"He's Running Away From Us"
Hubert Green shoots back nine 30 to win the 1975 Southern Open
We go back to 1975 on our journey through the past as we document Hubert Green winning the Southern Open. The Southern Open shares DNA with The RSM Classic being played this week on the PGA TOUR, part of the FedEx Cup Fall series. Scroll down to learn how Green stormed to victory with a back nine 30 in the final round.
We’ve written about the 1976 Southern Open HERE, and the 1974 Southern Open HERE.
The PGA TOUR was in Bermuda at the Port Royal Golf Club for the Butterfield Bermuda Championship last week. Congratulations to Rafael Campos on winning his first PGA TOUR title. Scroll down as I provide a few of my thoughts on the tournament as well as the Clips You Might Have Missed.
We’ve got a question for you to weigh in on with the Tour Backspin Poll. This week’s Music Clip has War doing “Low Rider” on Soul Train in 1975. Tour Backspin Goes to The Movies, has the 1975 theatrical trailer for “Nashville.” Scroll down to listen and watch.
The Swing Like a Pro features the compact and quick swing of Hubert Green. The WHAT HOLE IS IT? this week has a hole you should be able to identify. Submit your answer and you may just win a golf swag prize pack which includes our new 19th Hole Hot Sauce (now available online in the Tour Backspin Golf Shop). We’ve got some links for you in the Check it Out section and an ad from 1975 that features the beautiful clubs from PowerBilt in this week’s Vintage Ad. Scroll down to view.
The Tour Backspin Poll
In last week’s Tour Backspin Poll, we asked if you thought that the winner of a FedEx Fall event should receive an invite to the Masters. There were 86% of responders who thought a Masters invite should be offered to the the winner of a fall event while 14% thought that the field strength of these events was not strong enough to warrant an invite to Augusta.
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We’re playing 1975 PGA TOUR Trivia in this week’s Tour Backspin Quiz. Scroll down to play.
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Okay, we're on the tee, let's get going.
Enjoy!
Larry Baush
Hubert Green Runs Down John Schroeder
It is Tuesday, September 2nd, 1975, and Hubert Green, who played in the B.C. Open in Endicott, NY, has arrived in Columbus, GA, for the Southern Open being played at the Green Island Country Club. The B.C. Open finished on Monday, which was Labor Day, and Green shot a final round 67 for a four-round total of 277, three strokes off Don Iverson who won his first PGA TOUR title.
Green, who won four times in 1974 and finished fourth on the money list, was still looking for a win in 1975. It had been a difficult year as Green lost his father and his first child was born under less than perfect circumstances.
That didn’t mean that he wasn’t playing well, though. Coming into the Southern Open he was the top money winner of those entered for the week. For the year, he finished second twice, at the Crosby and the Sammy Davis Jr.-Greater Hartford Open and had a top ten finish in the Masters and a third-place finish in the Tournament Players Championship. It looked like it was just a matter of time before he would secure a victory in 1975. Sportswriters agreed making Green a favorite, along with Miller Barber, in the Southern.
In addition to Green, the field included 15 of the 38 “Designated Players” that included the top players in the game.
The Southern Open featured a strong field in addition to Green. Situated on the schedule as the first of the last half-dozen tournaments of the year, the players fighting to get into the top 60 on the money list could not afford to pass up a chance to improve their position. Players inside the top 60 on the money list would receive exemptions into the events of 1976 freeing them from the uncertainty of Monday qualifying.
Four top players who were not in the field were Jack Nicklaus, Tom Watson, Tom Weiskopf, and Lou Graham who were playing in the World Series of Golf at Firestone Country Club in Akron, OH.
In addition to Green, the field included 15 of the 38 “designated players” that included the top players in the game. The field also included 12 of the top 15 finishers in the 1974 Southern Open, and there were four winners from previous tournaments in 1975—J.C. Snead at the San Diego Open, Gary Groh in the Hawaiian Open, Larry Ziegler at the Jacksonville Open, and Iverson at the B.C. Open.
Players pronounced the Green Island course in excellent shape and predicted the scores would be low as the rough wasn’t too penal, despite the best efforts by tournament organizers. The course played to 6,791-yards and a par of 70. The routing of the course was altered to finish on a hole which featured a natural amphitheater.
On Tuesday, 101 players teed it up in a qualifying round playing for 43 spots in the tournament. One of those players was John Schroeder who had been struggling all year. Schroeder qualified for the Southern Open, but it took three playoff holes to secure one of the last seven spots.
The pro-am, which featured Johnny Unitas, the former quarterback of the Baltimore Colts playing with Bruce Devlin, teed off at 8 am on Wednesday. David Graham won the individual title with a six-under 64, equaling the Southern pro-am record, and won $750, while the Devlin team tied for first place. Green shot a 67 and was ready to get the tournament started.
“Anytime you don’t have any bogeys on a tricky little course like this you’ve gotta be pleased.”
