# 1961 Masters Tournament

The 1961 Masters Tournament was the 25th Masters Tournament, held April 6–10 at Augusta National Golf Club in Augusta, Georgia.
Due to heavy rains and flooding of several greens, Sunday's final round was halted before 4 p.m. and the scores were erased, even though ten players had completed their rounds. Third round leader Gary Player was even par through eleven holes, and defending champion Arnold Palmer was two-under through nine. The entire round was replayed the next day.
In the final round on Monday, Player defeated Palmer and amateur Charles Coe by one stroke to become the first international champion at the Masters. Player made an up and down from the bunker on the final hole but thought he had lost the tournament, after carding a disappointing 40 (+4) on the back nine. In the final pairing with a one-shot lead, Palmer needed a par on the final hole for the win. From the fairway, his approach shot also landed in the bunker right of the green. With a poor lie, Palmer's bunker shot went past the hole and off the green and down a hillock. Using his putter from off the green, he failed to get the fourth shot close, then missed the 15-foot (4.5 m) bogey putt which would have forced a playoff.
It was the first of three green jackets for Player, age 25, and the second of his nine major titles. His other wins at Augusta came over a decade later in 1974 and 1978. Jack Nicklaus, 21, recorded the first of his 22 top-10 finishes at the Masters, his last as an amateur. He tied for seventh, but the low amateur honors went to Coe. Nicklaus regained the U.S. Amateur title in September at Pebble Beach and turned professional in November.
A field of 88 players entered the tournament and 41 of them made the cut at five-over-par (149).
Amateur Deane Beman won the Par 3 contest with a score of 22; he turned pro in 1967 and later became the second commissioner of the PGA Tour, from 1974 to 1994.

## Field
### 1. Masters champions

Jack Burke Jr. (4,8,11), Jimmy Demaret, Doug Ford (4,10,11), Claude Harmon (8), Ben Hogan (2,3,4,8,9), Herman Keiser, Cary Middlecoff (2,11), Byron Nelson (2,4), Arnold Palmer (2,8,9,10), Gene Sarazen (2,3,4), Horton Smith, Sam Snead (3,4,8,10,11), Craig Wood (2)
* Ralph Guldahl (2), Henry Picard (4), and Art Wall Jr. (11) did not play.

### 2. U.S. Open champions

Tommy Bolt (8), Julius Boros (8,9,11), Billy Burke, Billy Casper (8,9), Jack Fleck (9), Ed Furgol, Tony Manero, Lloyd Mangrum, Dick Mayer, Fred McLeod, Sam Parks Jr., Lew Worsham

### 3. The Open champions

Jock Hutchison (4), Denny Shute (4)

### 4. PGA champions

Walter Burkemo, Dow Finsterwald (8,9,11), Vic Ghezzi, Chick Harbert, Chandler Harper, Jay Hebert (10,11), Lionel Hebert (8), Johnny Revolta, Bob Rosburg (8,11), Jim Turnesa

### 5. U.S. Amateur and Amateur champions

Deane Beman (6,7,a), Dick Chapman (a), Charles Coe (6,a), Jack Nicklaus (6,8,9,a), Robert Sweeny Jr. (a)

### 6. Members of the 1959 U.S. Walker Cup team

William C. Campbell (a), Bill Hyndman (7,a), Chuck Kocsis (a), Billy Joe Patton (8,a), Bud Taylor (8,a), Ward Wettlaufer (a)
* Tommy Aaron had turned professional. Campbell and Kocsis were reserves for the team. Harvie Ward did not play.

### 7. 1960 U.S. Amateur quarter-finalists

John Farquhar (a), Robert W. Gardner (a), Charles Lewis III (a), Steve Spray (a), Claude Wild (a)

### 8. Top 24 players and ties from the 1960 Masters Tournament

Fred Hawkins, Don January (10), Ted Kroll (9), Mike Souchak (9,11), Ken Venturi
* Ed Oliver did not play.

