Confidence is a Valuable Weapon In Match Play
Little known players defeated the seeded established pros to win at match play
In Memoriam | Jim Ferree 1931 - 2023
So sad to hear the news of the passing of Jim Ferree. Purvis “Jim” Jennings Ferree turned pro in 1955 after a stint in the Army and won his only PGA TOUR title in 1958 at the Vancouver Open. He wore a little straw hat that week and at the award ceremony he gave the hat to the membership of Point Grey Golf Course where the tournament was played. The membership made a bronze replica of the hat and displayed it in the clubhouse. Ferree had a great sense of humor. Then commissioner Deane Beman used Ferree, in his plus-four pants, as the model for the senior tour logo. Ferree liked to quip that he was “at the top of the leader board every week.” R.I.P. Jim.
I’m starting to really warm up to these non-designated events. The field at the Valspar actually had some star powered names in Jordan Spieth and Justin Thomas, but it also had some great story lines like Adam Schenk who was playing in his tenth consecutive tournament as he tries to rack up as many FedEx points as he can before the arrival of a new baby in a few weeks.
Perhaps the best storyline was the difficulty of “The Snake Pit” and the toll it took on the leaders. Except for Taylor Moore who played his last ten holes in 4-under to win his first PGA TOUR title and is now going to appear, for his first time, in the Masters.
It may not have had the star power of a designated event, but it was still compelling to watch.
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It’s the end of an era for the PGA TOUR this week as this will be the last WGC conducted with the World Golf Championship-Dell Technologies Match Play. Not only will it be the end of the WGC, it will be an end to a match play tournament on the tour schedule.
We’re going back to 1973 when the tour had a match play competition on the schedule. The U.S. Professional Match Play Championship was played the same week, and on the same course at the Liggett and Myers Open. The match play field consisted of eight seeded players who were exempt into the event due to their performance on the tour the prior 12 months. The other eight players played their way into the match play the first two rounds of medal play in the Liggett and Myers Open. The tour went the route of seeding the big name players at the behest of the television networks. How’d it work out? Scroll down to see.
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Larry Baush
It’s Two Tournaments in One
It’s Friday, August 24th, 1973 in Raleigh, NC, at MacGregor Downs Country Club and seven players are teeing off in a playoff. A playoff on a Friday? It could only happen at the Liggett and Myers Open. Billed as “Golf’s Doubleheader” the tournament featured a four-day medal event and a two-day match play event.
Eight players were exempted straight into the match play event based on their play in the previous 12 months. Jack Nicklaus, Tom Weiskopf, Tommy Aaron, Johnny Miller, George Archer, Grier Jones, Lee Trevino, and Jerry Heard all earned exemptions into the match play portion of the tournament known as the U.S. Professional Match Play Tournament.
The eight leading scores in the first two rounds of the Liggett and Myers Open would join the eight exempt players in the U.S. Professional Match Play Tournament. J.C. Snead was the leader after shooting a pair of 68s. He was followed by John Schroeder who fired a course-record 65 in the second round for a two-round total of 138. He was followed by Bud Allin, Dan Sikes, DeWitt Weaver, Artie McNickle, and Allen Miller at 139. Seven players were tied for the last qualifying spot at 140 and would playoff for the spot.
Joe Porter, Lanny Wadkins, Rik Massengale, Dave Stockton, Bob E. Smith, Paul Moran, and Bobby Mitchell headed out for the playoff. After making five pars in a row in the gathering gloom of the approaching evening, Joe Porter finally eliminated the other players to earn the last spot in the match play event.
“I get in playoffs for the last spot all the time. It was nothing new to me.”
The U.S. Professional Match Play Tournament featured a purse of $200,000 while the Liggett and Myers Open had a purse of $100,000. Porter was guaranteed to make $5,000 by qualifying for the match play. He would have had to finish fourth or better to top that prize in the Leggett and Myers Open. He had only won $1,622 so far for the year and had quit the tour, for the fourth time in his career, before returning after getting a new stake, along with some advice, from his father.
