Tom Watson Wins First Title in Three Years

Captures the Nabisco Championship, the PGA TOUR'S first season ending championship, in 1987

Aug 25, 2022

The FedEx Cup playoffs culminate in the Tour Championship this week at the East Lake Golf Club in Atlanta, GA. This tournament dates back to 1987 when it was known as the Nabisco Championship. It was the first season-ending championship on the PGA TOUR and utilized a season-long points system as an avenue of qualifying for the tournament. The top 30 players in the point standings played in what was then the richest tournament in PGA TOUR history. We’re going outside our usual 1960s and 1970s timespan to backspin to 1987 when Tom Watson ended a three year victory drought.

Tom Weiskopf at the 2nd hole in the 4th round of the 1975 Masters. Playing partner Johnny Miller stands behind Weiskopf (Photo: The Augusta Chronicle)

It is with great sadness that we say goodbye to Tom Weiskopf who passed at his home in Big Sky, MT, on Saturday after a battle with pancreatic cancer. Tom was 79 years-old and had a distinguished career on the PGA TOUR with the 1973 Open Championship on his record. He went on to an equally distinguished career as a golf course designer. How is he not in the World Golf Hall of Fame? RIP Tom Weiskopf.

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Watson Battles Nerves To Win Richest Tournament in PGA TOUR History

Tom Watson throws his yellow visor in the air after capturing the 1987 Nabisco Championship (photo: Sports Illustrated)

It’s late in the fourth round of the Nabisco Championship, the richest tournament in PGA TOUR history, on Sunday, November 1st, 1987. Tom Watson is making the turn after his first nine holes. He started the day with a four-shot lead over Mark O’Meara and Mark Calcavecchia and he maintained that lead through the first nine holes of the final round. Then “the nerves took hold,” according to Watson. What happened? Was Watson able to control his nerves? Could he win his first title in over three years? Let’s backspin to find out.

The Nabisco Championship was the first of the season ending championships that have evolved into the Tour Championship. The Nabisco was built on a dizzying foundation of a complicated point system that awarded points to the top 25 finishers in each TOUR event. The TOUR had a problem it was trying to solve; not enough players were competing in the smaller events. The Nabisco point allocation system was designed to encourage more participation in all TOUR events. The top 30 cumulative points earners would earn their way into the season ending Nabisco Championship. The winner of the Nabisco would receive a check for $360,000, while there was another $1 million, including $175,000 to the winner of the Nabisco Grand Prix of Golf, a season-long points race ending with the Nabisco.

The event also had the added suspense of deciding who would be the leading money winner for the year. Paul Azinger was trying to chase down Curtis Strange for the title. They were also battling it out for the Player of the Year award.

Watson had spent the three weeks before the Nabisco at home in Mission Hills, KS, putting in as much as three hours a day working on his putting. The work paid off. In the first round, Watson hit only seven of 14 fairways, but had 11 one-putt greens, and a total of just 25 putts, on his way to a five-under-par 65 at the par 70, 5,556 yard, A.W. Tillinghast designed Oak Hills Country Club in San Antonio, TX.

“It’d be a nice tournament to win for my first time in three years. Winning again means a heckova lot. The longer you go without winning, the more it means to you.”

Masters champion, Larry Mize, who birdied the last two holes, was tied with David Frost at 66, one-stroke off the lead. Greg Norman shot a round of 67 that included an eagle three and was tied with Mark Calcavecchia and Nick Price at 67.

Norman had cashed in on his successful 1986 season by signing endorsement deals worth around $12 million. His 1987 campaign included a deeply disappointing Masters playoff loss to Larry Mize, and he was able to only win one tournament. 1986 lacked a dominate performance by any one player. This included Watson who had not won on TOUR since 1984.

“It’d be a nice tournament to win for my first time in three years.” Watson said after his round. “Winning again means a heckova lot. The longer you go without winning, the more it means to you.”

Watson was able to add a four-under-par 66 in Friday’s second round that gave him a four-stroke lead over a trio at 135 that included Ben Crenshaw, who added a 67 to his first round 68, Mike Reid (69-66) and Mark Calcavecchia who shot a second round 68.

“I would have liked to have distanced myself from the field a little more, but I’ll take a four-shot lead in any golf tournament.”

Watson birdied three holes in a row beginning at the fifth hole. Crenshaw’s round was a rollercoaster affair with seven birdies and four bogeys. Norman fell six strokes off the pace with a second round 70 and was tied with Bernhard Langer, Steve Pate and David Frost. In the battle for the money title, Paul Azinger, after a second round 66 and a total of 139 held an eight-stroke lead over Curtis Strange.