### 9. Top 16 players and ties from the 1960 U.S. Open

Jerry Barber, George Bayer, Don Cherry (a), Paul Harney, Bob Harris, Dutch Harrison, Johnny Pott

### 10. Top eight players and ties from 1960 PGA Championship

Wes Ellis, Doug Sanders
* Jim Ferrier (4) did not play

### 12. One player, either amateur or professional, not already qualified, selected by a ballot of ex-Masters champions

Gene Littler

### 13. One professional, not already qualified, selected by a ballot of ex-U.S. Open champions

Bob Goalby

### 14. One amateur, not already qualified, selected by a ballot of ex-U.S. Amateur champions

Bob Cochran (a)

### 15. Two players, not already qualified, from a points list based on finishes in the winter part of the 1961 PGA Tour

Bill Collins, Mason Rudolph

### 16. Foreign invitations

Keith Alexander (a), Al Balding, Phil Brownlee (a), Antonio Cerdá, Bruce Crampton (8), Roberto De Vicenzo, Mário Gonzalez, Bill Kerr, Stan Leonard (8), Sebastián Miguel, Ángel Miguel, Kel Nagle (3), Gary Player (3,8), Chi-Chi Rodríguez, Miguel Sala, Peter Thomson (3)
* Numbers in brackets indicate categories that the player would have qualified under had they been American.

## Round summaries
### First round

Thursday, April 6, 1961
| Place | Player | Score | To par |
| T1 | Arnold Palmer | 68 | −4 |
| T1 | Bob Rosburg | 68 | −4 |
| 3 | Gary Player | 69 | −3 |
| 4 | Jack Nicklaus (a) | 70 | −2 |
| T5 | Doug Ford | 71 | −1 |
| T5 | Paul Harney | 71 | −1 |
| T5 | Byron Nelson | 71 | −1 |
| T5 | Johnny Pott | 71 | −1 |
| T9 | Tommy Bolt | 72 | E |
| T9 | Billy Casper | 72 | E |
| T9 | Charles Coe (a) | 72 | E |
| T9 | Jay Hebert | 72 | E |
| T9 | Stan Leonard | 72 | E |
| T9 | Gene Littler | 72 | E |
| T9 | Ken Venturi | 72 | E |
Source

### Second round

Friday, April 7, 1961
| Place | Player | Score | To par |
| T1 | Arnold Palmer | 68-69=137 | −7 |
| T1 | Gary Player | 69-68=137 | −7 |
| 3 | Bob Rosburg | 68-73=141 | −3 |
| 4 | Don January | 74-68=142 | −2 |
| T5 | Tommy Bolt | 72-71=143 | −1 |
| T5 | Walter Burkemo | 74-69=143 | −1 |
| T5 | Charles Coe (a) | 72-71=143 | −1 |
| T5 | Lionel Hebert | 74-69=143 | −1 |
| T5 | Ted Kroll | 73-70=143 | −1 |
| T5 | Byron Nelson | 71-72=143 | −1 |
| T5 | Ken Venturi | 72-71=143 | −1 |
Source

### Third round

Saturday, April 8, 1961
| Place | Player | Score | To par |
| 1 | Gary Player | 69-68-69=206 | −10 |
| 2 | Arnold Palmer | 68-69-73=210 | −6 |
| T3 | Charles Coe (a) | 72-71-69=212 | −4 |
| T3 | Paul Harney | 71-73-68=212 | −4 |
| 5 | Bill Collins | 74-72-67=213 | −3 |
| T6 | Jack Burke Jr. | 76-70-68=214 | −2 |
| T6 | Don January | 74-68-72=214 | −2 |
| T6 | Bob Rosburg | 68-73-73=214 | −2 |
| T9 | Ted Kroll | 73-70-72=215 | −1 |
| T9 | Jack Nicklaus (a) | 70-75-70=215 | −1 |
| T9 | Doug Sanders | 76-71-68=215 | −1 |
| T9 | Ken Venturi | 72-71-72=215 | −1 |
Source:

### Final round

Sunday, April 9, 1961 Monday, April 10, 1961

#### Summary

Play on Sunday was washed out due to heavy rain and wind shortly after 4 pm and all scores were erased; the final round was replayed on Monday. Although Player was the leader after 54 holes, he finished his round nearly an hour ahead of Palmer's double-bogey at the final hole.