Porter felt he had an advantage in the playoff.
“Those other guys are exempt players,” Porter said. “They don’t have to qualify. I’m out there every Monday trying to fight my way into the tournament. I get in playoffs for the last spot all the time. It was nothing new to me. I just kept on trying to make pars.”
Winning the playoff came with a dubious reward for Porter. He would face the number one seed, Jack Nicklaus in the first round of match play. Other first round matchups included Lee Trevino against Dan Sikes, Tommy Aaron versus Bud Allin, Greer Jones playing John Schroeder, Johnny Miller facing off against Artie McNickle, George Archer against DeWitt Weaver, Tom Weiskopf versus Allen Miller, and Jerry Heard against J.C. Snead.
Television did not like match play events because anything could happen and the big names in the field could be knocked out of the competition. Hence, the eight exempt players with the hope that these strong players would advance through the match play brackets.
In the morning matches on Saturday, Porter had Nicklaus three-down after six holes, but Nicklaus, the reigning PGA champion, was able to turn the match around to win, 2-up. But George Archer, Grier Jones and Jerry Heard—all players who were all exempt—lost their first-round matches. Weaver beat Archer, Schroeder beat Jones, and J.C. Snead beat Heard after sinking a six-foot birdie putt on the 22nd hole.
Sikes took Trevino to the 18th hole before he hit into the water to lose the match 1-down. Masters champ Tommy Aaron was taken down by Bud Allin. The biggest surprise of the morning matches was Artie McNickle taking down U.S. Open champion Johnny Miller, 2 and 1.
“Jack Nicklaus is the greatest player who ever put on spikes.”
In the afternoon matches, the Associated Press described the fans following the Trevino versus Nicklaus match as a “massive, milling mob that was loudly pro-Trevino” and those fans saw Trevino handle Nicklaus 4 and 3. With three birdies and an eagle, Trevino shot a 31 on the front nine and held a four hole lead despite Nicklaus shooting a one-under 35.
“Jack Nicklaus is the greatest player who ever put on spikes,” Trevino declared after the match. “I’ve said that 100,000 times and I’m sincere when I say it. I’d hate to make a living playing him one-on-one, but there are certain days when I could beat two of him.”
Confidence is a valuable weapon in match play.
“I’ve only lost one match play round in the last three years.”
In the other quarter-final matches, Schroeder crushed Allin 5 and 4, Weiskopf handled J.C. Snead 4 and 3, and Weaver held off the rookie longshot McNickle 2 and 1.
Weaver won the U.S. Professional Match Play event in 1971 and lost to Jack Nicklaus in the semi-final match in 1972.
“I’ve only lost one match play round in the last three years,” a smiling Weaver noted to reporters. “I sure hope that continues. I’m really looking forward to my next match (against Weiskopf) because it should be real interesting.”
Confidence is a valuable weapon in match play.
“After that, I knew I could win it.”
J.C. Snead, went 22 holes in his morning match and then was rushed out, after a short rest period, to play Weiskopf in the afternoon. Weiskopf handled Snead 4 and 3 to earn his way into the semi-finals.
Trevino would face Schroeder in his semi-final match and the 16th and 17th holes proved pivotal for Schroeder.
“Holes 16 and 17 this morning against Trevino had to be the turning points. I made par out of bunkers on both those holes, then got the birdie at 18. After that, I knew I could win it.”
Schroeder won the match 1-up.
Confidence is a valuable weapon in match play.
“I had absolutely no concentration. I’m just tired of golf.”
Weiskopf, the top candidate for PGA Player of the Year due to one of the greatest streaks in golf history over the summer with wins in the Colonial National Invitational, the Kemper Open, the IVB-Philadelphia Golf Classic, The Open Championship, and the Candian Open. So it was no wonder that he just plain ran out of gas against Weaver.
“I played awful today,” said the exhausted Weiskopf after he conceded a three-foot putt to Weaver at the last hole to lose 1-down. “I had absolutely no concentration. I’m just tired of golf.”
