Is It Possible To Have a Fifth Major? ⛳
Thursday, March 11, 2021 Sign Up
It's the Player's Championship this week one year removed from this tournament being cut short due to the pandemic and our whole lives changed. Where do you fall on the question of this being the fifth major? We're going to talk about it origins and how it was designed to be that fifth major. But is it?
Congrats to Chris Poore, a member of the Society of Golf Historians Facebook group, for winning WHAT HOLE IS IT? from last week. The hole was #3 at the California Golf Club. There were 23 correct answers. Scroll down to test your golf course knowledge with this week's hole.
This week's vintage ad features a branded golf bag that I saw everywhere back in the day.
Did you miss a previous newsletter? You can view it HERE. Forward this email to a friend and if they sign up, you both get a sticker set sent to you. Was this newsletter forwarded to you? You can sign up HERE.
Okay, we're on the tee, let's get going.
Is The Players Championship a Fifth Major?
The intention was clear from the inception; create a fifth major that the PGA TOUR would own. They didn't own the Masters, U.S. Open, PGA Championship or the Open Championship and they wanted a major championship they could call their own. The players were looking to flex their newly found independence which they won in 1969 when the PGA created the Tournament Division that eventually became the PGA TOUR, an autonomous entity from the PGA of America. You can read about that fight HERE.
At a news conference in late February of 1974, the new commissioner of the tour, Deane Beman announced the new Tournament Players Championship shortly before he was set to take over the reins from Joseph C. Dey, Jr.
"The players wanted this tournament so they could have their own champion," Beman said. "I think it will be a great success."
The week before the new championship the excitement began to build. The tournament was to be played at the Atlanta Country Club and initial plans had the tournament at a different venue each year. It featured a $250,000 purse with the winner getting $50,000 and a 10-year exemption which definitely put it into the same neighborhood as far as major championship perks.
Beman was emphatic about the intention to make this tournament a fifth major. "The players are resolved to make this tournament the fifth major championship," he stated. The field would be stronger than one would find at the four majors as it would be comprised of players from the PGA TOUR only.
And the players were on board. Jack Nicklaus said that his personal feeling was that "the TPD Championship will become one of the top major-tournaments we will have in the United States -- along with the Masters, the U.S. Open and the PGA Championship."
Johnny Miller, the winner of three titles in 1974 and who was the leading money winner for the year, agreed. "It's terrific. I'm all for it and it would even suit me if they played it in Atlanta every year. It's a fabulous course and one of my favorites."
With this much fanfare and anticipation, it had to be good. So how'd that first year go? Well, there were weather challenges forcing a Monday finish, controversy over a star player withdrawal, but on the other hand, a major champion claimed the trophy. It was a rocky beginning for a tournament that wanted to be considered a major.
The first round was twice interrupted by rain before causing a complete end to the action with 45 players needing to return the next day to complete their rounds. J.C. Snead, nephew of Sam Snead, posted a course record 63 and held a three stroke lead over Jack Nicklaus.
Lou Graham posted a second straight 67 in the second round that put him one stroke in front of Snead and three in front of Nicklaus. The weather was hot, muggy and raining and Johnny Miller complained that the weather had exhausted him and he withdrew.
J.C. Snead eagled his final hole of the third round for 67 and a one stroke lead over Nicklaus who shot a 68. The weather during Sunday's final round was shortened due to rain and required 12 players return on Monday to finish their rounds. Nicklaus fought from 5 strokes off of Snead's lead to take a two stroke lead before play was halted.
Monday's papers carried a story about Dave Marr, a player on the tour as well as a TV analyst, criticizing Johnny Miller for withdrawing.
"He only had two holes to go," Marr said. "I'm sure Arnold Palmer wanted to pick up, but he went at it straight up."
Nicklaus was able to maintain his two stroke lead winning the championship. Did he consider it a major championship?
"Put it this way. Here's how I classify it," he tried to explain. "Except for the four major tournaments, I'd classify this as the number one tournament we play."
What is now called the Player's Championship never really had a chance to be a fifth major on the same level as the four that make up the Grand Slam precisely because of how fans view the Grand Slam. Rather, the Player's Championship has staked a claim on the territory that separates the major championships from the WGC events which carry more weight than the regular tour events. The Players carries more prestige than a WGC event, but isn't quite up to the other four majors in fan's eyes. Some players on tour may disagree (most likely the past champions).
Check out the bonus fact about the Tournament Players Championship below.
Our playlist this week is spinning the tunes to you from 1974. We think that the caddies had these songs in the tape deck as they drove from one tour stop to the next that year. Listen on Spotify.
This week's vintage ad features Lee Trevino with his red shirt, but it looks weird for him to not be wearing a cap.
Send your pictures of your favorite golf holes to larry@9acespublishing.com. If we use your pic for the WHAT HOLE IS IT? contest, you'll win a prize.
Enjoy!
Larry Baush
WHAT HOLE IS IT?
YOUR PICTURE COULD BE FEATURED IN WHAT HOLE IS IT?!
Send us your picture of your favorite hole and if we feature it, you win a prize.
Email to larry@9acespublishing.com
We'll post guest submissions on the third Thursday of the month.
Do you recognize this clubhouse? Find the answer below.
Eagle | Birdie | Par
We give you some recommendations to check out around the web.
Eagle: How's your green reading ability? Better than most? Find out for yourself HERE.
Birdie: View this trippy video of Titleist Pro V1 golf balls being chased by drones. Watch HERE.
Par: Watch Tommy Fleetwood give his son a lesson HERE. Bonus video in link has every hole at TPC Sawgrass.
Bonus Fact
Gene Littler, fighting back from a cancer operation in 1972, made the cut at the Tournament Players Championship in 1974 (name changed to the Players Championship in 1988) and needed to make $4,000 to become the eighth player in history to amass over $1 million in winnings. He made it to the 18th tee in the final round on Sunday before rain put a halt to play for the day.
He returned to the course on Monday morning and he felt "a little insecure" as he viewed that one hole to play as if it was the start of a round. He still managed a birdie for a round of five-under-par 67 and a total of 277 (11-under). He finished in fourth place winning $11,750 pushing his yearly winnings to $88,459 resulting in career earnings of $1,008,354.
"It's a nice feeling (to win a million)", Littler admitted. "But it doesn't really mean anything performance-wise. It's not a true pictureof how you're doing--but it is nice."
Gene Littler, the eighth player on the PGA Tour to earn over a $1 million in career winnings
