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1971 PGA Tour season

Duration	January 7, 1971 (1971-01-07) – December 12, 1971 (1971-12-12)
Number of official events	44
Most wins	Lee Trevino (6)
Money list	Jack Nicklaus
PGA Player of the Year	Lee Trevino
← 1970 1972 →

The 1971 PGA Tour was the 56th season of the PGA Tour, the main professional golf tour in the United States. It was also the third season since separating from the PGA of America.

Dave Hill antitrust lawsuit

At the Colonial National Invitation, Dave Hill shot rounds of 77-85 to miss the cut. On his last hole, Hill threw a ball out of a sand trap. Hill was disqualified but it was for his signing a scorecard with an incorrect score on it. When Hill went to play in his next tournament, the Danny Thomas Memphis Classic, Hill was informed that he was being fined $500 for conduct unbecoming a professional golfer. Hill was required to pay the fine before teeing it up in the tournament. He did so, but less than a week later, Hill filed a one-million dollar antitrust suit against the PGA Tour. In response, the tour put Hill on probation for one year.

Schedule

The following table lists official events during the 1971 season.

Date	Tournament	Location	Purse (US$)	Winner(s)	Notes
Jan 10	Glen Campbell-Los Angeles Open	California	110,000	Bob Lunn (5)
Jan 17	Bing Crosby National Pro-Am	California	135,000	Tom Shaw (3)	Pro-Am
Jan 24	Phoenix Open Invitational	Arizona	125,000	Miller Barber (6)
Jan 31	Andy Williams-San Diego Open Invitational	California	150,000	George Archer (7)
Feb 7	Hawaiian Open	Hawaii	200,000	Tom Shaw (4)
Apr 11	United Air Lines – Ontario Open	California	25,000	Fred Marti (n/a)	Second Tour
Feb 14	Bob Hope Desert Classic	California	140,000	Arnold Palmer (58)	Pro-Am
Feb 22	Tucson Open Invitational	Arizona	110,000	J. C. Snead (1)
Feb 28	PGA Championship	Florida	200,000	Jack Nicklaus (34)	Major championship
Mar 7	Doral-Eastern Open Invitational	Florida	150,000	J. C. Snead (2)
Mar 14	Florida Citrus Invitational	Florida	150,000	Arnold Palmer (59)
Mar 21	Greater Jacksonville Open	Florida	125,000	Gary Player (14)
Mar 28	National Airlines Open Invitational	Florida	200,000	Gary Player (15)
Apr 4	Greater Greensboro Open	North Carolina	190,000	Buddy Allin (1)
Apr 11	Masters Tournament	Georgia	125,000	Charles Coody (3)	Major championship
Apr 11	Magnolia Classic	Mississippi	35,000	Roy Pace (n/a)	Second Tour
Apr 18	Monsanto Open	Florida	150,000	Gene Littler (23)
Apr 25	Tournament of Champions	California	165,000	Jack Nicklaus (35)	Winners-only event
Apr 25	Tallahassee Open Invitational	Florida	60,000	Lee Trevino (6)	Alternate event
May 2	Greater New Orleans Open Invitational	Louisiana	125,000	Frank Beard (11)
May 9	Byron Nelson Golf Classic	Texas	125,000	Jack Nicklaus (36)
May 16	Houston Champions International	Texas	125,000	Hubert Green (1)
May 16	East Ridge Classic	Louisiana	25,000	Wilf Homenuik (n/a)	Second Tour
May 23	Colonial National Invitation	Texas	125,000	Gene Littler (24)	Invitational
May 23	Maumelle Open	Arkansas	25,000	Tom Ulozas (n/a)	Second Tour
May 30	Danny Thomas Memphis Classic	Tennessee	175,000	Lee Trevino (7)
Jun 6	Atlanta Classic	Georgia	125,000	Gardner Dickinson (7)
Jun 13	Kemper Open	North Carolina	150,000	Tom Weiskopf (3)
Jun 13	Kemper–Asheville Open Invitational	North Carolina	25,000	Charles Owens (n/a)	Second Tour
Jun 21	U.S. Open	Pennsylvania	190,000	Lee Trevino (8)	Major championship
Jun 27	Cleveland Open	Ohio	150,000	Bobby Mitchell (1)
Jul 4	Canadian Open	Canada	150,000	Lee Trevino (9)
Jul 10	The Open Championship	England	£45,000	Lee Trevino (10)	Major championship
Jul 11	Greater Milwaukee Open	Wisconsin	125,000	Dave Eichelberger (1)
Jul 18	Western Open	Illinois	150,000	Bruce Crampton (9)
Jul 25	Westchester Classic	New York	250,000	Arnold Palmer (60)
Aug 2	National Team Championship	Pennsylvania	200,000	Jack Nicklaus (37) and Arnold Palmer (61)	Team event
Aug 8	American Golf Classic	Ohio	150,000	Jerry Heard (1)
Aug 15	Massachusetts Classic	Massachusetts	165,000	Dave Stockton (5)
Aug 22	IVB-Philadelphia Golf Classic	Pennsylvania	150,000	Tom Weiskopf (4)
Aug 29	Liggett & Myers Open Match Play Championship	North Carolina	175,000	DeWitt Weaver (1)	New tournament Limited-field event
Sep 6	Greater Hartford Open Invitational	Connecticut	110,000	George Archer (8)
Sep 12	Southern Open Invitational	Georgia	100,000	Johnny Miller (1)
Sep 19	Quad Cities Open Invitational	Iowa	25,000	Deane Beman (n/a)	New tournament Second Tour
Sep 26	Robinson Open Golf Classic	Illinois	100,000	Labron Harris Jr. (1)
Oct 24	Kaiser International Open Invitational	California	150,000	Billy Casper (48)
Oct 31	Sahara Invitational	Nevada	135,000	Lee Trevino (11)
Nov 21	Azalea Open Invitational	North Carolina	35,000	George Johnson (n/a)	Second Tour
Nov 27	Sea Pines Open Invitational	South Carolina	30,000	Charlie Sifford (n/a)	Second Tour
Nov 28	Sea Pines Heritage Classic	South Carolina	110,000	Hale Irwin (1)	Invitational
Dec 6	Walt Disney World Open Invitational	Florida	150,000	Jack Nicklaus (38)	New tournament
Dec 12	Bahamas National Open	Bahamas	130,000	Bob Goalby (11)