The predictions of low scores held up in the first round as Mac McLendon and John Schroeder both shot five-under 65s to take a one-shot lead over Terry Dill, and Leonard Thompson. There were 25 players who broke par including Green who shot a 68.
“Anytime you don’t have any bogeys on a tricky little course like this you’ve gotta be pleased,” McLendon said to Cecil Darby of The Columbus Ledger. “I missed four or five greens, but I got it up and down.”
Schroeder knocked in a 40-foot putt on the 17th for a birdie and a share of the lead.
“It had about an eight-foot break in it, but I knew I had made it as soon as I hit the putt,” Schroeder explained to Darby. “I just knew it was a good putt.”
Schroeder, who only used his driver twice in his second round, breezed to a second-round 66 and took the halfway lead at 131. He had five birdies and one bogey in his round.
“I’m not known as the straightest driver,” Schroeder explained to Randy Wert of the Columbus Ledger-Enquirer.
McLendon shot a 69 putting him three shots back of Schroeder. Tour rookie Alan Tapie, described by Wert as “a tall Californian with a blonde mustache,” was in front of McLendon on the leaderboard after a 66 for a three-round total of 133.
Hubert Green was tied with his good friend, McLendon, at 134 after he posted a 66 which included four birdies and no bogeys. He missed several other birdie opportunities, missing putts in the 15-foot range.
Schroeder was riding high for the week especially considering he was playing so poorly earlier in the year that he took six weeks off after the Greater Milwaukee Open. Upon his return at the Tournament Players Championship, he missed the cut, as he did at the next event, the B.C. Open.
“I like to think I can keep playing this way,” he said to Wert. “And if I do, nobody can catch me. I haven’t been this positive all year long. But I’m going to be nervous.”
The 36-hole cut came at 144, four-over-par.
“Now Hubert, there are 35 holes left to play and there’s no reason to try to make up too much, too soon.”
Green, who had never played Green Island that well in the past, tapped into a positive mental attitude to match his second-round 66 in the third round closing to within one shot of Schroeder who shot 68 for a 199 total, a three-round record for the Southern Open bettering Johnny Miller’s 200 in the 1971.
Green had to give himself a pep talk after he started his round with a bogey.
“When I did that, I said to myself, ‘Now Hubert, there are 35 holes left to play and there’s no reason to try to make up too much, too soon,’ ” Green said after his round. “Just go along and see what happens.”
What happened was that he made five birdies the remainder of the round and actually pulled even with Schroeder when he rolled in a 15-foot putt on the 17th hole while Schroeder was playing the 16th. Schroeder hit a “great wedge” at the 16th and made the birdie putt to pull a stroke ahead of Green.
“I hope to go out and keep playing like I’ve been playing,” Schroeder said after his round. “I just can’t play this course much better.”
Bill Rogers rocketed up the leaderboard with a 63 and a three-round total of 202 while McLendon fell after a 71 for a total of 205.
The table was set for an exciting Sunday finish.
Green, playing in front of Schroeder in the final round, feared he was falling behind the leader late in the front nine.
“As we walked up to the eighth green,” said Green’s caddie Shayne Grier, “he said, ‘We better start going because Schroeder’s going the wrong way. He’s running away from us.’”
“I couldn’t believe how well John was playing,” Green later said about Schroeder’s three-under front nine.
“It’s hard to win your first tournament from behind like that.”
Green was able to make the turn in one-under to remain close to Schroeder. He then put on a charge by birdieing the 12th and 13th holes. When Schroeder came through the 13th hole, he hit a bad chip and took a bogey. Green now held the lead, and he then made three more birdies, including a curling six-foot putt at the final hole, to card a sizzling back-nine 30 for a round of 64, and a four-round total of 264.
It was too much for Schroeder who finished with a 68 and a four-round total of 267, which would have won any other Southern Open played prior to 1975.
“When I birdied the 14th to go two up, I didn’t think he could catch me,” Green told reporters after his round. “It’s hard to win your first tournament from behind like that.”
While Schroeder was disappointed, he was not devastated.
“I shot 136 the last two rounds, and that’s not bad,” Schroeder said to Wert of the Ledger-Enquirer. “It’s hard to beat a 64. I just got beaten by a better player this week. I didn’t expect Hubert to shoot a 30 on the back nine.”
Schroeder stayed at the course after his round reveling in an impromptu party for tournament volunteers. He emceed the proceedings leading the gathering in stirring renditions of “Dixie” and generally looking like the champion instead of the runner-up.
For Green, the victory lifted a heavy weight from his shoulders near the end of a difficult year. The $20,000 first-place check lifted him to within $10,000 of being in the top 10 on the money list. He finished the year in the 12th spot on the money list, and it was the victory at the Southern Open, as well as his runner-up finishes earlier in the year, that contributed to his overall earnings.
Next Week: The all-exempt tour of 1983.