Watson cooled off some in Saturday’s third round shooting a one-under-par 69 which was still good enough to maintain a four-shot lead.

“I would have liked to have distanced myself from the field a little more,” Watson admitted after his round, “but I’ll take a four-shot lead in any golf tournament.”

Watson’s round was a struggle and he identified two par putts, one a 15-footer on the sixth hole and the other a 20-footer at the 13th hole, as being the backbone of salvaging a good score.

“I’ll have to shoot in the 60s tomorrow to win it. It will be a good test,” Watson predicted.

Ben Crenshaw, Greg Norman and Bernhard Langer, all made third round moves at Watson, but all three fell back after double bogeys. Mark O’Mera and Mark Calcavecchia were tied for second at 204, four strokes off Watson’s lead. O’Mera shot a 66, the low round of the day, in the mild, windy weather. Azinger added a 67 while Strange continued to struggle. The big question in the leading money winner title would be if Azinger could climb the leader board enough to secure a payday that would overtake Strange.

On Sunday, Watson retained his four-shot lead going into the final nine holes, but as depicted in this week’s opening, he began to feel the nerves as he tried to bring home his first title in three years.

“I knew what I had to do. I wanted the money title.”

Late charging Chip Beck equaled the low round of the tournament, a 64, and applied the pressure to Watson. Watson answered by making key, pressure-packed, putts beginning with a clutch four-foot birdie putt at the tenth hole. He then made crucial par putts at the 12th, 13th, and 15th holes. But he bogeyed the 16th, and the hard-charging Beck was within a stroke of the lead.

Paul Azinger knew he had to finish second to overtake Curtis Strange for the money title. He’d fought himself into position, but then he double bogeyed the 16th hole extinguishing any hope of capturing the money title.

“I knew what I had to do,” Azinger said after his round. “I wanted the money title.”

“He’s back! You can write it: he’s back. It’s great for him and it’s good for golf.”

Greg Norman took advantage of the scoring conditions to fashion a final round 66 and a four round total of 271 for a third place finish and won a check for $138,000.

After his round, Azinger went to watch Watson finish his round at the par three 18th hole. Watson selected an 8-iron for his tee shot at the 18th and then hit the shot to within eight-feet of the hole. The work that he’d put in on his putting before the tournament paid off again as he rolled the birdie putt into the hole for a two-stroke victory.

As Watson’s approached settled in close to the hole, Paul Azinger shouted, “He’s back! You can write it: he’s back. It’s great for him and it’s good for golf.”

“I’m about the happiest guy in the whole world,” Watson said after the redemption of winning again. “After all those years of answering the questions and asking internal questions, too, this is sweet.”

With his confidence restored in his putting stroke, due to the hard work on the practice green that he did the weeks before the tournament, Tom Watson was able to return to the winner’s circle in the richest tournament in PGA TOUR history.

Tom Watson chips in the third round of the 1987 Nabisco Championship(photo: AP Photo)

The Tour Championship was one way to get players to play in more events during the season. See this week’s Bonus Story for more.

Be sure to checkout Crashing Through 1987, where we did out best to find 18 songs from 1987 for our playlist this week. Listen HERE .

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Enjoy!
Larry Baush

Why Does The PGA TOUR do this?

Ed “Porky” Oliver won the 1941 Western Open, which during this era was considered a major tournament. The Western Open has evolved into the BMW Championship. The PGA TOUR labels all past winners of a tournament with the current title sponsor. With the LIV Golf challenge, one of the selling points of the PGA TOUR is its history. Why dilute the impact of that history by this inauthentic catering to sponsors? What do you think?

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Bonus Story

The Nabisco Championship was Deane Beman’s attempt to put a climactic ending to the PGA TOUR season. Using a point system, the top 30 players qualified for the no-cut tournament that was played one week after a comparable season-ending event, the Volvo Masters, was conducted on the European Tour, so that players who qualified could play in both events. The Nabisco was held in November.

There were several events that were played on the PGA TOUR between the Nabisco Championship and Christmas, but these were unofficial events with the prize money not counting on the official money list. The official money list for the season was finalized after the completion of the Nabisco.

Curtis Strange won the money title in 1987 with $925,941, Paul Azinger finished second with $822,481 (and won Player of the Year Award), and Ben Crenshaw finished third with $638,194. With the $360,000 he won in the Nabisco Championship, Tom Watson finished the year with $616,351, good enough for fifth place on the money list.