Unofficial events

The following events were sanctioned by the PGA Tour, but did not carry official money, nor were wins official.

Date	Tournament	Location	Purse ($)	Winner(s)	Notes
Sep 18	Ryder Cup	Missouri	n/a	Team USA	Team event
Nov 14	World Cup	Florida	6,300	Jack Nicklaus and Lee Trevino	Team event
	World Cup Individual Trophy			Jack Nicklaus

Money list

The money list was based on prize money won during the season, calculated in U.S. dollars.

Position	Player	Prize money ($)
1	Jack Nicklaus	244,491
2	Lee Trevino	231,202
3	Arnold Palmer	209,604
4	George Archer	147,769
5	Gary Player	120,917
6	Miller Barber	117,359
7	Jerry Heard	112,389
8	Frank Beard	112,338
9	Dave Eichelberger	108,312
10	Billy Casper	107,276

Awards

Award	Winner	Ref.
PGA Player of the Year	Lee Trevino
Scoring leader (Vardon Trophy)	Lee Trevino

Notes

1. The number in parentheses after each winner's name is the number of PGA Tour events they had won up to and including that tournament. This information is only shown for PGA Tour members.
2. ^ Official money; unofficial win.
3. Unofficial money event at the time, but retrospectively counted as an official win.

References

1. "Dave Hill carries squabble to court". Times Daily. Florence, Alabama. May 29, 1971. p. 2 (3 in paper). Retrieved November 8, 2023 – via Google News Archive.
2. "Hill disqualified". Star-News. Wilmington, North Carolina. May 22, 1971. p. 10 (18 in paper). Retrieved November 8, 2023 – via Google News Archive.
3. "Hill pays fine, in Memphis field". Star-News. Wilmington, North Carolina. May 27, 1971. p. 20 (3-D in paper). Retrieved November 8, 2023 – via Google News Archive.
4. "Dave Hill Files $1 Million Damage Suit". Daytona Beach Morning Journal. Daytona Beach, Florida. May 29, 1971. p. 10 (17 in paper). Retrieved November 8, 2023 – via Google News Archive.
5. "Hill Draws Year Probation". The Portsmouth Times. Portsmouth, Ohio. June 3, 1971. p. 10 (19 in paper). Retrieved November 8, 2023 – via Google News Archive.
6. "1972 PGA Tour Media Guide" (PDF). PGA Tour. Retrieved November 8, 2023.
7. "Nicklaus Tops Golf $$ Record". Lincoln Journal Star. Lincoln, Nebraska. December 17, 1971. p. 27 (28 in paper). Retrieved November 8, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
8. "Trevino PGA Player Of The Year". Intelligencer Journal. Lancaster, Pennsylvania. November 13, 1971. p. 16. Retrieved November 8, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
9. Morin, Flip (December 31, 1974). "Trevino To Be Honored By Texas Enshrinement". El Paso Times. El Paso, Texas. p. 9. Retrieved November 8, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.

External links

• Official website

• PGA Tour seasons
• 1971 in golf
• 1971 in American sports