#### Final leaderboard

* Champion
* Silver Cup winner (low amateur)
* (a) = amateur
* (c) = past champion
Top 10 :
| Place | Player | Score | To par | Money (US$) |
| 1 | Gary Player | 69-68-69-74=280 | −8 | 20,000 |
| T2 | Charles Coe (a) | 72-71-69-69=281 | −7 | 0 |
| T2 | Arnold Palmer (c) | 68-69-73-71=281 | −7 | 12,000 |
| T4 | Tommy Bolt | 72-71-74-68=285 | −3 | 7,000 |
| T4 | Don January | 74-68-72-71=285 | −3 | 7,000 |
| 6 | Paul Harney | 71-73-68-74=286 | −2 | 4,800 |
| T7 | Jack Burke Jr. (c) | 76-70-68-73=287 | −1 | 3,200 |
| T7 | Billy Casper | 72-77-69-69=287 | −1 | 3,200 |
| T7 | Bill Collins | 74-72-67-74=287 | −1 | 3,200 |
| T7 | Jack Nicklaus (a) | 70-75-70-72=287 | −1 | 0 |
Leaderboard below the top 10 :
| Place | Player | Score | To par | Money ($) |
| T11 | Walter Burkemo | 74-69-73-72=288 | E | 1,667 |
| T11 | Robert W. Gardner (a) | 74-71-72-71=288 | E | 0 |
| T11 | Doug Sanders | 76-71-68-73=288 | E | 1,667 |
| T11 | Ken Venturi | 72-71-72-73=288 | E | 1,667 |
| T15 | Stan Leonard | 72-74-71-72=289 | +1 | 1,300 |
| T15 | Gene Littler | 72-73-72-72=289 | +1 | 1,300 |
| T15 | Bob Rosburg | 68-73-73-75=289 | +1 | 1,300 |
| T15 | Sam Snead (c) | 74-73-69-73=289 | +1 | 1,300 |
| T19 | Dick Mayer | 76-72-70-73=291 | +3 | 1,133 |
| T19 | Johnny Pott | 71-75-72-73=291 | +3 | 1,133 |
| T19 | Peter Thomson | 73-76-68-74=291 | +3 | 1,133 |
| T22 | Roberto De Vicenzo | 73-74-71-74=292 | +4 | 1,000 |
| T22 | Lew Worsham | 74-71-73-74=292 | +4 | 1,000 |
| T24 | Antonio Cerdá | 73-73-72-75=293 | +5 | 1,000 |
| T24 | Fred Hawkins | 74-75-72-72=293 | +5 | 1,000 |
| T24 | Ted Kroll | 73-70-72-78=293 | +5 | 1,000 |
| 27 | Al Balding | 74-74-70-76=294 | +6 | 1,000 |
| T28 | Mason Rudolph | 77-69-72-77=295 | +7 | 500 |
| T28 | Mike Souchak | 75-72-75-73=295 | +7 | 500 |
| T30 | Jay Hebert | 72-75-69-80=296 | +8 | 500 |
| T30 | Lionel Hebert | 74-69-74-79=296 | +8 | 500 |
| T32 | Doug Ford (c) | 71-76-78-73=298 | +10 | 500 |
| T32 | Ben Hogan (c) | 74-73-72-79=298 | +10 | 500 |
| T32 | Byron Nelson (c) | 71-72-78-77=298 | +10 | 500 |
| 35 | Chick Harbert | 74-73-76-76=299 | +11 | 500 |
| 36 | Bob Goalby | 74-73-76-77=300 | +12 | 500 |
| 37 | Jerry Barber | 74-72-78-77=301 | +13 | 500 |
| 38 | Miguel Sala | 74-75-78-81=308 | +20 | 500 |
| CUT | Deane Beman (a) | 73-77=150 | +6 | |
| CUT | Chuck Kocsis (a) | 77-73=150 | +6 | |
| CUT | Charles Lewis III (a) | 74-76=150 | +6 | |
| CUT | Cary Middlecoff (c) | 75-75=150 | +6 | |
| CUT | Ángel Miguel | 75-75=150 | +6 | |
| CUT | Chi-Chi Rodríguez | 77-73=150 | +6 | |
