1955 U.S. Open (golf)
| Tournament information | |
|---|---|
| Dates | June 16–19, 1955 |
| Location | San Francisco,California |
| Course(s) | Olympic Club,Lake Course |
| Organized by | USGA |
| Tour(s) | PGA Tour |
| Statistics | |
| Par | 70 |
| Length | 6,700 yards (6,126 m)[1][2] |
| Field | 158 players, 58 after cut |
| Cut | 155 (+15)[2] |
| Winner's share | $6,000 |
| Champion | |
 Jack Fleck | |
| 287 (+7), playoff | |
The1955 U.S. Openwas the 55thU.S. Open,held June 16–19 at the Lake Course of theOlympic ClubinSan Francisco,California.In one of the greatest upsets in golf history,Jack Fleck,a municipal course pro fromIowa,prevailed in an 18-hole playoff to win his onlymajortitle and deniedBen Hogana record fifth U.S. Open.[1][3]
Fleck, 32, won two more titles on thePGA Tourand later won theSenior PGA Championshipin 1979. He won the U.S. Open with clubs manufactured by Hogan's company.[1]
Hogan, 42, never did win his fifth U.S. Open or a tenth major; he won just one more tour event the rest of his career, in 1959. It was his fourth and final playoff in a major championship, all at 18 holes. Hogan won at the U.S. Open in1950but lost twice by a stroke at theMasters,toByron Nelsonin1942andSam Sneadin1954.He repeated as runner-up at the U.S. Open in1956,and had top ten finishes in1958,1959,and1960.(A pre-tournament favorite in1957,he withdrew due to a back ailment before teeing off.)[4][5][6]When the U.S. Open returned to Olympic in1966,Hogan finished twelfth at age 53 and received a standing ovation at the 72nd green.[7]
Byron Nelsoncame out of semi-retirement to play in his final U.S. Open and finished in 28th place.Arnold Palmermade the cut for the first time at the U.S. Open and finished in 21st. For the first time since1919,Gene Sarazendid not play in the U.S. Open, ending a streak of 31 consecutive appearances.
This was the first U.S. Open at the Lake Course of the Olympic Club; it returned in1966,1987,1998,and2012.
Course layout[edit]
Lake Course[1]
| Hole | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | Out | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | In | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Yards | 530 | 423 | 220 | 433 | 457 | 437 | 266 | 139 | 420 | 3,325 | 417 | 429 | 387 | 187 | 410 | 144 | 603 | 461 | 337 | 3,375 | 6,700 |
| Par | 5 | 4 | 3 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 3 | 4 | 35 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 3 | 4 | 3 | 5 | 4 | 4 | 35 | 70 |
Round summaries[edit]
First round[edit]
Thursday, June 16, 1955
| Place | Player | Score | To par |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Tommy Bolt |
67 | −3 |
| 2 | Walker Inman |
70 | E |
| 3 | Jack Burke Jr. |
71 | +1 |
| 4 | Ben Hogan |
72 | +2 |
| T5 | Mike Souchak |
73 | +3 |
| Babe Lichardus
| |||
| T7 | Doug Ford |
74 | +4 |
| Harvie Ward(a)
| |||
| Arthur Bell
| |||
 Celestino Tugot
| |||
| Fred Hawkins
| |||
| Elmer Reed
|
Source:[8]
Second round[edit]
Friday, June 17, 1955
| Place | Player | Score | To par |
|---|---|---|---|
| T1 | Harvie Ward(a) |
74-70=144 | +4 |
| Tommy Bolt |
67-77=144 | ||
| T3 | Julius Boros |
76-69=145 | +5 |
| Jack Fleck |
76-69=145 | ||
| Ben Hogan |
72-73=145 | ||
| Walker Inman |
70-75=145 | ||
| T7 | Sam Snead |
79-69=148 | +8 |
| Bob Harris |
79-69=148 | ||
| Jack Burke Jr. |
71-77=148 | ||
| 10 | Gene Littler |
76-73=149 | +9 |
Source:[9]
Third round[edit]
Saturday, June 18, 1955 (morning)
| Place | Player | Score | To par |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Ben Hogan |
72-73-72=217 | +7 |
| T2 | Julius Boros |
76-69-73=218 | +8 |
| Sam Snead |
79-69-70=218 | ||
| T4 | Tommy Bolt |
67-77-75=219 | +9 |
| Bob Rosburg |
78-74-67=219 | ||
| T6 | Jack Fleck |
76-69-75=220 | +10 |
| Harvie Ward(a) |
74-70-76=220 | ||
| Jack Burke Jr. |
71-77-72=220 | ||
| 9 | Walker Inman |
70-75-76=221 | +11 |
| 10 | Gene Littler |
76-73-73=222 | +12 |
Final round[edit]
Saturday, June 18, 1955 (afternoon)