Weaver described what happened on the 18th green.
“After I missed the long putt for birdie, Tom came over and asked if I thought I could make it. I said (expletive) yeah and he said pick it up and I said WHAT? I was pretty surprised. The putt was over two feet and downhill. But I didn’t argue the point.”
John Schroeder rode his confidence into the afternoon final match against Weaver. Even though he fell 2 down on the front nine, he rallied to best Weaver 2-up. He scored a birdie at the 9th hole to cut the deficit to one then birdied 11 to get to even in the match. He went up to stay after Weaver shanked a 2-iron into the water on the 12th hole.
“Holes 9-12 turned it around in the afternoon,” Schroeder said. “I knew I had to have birdies at nine and 10. I did make the one at nine and he let me back in it at 11 when he missed a 10-foot birdie putt and I made mine from 25 feet.”
“Now just think. I’ll get into my first Masters, Tournament of Champions and pay a few bills.”
All Schroeder had to do from that point was keep his ball dry on the dangerous final hole and the match was his.
“Now just think. I’ll get into my first Masters, Tournament of Champions and pay a few bills,” first-time winner Schroeder said after his victory.
Bert Greene also won his first PGA Tournament that Sunday when he won the Liggett and Myers Open. Greene won $20,000 while Schroeder won $40,000.
The frustration that the television networks felt about match play were not alleviated with the seeding of the top eight players into the event. The final match between Weaver and Schroeder is not exactly what the doctor ordered. At least they had Weiskopf and Trevino in the semi-finals.
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Bonus Story
John Schroeder came to the U.S. Professional Match Play Championship recovering from a sore thumb that had been bothering him since late in the 1970 season.
“Off and on for two years it bothered me and I had to take cortisone shots about every two months. But taking the shots didn’t cure anything, and I was beginning to question my ability to stay on tour. Paul Runyan, my old golf teacher, gave me the solution. He saw me swing one time, got me to change my hand position and I’ve been fine ever since. Today proved it,” Schroeder said after capturing the match play title.
“Anyway, this is the greatest thrill of my life. The first win always is, I guess.”
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Tour Backspin Quiz |1973 PGA TOUR Trivia
Jack Nicklaus won his 50th PGA TOUR title in 1973. At what event did he win his 50th?
Answer below
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I could watch this video from our friends at The Fried Egg all day long. Watch Gil Hanse discuss the massive restoration project at Lake Merced Golf Club in Daly City, CA. Hanse and his crew worked to restore the features that Alistar MacKenzie established when he re-bunkered Willie Locke’s original design in the 1920s. Watch it HERE.
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Tour Backspin Quiz Answer:
Jack Nicklaus won the 1973 PGA Championship at Canterbury Golf Club in Beachwood, OH for his 50th tour title.
Comments | Feedback
Hi Larry,
I’ve heard a few G-rated stories about Ray Floyd and the Condor nightclub (Tour Backspin 3/16/2023). My dad was a motorcycle cop in the North Beach area at the time. The Condor owner Gino Delprete was a family friend. As a 6-year-old I met Carol Doda one afternoon before she started working. She was very kind and cordial. At the time I didn’t think she was very attractive! Also I met that Coke character mentioned in your article. I was told he was a very unsavory dude. He looked like your typical early 1960s beatnik. I also met Enrico Banducci who owned a restaurant and the Hungry Eye nightclub. Phyllis Diller got her start there. Lenny Bruce was arrested there for profanity while performing at the Eye. Didn’t see him, it was past my bedtime lol.
I heard about Floyd hitting balls down Broadway and Columbus streets. There were plenty of wagers on his shots.
Wish my dad was still alive. I’m sure he had many more stories about Ray and the old Condor gang.
Bruce E.
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Final Thoughts
Don’t they have Honey Buckets at the LIV Golf events?
Paul Runyan once gave me a chip-and-run lesson. I’m old.
Is a team event, like the Ryder Cup, the only way to make match play work on TV?