tournament of Champions | California | 225,000 | Jack Nicklaus (63) | Winners-only event |
| Apr 17 | Tallahassee Open | Florida | 80,000 | Ed Sneed (3) | Alternate event |
| Apr 24 | First NBC New Orleans Open | Louisiana | 175,000 | Jim Simons (1) | |
| May 1 | Houston Open | Texas | 200,000 | Gene Littler (29) | |
| May 8 | Byron Nelson Golf Classic | Texas | 200,000 | Raymond Floyd (9) | |
| May 15 | Colonial National Invitation | Texas | 200,000 | Ben Crenshaw (5) | Invitational |
| May 15 | Oklahoma City Open | Oklahoma | 45,000 | Tom Storey (n/a) | Second Tour[b] |
| May 23 | Memorial Tournament | Ohio | 225,000 | Jack Nicklaus (64) | Invitational |
| May 29 | Atlanta Classic | Georgia | 200,000 | Hale Irwin (8) | |
| Jun 5 | Kemper Open | North Carolina | 250,000 | Tom Weiskopf (13) | |
| Jun 12 | Danny Thomas Memphis Classic | Tennessee | 200,000 | Al Geiberger (10) | |
| Jun 19 | U.S. Open | Oklahoma | 200,000 | Hubert Green (12) | Major championship |
| Jun 26 | Western Open | Illinois | 200,000 | Tom Watson (7) | |
| Jul 3 | Greater Milwaukee Open | Wisconsin | 130,000 | Dave Eichelberger (2) | |
| Jul 9 | The Open Championship | Scotland | £100,000 | Tom Watson (8) | Major championship[c] |
| Jul 10 | Ed McMahon-Jaycees Quad Cities Open | Illinois | 125,000 | Mike Morley (1) | Alternate event |
| Jul 17 | Pleasant Valley Classic | Massachusetts | 250,000 | Raymond Floyd (10) | |
| Jul 24 | Canadian Open | Canada | 225,000 | Lee Trevino (22) | |
| Jul 31 | IVB-Philadelphia Golf Classic | Pennsylvania | 200,000 | Jerry McGee (2) | |
| Aug 7 | Sammy Davis Jr.-Greater Hartford Open | Connecticut | 210,000 | Billy Kratzert (2) | |
| Aug 14 | PGA Championship | California | 250,000 | Lanny Wadkins (4) | Major championship |
| Aug 21 | American Express Westchester Classic | New York | 300,000 | Andy North (1) | |
| Aug 28 | Colgate Hall of Fame Golf Classic | North Carolina | 250,000 | Hale Irwin (9) | |
| Sep 4 | Buick Open | Michigan | 100,000 | Bobby Cole (1) | Alternate event |
| Sep 5 | World Series of Golf | Ohio | 400,000 | Lanny Wadkins (5) | Limited-field event |
| Sep 11 | B.C. Open | New York | 200,000 | Gil Morgan (1) | |
| Sep 25 | Ohio Kings Island Open | Ohio | 150,000 | Mike Hill (3) | |
| Oct 2 | Anheuser-Busch Golf Classic | California | 200,000 | Miller Barber (10) | |
| Oct 16 | San Antonio Texas Open | Texas | 150,000 | Hale Irwin (10) | |
| Oct 23 | Southern Open | Georgia | 125,000 | Jerry Pate (4) | |
| Oct 30 | Pensacola Open | Florida | 125,000 | Leonard Thompson (2) | |
| Nov 6 | Walt Disney World National Team Championship | Florida | 200,000 | Gibby Gilbert (3) and Grier Jones (3) |
Team event |
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sep 17 | Ryder Cup | England | n/a | Team USA | Team event |
| Dec 11 | World Cup | Philippines | 4,200 | Seve Ballesteros and Antonio Garrido |
Team event |
| World Cup Individual Trophy | 2,100 | Gary Player |
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 | Tom Watson | 310,653 |
| 2 | Jack Nicklaus | 284,509 |
| 3 | Lanny Wadkins | 244,882 |
| 4 | Hale Irwin | 221,456 |
| 5 | Bruce Lietzke | 202,156 |
| 6 | Tom Weiskopf | 197,369 |
| 7 | Raymond Floyd | 163,261 |
| 8 | Miller Barber | 148,320 |
| 9 | Hubert Green | 140,255 |
| 10 | Billy Kratzert | 134,758 |
Awards
| Award | Winner | Ref. |
|---|---|---|
| PGA Player of the Year | Tom Watson | [4] |
| Scoring leader (Vardon Trophy) | Tom Watson | [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 Official money; unofficial win.
- ^ Unofficial money event at the time, but retrospectively counted as an official win.
References
- ^ "1978 PGA Tour Media Guide" (PDF). PGA Tour. Retrieved November 7, 2023.
- ^ "The Top money-winners in 1977". Progress Bulletin. Pomona, California. November 13, 1977. p. 51 (52 in paper). Retrieved November 7, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Watson's $310,653 third best on all-time PGA money list". Valley News. Van Nuys, California. November 2, 1977. p. 28 (2 in paper). Retrieved November 7, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Watson Named Player of Year". The Kansas City Times. Kansas City, Missouri. November 24, 1977. p. 102. Retrieved November 7, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Another trophy for Watson". Birmingham Evening Mail. Birmingham, United Kingdom. December 7, 1977. p. 30. Retrieved November 7, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.