After Hogan made par on the 72nd hole to post a 287 total, most observers believed that he had already locked up the championship.Gene Sarazen,providing television commentary, congratulated him on the win and theNBCbroadcast went off the air after proclaiming Hogan the champion. Fleck, however, was only a stroke behind playing the 14th. A bogey there, however, dropped him to two back. Fleck then made birdie on 15 and pars at 16 and 17, after a 50-foot (15 m) birdie attempt lipped out. Needing a birdie on 18 to tie Hogan, Fleck played his approach from the edge of the rough to 8 feet (2.4 m), then knocked in the putt for a 67 and forced an 18-hole playoff on Sunday.[10]
| Place | Player | Score | To par | Money ($) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| T1 | Jack Fleck |
76-69-75-67=287 | +7 | Playoff |
| Ben Hogan |
72-73-72-70=287 | |||
| T3 | Tommy Bolt |
67-77-75-73=292 | +12 | 1,500 |
| Sam Snead |
79-69-70-74=292 | |||
| T5 | Julius Boros |
76-69-73-77=295 | +15 | 870 |
| Bob Rosburg |
78-74-67-76=295 | |||
| T7 | Doug Ford |
74-77-74-71=296 | +16 | 540 |
| Bud Holscher |
77-75-71-73=296 | |||
| Harvie Ward(a) |
74-70-76-76=296 | 0 | ||
| T10 | Jack Burke Jr. |
71-77-72-77=297 | +17 | 390 |
| Mike Souchak |
73-79-72-73=297 |
- (a) denotesamateur
Playoff[edit]
Sunday, June 19, 1955
Despite overwhelming odds against him, Fleck held a two-stroke lead over Hogan at the turn. After a third consecutive birdie at 10, Fleck's lead was three. But after a bogey at 17, the lead had dropped to just a single stroke on the 18th tee. Hogan hooked his drive into the very deep rough and took three strokes to get on the fairway: he made a 25-foot (8 m) putt to save double-bogey,[3]but Fleck's regulation par sealed the upset by three strokes, 69 to 72.[11]
| Place | Player | Score | To par | Money ($) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Jack Fleck |
69 | −1 | 6,000 |
| 2 | Ben Hogan |
72 | +2 | 3,600 |
Scorecard[edit]
| Hole | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Par | 5 | 4 | 3 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 3 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 3 | 4 | 3 | 5 | 4 | 4 |
| Fleck |
E | E | E | E | E | E | E | −1 | −2 | −3 | −2 | −2 | −2 | −2 | −2 | −2 | −1 | −1 |
| Hogan |
E | E | E | E | +1 | +1 | +1 | E | E | E | E | +1 | +1 | E | E | E | E | +2 |
Birdie Bogey Double bogey
Source:[12]
References[edit]
- ^abcd"Jack Fleck Registers 69 to Beat Ben Hogan by 3 Strokes for National Open Title".Youngstown Vindicator.Associated Press. June 20, 1955. p. 7.RetrievedJuly 20,2012.
- ^ab"Harvey Ward Ties Bolt for Open Lead at 144".Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.Associated Press. June 17, 1955. p. 11.RetrievedJuly 20,2012.
- ^abWind, Herbert Warren(June 27, 1955)."Jack, The Giant Killer".Sports Illustrated.pp. 17–23.RetrievedJuly 20,2012.
- ^Wolfe, Don (June 13, 1957)."Ben Hogan Withdraws From National Open Play As Ailments Refuse To Respond To Treatment".Toledo Blade.p. 1.RetrievedJuly 20,2012.
- ^"Dejected Hogan Quits Because Of Backache".Montreal Gazette.Associated Press. June 14, 1957. p. 24.RetrievedJuly 20,2012.
- ^Hogan, Ben;Wind, Herbert Warren(June 24, 1957)."Fame Calls On Dick Mayer".Sports Illustrated.pp. 8–13.RetrievedJuly 20,2012.
- ^"Hot Casper catches Arnie to throw Open into playoff".Spokesman-Review.Associated Press. June 20, 1966. p. 10.
- ^"First Round Open Scores".Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.Associated Press. June 15, 1955. p. 19.RetrievedJuly 20,2012.
- ^"Bolt (77), Ward (70) Tied At 144 For Lead In US Open".Montreal Gazette.Associated Press. June 18, 1955. p. 9.RetrievedJuly 20,2012.
- ^"Fleck equals Hogan's 287 on final hole".Spokesman-Review.Associated Press. June 19, 1955. p. 1-sports.
- ^"U.S. Open history: 1955".USGA. Archived fromthe originalon June 15, 2012.RetrievedJune 28,2012.
- ^"Playoff Cards".Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.June 20, 1955. p. 21.RetrievedJuly 20,2012.
Further reading[edit]
- Barkow, Al(2012).The Upset: Jack Fleck's Incredible Victory over Ben Hogan at the U.S. Open.Chicago Review Press.ISBN978-1-61374-075-0.
- Sagebiel, Neil (2012).The Longest Shot: Jack Fleck, Ben Hogan, and Pro Golf's Greatest Upset at the 1955 U.S. Open.Thomas Dunne Books.ISBN978-0-312-66184-7.