| CUT | Jim Turnesa | 80-70=150 | +6 | |
| CUT | George Bayer | 77-74=151 | +7 | |
| CUT | Julius Boros | 75-76=151 | +7 | |
| CUT | Robert Sweeny Jr. (a) | 74-77=151 | +7 | |
| CUT | Keith Alexander (a) | 76-76=152 | +8 | |
| CUT | Dow Finsterwald | 73-79=152 | +8 | |
| CUT | Mário Gonzalez | 76-76=152 | +8 | |
| CUT | Sebastián Miguel | 74-78=152 | +8 | |
| CUT | Bud Taylor (a) | 74-78=152 | +8 | |
| CUT | Don Cherry (a) | 79-74=153 | +9 | |
| CUT | Bruce Crampton | 80-73=153 | +9 | |
| CUT | Jimmy Demaret (c) | 75-78=153 | +9 | |
| CUT | Bill Kerr | 75-78=153 | +9 | |
| CUT | Kel Nagle | 75-78=153 | +9 | |
| CUT | Billy Joe Patton (a) | 78-75=153 | +9 | |
| CUT | Bill Hyndman (a) | 74-80=154 | +10 | |
| CUT | Lloyd Mangrum | 80-75=155 | +11 | |
| CUT | Sam Parks Jr. | 80-75=155 | +11 | |
| CUT | Ed Furgol | 75-81=156 | +12 | |
| CUT | Gene Sarazen (c) | 79-77=156 | +12 | |
| CUT | William C. Campbell (a) | 76-81=157 | +13 | |
| CUT | Vic Ghezzi | 74-83=157 | +13 | |
| CUT | Claude Harmon (c) | 76-81=157 | +13 | |
| CUT | Bob Harris | 79-78=157 | +13 | |
| CUT | Phil Brownlee (a) | 79-79=158 | +14 | |
| CUT | Dick Chapman (a) | 80-79=159 | +15 | |
| CUT | Steve Spray (a) | 80-79=159 | +15 | |
| CUT | Billy Burke | 81-79=160 | +16 | |
| CUT | Bob Cochran (a) | 80-80=160 | +16 | |
| CUT | John Farquhar (a) | 77-83=160 | +16 | |
| CUT | Craig Wood (c) | 80-80=160 | +16 | |
| CUT | Claude Wild (a) | 78-83=161 | +17 | |
| CUT | Herman Keiser (c) | 81-81=162 | +18 | |
| CUT | Tony Manero | 80-82=162 | +18 | |
| CUT | Johnny Revolta | 84-80=164 | +20 | |
| CUT | Denny Shute | 77-88=165 | +21 | |
| CUT | Ward Wettlaufer (a) | 80-85=165 | +21 | |
| CUT | Horton Smith (c) | 86-83=169 | +25 | |
| WD | Jack Fleck | 74-71-73=218 | +2 | |
| WD | Wes Ellis | 75-73-74=222 | +6 | |
| WD | Dutch Harrison | 74-74-78=226 | +10 | |
| WD | Chandler Harper | 74 | +2 | |
| WD | Jock Hutchison | | | |
| WD | Fred McLeod | | | |
Sources:

#### Scorecard

| Hole | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 |
| Par | 4 | 5 | 4 | 3 | 4 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 3 | 5 | 4 | 5 | 3 | 4 | 4 |
| Player | −11 | −12 | −12 | −12 | −12 | −12 | −12 | −12 | −12 | −11 | −11 | −11 | −9 | −9 | −8 | −8 | −8 | −8 |
| Palmer | −6 | −7 | −7 | −7 | −7 | −8 | −8 | −9 | −9 | −9 | −9 | −9 | −9 | −9 | −9 | −9 | −9 | −7 |
| Coe | −4 | −5 | −5 | −6 | −6 | −5 | −5 | −5 | −5 | −5 | −4 | −4 | −5 | −6 | −7 | −7 | −7 | −7 |
Cumulative tournament scores, relative to par
    Birdie Bogey Double bogey