1972 PGA Tour
| Duration | January 6, 1972 – December 3, 1972 |
|---|---|
| Number of official events | 47[a] |
| Most wins |  Jack Nicklaus (7) |
| Money list | Jack Nicklaus |
| PGA Player of the Year | Jack Nicklaus |
← 1971 1973 → | |
The 1972 PGA Tour was the 57th season of the PGA Tour, the main professional golf tour in the United States. It was also the fourth season since separating from the PGA of America.
Rogelio Gonzales suspension
At the Greater New Orleans Open, Colombian rookie, Rogelio Gonzales was disqualified after it was learned that he had changed his scorecard earlier in the tournament.[1] In addition to his disqualification, the PGA Tour lifted Gonzales playing privileges.[2]
Schedule
The following table lists official events during the 1972 season.[3]
| Date | Tournament | Location | Purse (US$) |
Winner(s)[b] | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan 9 | Glen Campbell-Los Angeles Open | California | 125,000 | George Archer (10) |
|
| Jan 16 | Bing Crosby National Pro-Am | California | 140,000 | Jack Nicklaus (39) |
Pro-Am |
| Jan 24 | Dean Martin Tucson Open | Arizona | 150,000 | Miller Barber (7) |
|
| Jan 30 | Andy Williams-San Diego Open Invitational | California | 150,000 | Paul Harney (6) |
|
| Feb 6 | Hawaiian Open | Hawaii | 200,000 | Grier Jones (1) |
|
| Feb 13 | Bob Hope Desert Classic | California | 145,000 | Bob Rosburg (6) |
Pro-Am |
| Feb 20 | Phoenix Open | Arizona | 125,000 | Homero Blancas (3) |
|
| Feb 27 | Jackie Gleason's Inverrary Classic | Florida | 260,000 | Tom Weiskopf (5) |
New tournament |
| Mar 5 | Doral-Eastern Open | Florida | 150,000 | Jack Nicklaus (40) |
|
| Mar 12 | Florida Citrus Open | Florida | 150,000 | Jerry Heard (2) |
|
| Mar 19 | Greater Jacksonville Open | Florida | 125,000 |  Tony Jacklin (4) |
|
| Mar 26 | Greater New Orleans Open | Louisiana | 125,000 |  Gary Player (16) |
|
| Apr 2 | Greater Greensboro Open | North Carolina | 200,000 | George Archer (11) |
|
| Apr 9 | Masters Tournament | Georgia | 204,649 | Jack Nicklaus (41) |
Major championship |
| Apr 9 | Magnolia Classic | Mississippi | 35,000 | Mike Morley (n/a) |
Second Tour[c] |
| Apr 16 | Monsanto Open | Florida | 150,000 | Dave Hill (9) |
|
| Apr 23 | Tournament of Champions | California | 165,000 | Bobby Mitchell (2) |
Winners-only event |
| Apr 23 | Tallahassee Open | Florida | 75,000 |  Bob Shaw (1) |
Alternate event |
| Apr 30 | Byron Nelson Golf Classic | Texas | 125,000 | Chi-Chi Rodríguez (6) |
|
| May 7 | Houston Open | Texas | 125,000 | Bruce Devlin (7) |
|
| May 7 | Shreveport Classic | Louisiana | 25,000 | Don Iverson (n/a) |
Second Tour[c] |
| May 14 | Colonial National Invitation | Texas | 125,000 | Jerry Heard (3) |
Invitational |
| May 14 | Maumelle Open | Arkansas | 25,000 | Ed Sneed (n/a) |
Second Tour[c] |
| May 21 | Danny Thomas Memphis Classic | Tennessee | 175,000 | Lee Trevino (12) |
|
| May 28 | Atlanta Classic | Georgia | 130,000 | Bob Lunn (6) |
|
| Jun 4 | Kemper Open | North Carolina | 175,000 | Doug Sanders (20) |
|
| Jun 11 | IVB-Philadelphia Golf Classic | Pennsylvania | 150,000 | J. C. Snead (3) |
|
| Jun 18 | U.S. Open | California | 200,000 | Jack Nicklaus (42) |
Major championship |
| Jun 25 | Western Open | Illinois | 150,000 | Jim Jamieson (1) |
|
| Jul 3 | Cleveland Open | Ohio | 150,000 | David Graham (1) |
|
| Jul 9 | Canadian Open | Canada | 150,000 | Gay Brewer (10) |
|
| Jul 15 | The Open Championship | Scotland | £50,000 | Lee Trevino (13) |
Major championship[d] |
| Jul 16 | Greater Milwaukee Open | Wisconsin | 125,000 | Jim Colbert (2) |
Alternate event |
| Jul 23 | American Golf Classic | Ohio | 150,000 | Bert Yancey (7) |
|
| Jul 30 | National Team Championship | Pennsylvania | 200,000 | Babe Hiskey (3) and Kermit Zarley (3) |