BONUS STORY
The “designated players” mentioned in this week’s feature story, referenced the top 38 players (in 1974) who were required to play in the “designated events” on the tour. First introduced in 1974 and designed by outgoing commissioner Joseph C. Dey, and administered by incoming commissioner Deane Beman, the designated events were a way to ensure tournament sponsors that the top players on the tour would be entered into their fields.
“Certain individuals are not personally in favor of the designated tournament format.”
In 1974 the Colonial National Invitational, Kemper Open, and the World Open Golf Championship, were designated events. When designated events were introduced in 1974, a tournament had to offer a $250,000 purse. Both the Kemper and the Colonial offered a $250,000 purse while the World Open featured a $300,000 purse.
“Certain individuals are not personally in favor of the designated tournament format,” Beman admitted before the start of the 1975 tour. “But the players as a whole have been completely cooperative. The sponsors have been very patient. Considering the general economic conditions of the country, the sponsors have also been successful. They realize their own events will benefit from increased national interest in the tour.”
In 1975, the designated events were the Atlanta Golf Classic played the last week of May and offered a $225,000 purse, and the Tournament Players Championship in late August which had a $250,000 purse. Why the Tournament Players Championship was a designated event was a bit curious as it was a tournament all the leading players wanted to play in.
The designated events came to an end after the 1982 season with the introduction of the all-exempt tour that also did away with Monday qualifying.
WHAT HOLE IS IT?
Are you on the leader board?
Congratulations to Doug Posten, who correctly identified #13 at Port Royal Golf Club in Southampton, Bermuda in last week’s WHAT HOLE IS IT? contest. Doug beat out two other correct answers in the random drawing. We’re sending a prize pack of golf swag, including the new Tour Backspin 19th Hole Hot Sauce, to Ryan.
THE TOUR BACKSPIN 19TH HOLE HOT SAUCE IS NOW AVAILABLE IN THE TOUR BACKSPIN GOLF SHOP.
Larry,
I just have to share this with you, because you sent me a bottle of Tour Backspin 19th Hole Hot Sauce awhile back. I made this for dinner tonight and it was fantastic…..
Owen M.
Have you used the Tour Backspin 19th Hole Hot Sauce in a recipe? Send it to us!
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We told you about getting our hands on a treasure trove of film that we are cleaning up and digitizing for the Tony Lema documentary. Some great footage of Tony in action and even home movies. The work is paying off with good results. Check it out (clicking on link will open this post on the web, scroll down to video player).
PGA TOUR Wrap-Up | Butterfield Bermuda Championship
Rafael Campos arrived in Bermuda at the Port Royal Golf Club for his first round in the Butterfield Bermuda Championship on Thursday after an early morning flight. He stayed at home with his wife, Stephanie, and their newborn child who arrived into the world on Monday, for as long as possible. He ended up holding the trophy on Sunday afternoon after his first PGA TOUR win.
The win moved him to the 80th place on the FedEx Cup standings and he won $1,242,000. He also secured playing privileges for 2025 as well as a Masters invite.
Campos shot a final round 68, three-under-par, in breezy conditions. His total of 265 was three shots better than Andrew Novak. Campos missed 13 cuts in his last 15 starts, including five FedEx Cup Fall events, so the win came as a surprise.
“I just can’t believe this is actually happening to me after such a year,” Campos said as he teared up in his post-round TV interview. “I’m just grateful to be able to call myself a PGA Tour champion. It’s something I’ve dreamt about all my life. It’s been an unbelievable week, best week of my life.”
Read more from Cameron Jourdan at Golfweek HERE.
Fourth round highlights:
Clips You Might Have Missed
Chip-in, in the dark, to make the cut.
FORE LEFT!
This is turning into a mess.
Rory’s response to paying Ryder Cup players.
What a reaction.
Tour Backspin Quiz | 1975 PGA TOUR Trivia
How many first-time winners were there on the 1975 PGA TOUR?
Scroll down for answer
Swing Like a Pro
The unique swing of Hubert Green.
Blind Shot
Click for something fun. 👀
Alex Perry at bunkered has the details on the world’s first launch monitor and simulator combo.
Matthew Rudy at GolfDigest has the story on how these junior golfers are cashing in on NIL.
Tour Backspin Music Clip
All my friends know the low rider.
Tour Backspin Quiz Answer:
There were eight first-time winners on the 1975 PGA TOUR. Gary Groh (Hawaiian Open), Pat Fitzsimmons (Glen Campbell-Los Angeles Open), Jerry McGee (Pensacola Open), Rik Massengale (Tallahassee Open), Tom Jenkins (IVB-Philadelphia Golf Classic), Roger Maltbie (Ed McMahon-Jaycees Quad Cities Open), Don Bies (Sammy Davis, Jr.-Greater Hartford Open), and Don Iverson (B.C. Open).
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Vintage Ad
Final Thoughts
Loved the reaction from Rafael Campos upon learning he is into the Masters.
Hubert Green had one of the most distinctive swings on the tour.
Lee Oskar on the harmonica for “Low Rider.” Doesn’t get much better.