1961 PGA Championship

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1961 PGA Championship

The 43rd PGA Championship took place July 27–31, 1961, on the North Course at Olympia Fields Country Club in Olympia Fields, Illinois, a suburb south of Chicago. The field started with 161 players. Heavy rain on Friday washed out the second round, so the scores were scrapped and the round was replayed on Saturday, with 36 holes to be played on Sunday.

Jerry Barber, 45, won his only major title in an 18-hole playoff over Don January by one stroke, finishing at 277 (−3). Barber led at the halfway point with 136 (−4), two shots ahead of January and Doug Sanders. He was known for his putting and drained about 120 feet of putts on the last three holes of the final round to erase a four-stroke deficit and force the playoff.

In the playoff, they were tied at three-under after 16 holes. Both made pars on the 17th, turning the 18th into sudden death. Barber hit a 3-iron to about 18 feet on the green; January found a bunker short of the green and couldn’t save par from 15 feet. Barber won when January bogeyed and Barber made par.

Barber became the oldest PGA Champion at 45. Olympia Fields had previously hosted major events, including the PGA Championship in 1925 and the U.S. Open in 1928; the course later hosted the U.S. Open again in 2003, won by Jim Furyk.

Prize money for the event totaled $64,800, with $11,000 going to the winner. The tournament was played on a par-70 course measuring 6,722 yards. The cut was at 148 (+8), with 65 players advancing.