Team event |
| Jul 30 | Vern Parsell Buick Open | Michigan | 20,000 | Gary Groh (n/a) |
Second Tour[c] |
| Aug 6 | PGA Championship | Michigan | 225,000 | Gary Player (17) |
Major championship |
| Aug 13 | Westchester Classic | New York | 250,000 | Jack Nicklaus (43) |
|
| Aug 20 | USI Classic | Massachusetts | 200,000 | Bruce Devlin (8) |
|
| Aug 27 | U.S. Professional Match Play Championship | North Carolina | 200,000 | Jack Nicklaus (44) |
Limited-field event |
| Aug 27 | Liggett & Myers Open | North Carolina | 100,000 | Lou Graham (2) |
New tournament Alternate event |
| Sep 4 | Greater Hartford Open Invitational | Connecticut | 125,000 | Lee Trevino (14) |
|
| Sep 10 | Southern Open | Georgia | 100,000 | DeWitt Weaver (2) |
|
| Sep 17 | Greater St. Louis Golf Classic | Missouri | 150,000 | Lee Trevino (15) |
New tournament |
| Sep 24 | Robinson's Fall Golf Classic | Illinois | 100,000 | Grier Jones (2) |
|
| Oct 1 | Quad Cities Open | Iowa | 100,000 | Deane Beman (3) |
|
| Oct 22 | Kaiser International Open Invitational | California | 150,000 |  George Knudson (7) |
|
| Oct 29 | Sahara Invitational | Nevada | 135,000 | Lanny Wadkins (1) |
|
| Nov 5 | San Antonio Texas Open | Texas | 125,000 | Mike Hill (2) |
|
| Nov 27 | Sea Pines Heritage Classic | South Carolina | 125,000 | Johnny Miller (2) |
Invitational |
| Dec 3 | Walt Disney World Open Invitational | Florida | 150,000 | Jack Nicklaus (45) |
|
| Bahamas National Open | Bahamas | – | Cancelled[4] |
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 12 | World Cup | Australia | 6,300 |  Hsieh Min-Nan and Lu Liang-Huan
|
Team event |
| World Cup Individual Trophy | Hsieh Min-Nan
|
Money list
The money list was based on prize money won during the season, calculated in U.S. dollars.[5][6]
| Position | Player | Prize money ($) |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Jack Nicklaus |
320,542 |
| 2 | Lee Trevino |
214,805 |
| 3 | George Archer |
145,027 |
| 4 | Grier Jones |
140,177 |
| 5 | Jerry Heard |
137,198 |
| 6 | Tom Weiskopf |
129,422 |
| 7 | Gary Player |
120,719 |
| 8 | Bruce Devlin |
119,768 |
| 9 | Tommy Aaron |
118,924 |
| 10 | Lanny Wadkins |
116,616 |
Awards
| Award | Winner | Ref. |
|---|---|---|
| PGA Player of the Year | Jack Nicklaus |
[7] |
| Scoring leader (Vardon Trophy) | Lee Trevino |
[8] |
Notes
- ^ One further tournament was scheduled but was cancelled.
- ^ 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
- ^ "Tampering charged; Golfer suspended". The Spokesman-Review. AP. April 1, 1972. p. 11. Retrieved October 26, 2012 – via Google News Archive.
- ^ McDermott, Barry (June 19, 1972). "Keeping A Close Eye On The Ball". Sports Illustrated. Archived from the original on December 13, 2013. Retrieved October 26, 2012.
- ^ "1973 PGA Tour Media Guide" (PDF). PGA Tour Media. Retrieved November 8, 2023.
- ^ "Bahamas tournament cancelled". The Gazette. Montreal, Quebec, Canada. April 25, 1972. Retrieved May 10, 2020 – via Google News Archive.
- ^ "Nicklaus Makes '72 The Year Of The Golden Bear | Top ten money winners on 1972 PGA Tour". Deseret News. Salt Lake City, Utah. December 25, 1972. p. 83 (D5 in paper). Retrieved November 8, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Seven wins and $320,542". Times Colonist. Victoria, British Columbia, Canada. December 4, 1972. p. 12. Retrieved November 8, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Nicklaus PGA Player of the Year". The Ithaca Journal. Ithaca, New York. November 1, 1972. p. 17. Retrieved November 8, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ Cullenward, Nelson (December 30, 1972). "Not Even Nicklaus Is Scratch". The San Francisco Examiner. San Francisco, California. p. 26. Retrieved November 8, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.