Golf tournament1957 PGA ChampionshipTournament informationDatesJuly 17–21, 1957LocationDayton, OhioCourseMiami Valley Golf ClubOrganized byPGA of AmericaTourPGA TourFormatMatch play - 7 roundsStatisticsPar71Length6,773 yards (6,193 m)[1]Field128 players (all match play)Prize fund$42,100[2]Winner's share$8,000Champion Lionel Hebertdef. Dow Finsterwald, 2 and 1[1]← 19561958 → Dayton class=notpageimage| Location in the United States Miami Valley Golf Clubclass=notpageimage| Location in Ohio
The 1957 PGA Championship was the 39th PGA Championship, held July 17–21 at Miami Valley Golf Club in Dayton, Ohio. In the last PGA Championship played under the match play format, Lionel Hebert won 2 and 1 over Dow Finsterwald,[1][3][4] who won the following year, the first as a 72-hole stroke play event.
Defending champion Jack Burke Jr. lost in the second round to Milon Marusic, 2 and 1.[5]
At the time, it was not yet known that this was the last at match play,[4] the decision to switch to stroke play was announced during the November meetings.[6][7]
The Open Championship was held two weeks earlier in Scotland at St Andrews; neither Hebert nor Finsterwald played in 1957 (or ever).
Format[edit]The match play format at the PGA Championship in 1957 called for nine rounds (162 holes) in five days. As in 1956, the two-day stroke play qualifying segment (36 holes) was eliminated; 128 players were entered in the single-elimination bracket.[8] The PGA Championship had concluded on Tuesday since 1947; this year's schedule was modified for a Sunday final, with match play beginning on Wednesday. The first five rounds were 18-hole matches contested over the first three days, which reduced the field to four players for the weekend. The semifinals and finals were 36-hole matches played on the final two days, Saturday and Sunday.[2]
Wednesday – first round, 18 holes Thursday – second and third rounds, 18 holes each Friday – fourth round and quarterfinals, 18 holes each Saturday – semifinals – 36 holes Sunday – final – 36 holesConsolation matches at 18 holes were held on the weekend to determine third to eighth places.[9][10]
Final results[edit]Sunday, July 21, 1957
Place Player Money ($) 1 Lionel Hebert 8,000 2 Dow Finsterwald 5,000 3 Walter Burkemo 3,500 4 Don Whitt 3,000 5 Dick Mayer 2,500 6 Claude Harmon 2,000 7 Jay Hebert 1,500 8 Charles Sheppard 1,000 Final eight bracket[edit]In the 18-hole quarterfinals Friday, a clash of the Hebert brothers was oided when Walter Burkemo defeated Jay Hebert 2&1, while Lionel Hebert defeated Claude Harmon by the same score. On the other side of the bracket, Dow Finsterwald defeated Charles Sheppard, 2 up, and Don Whitt defeated Dick Mayer, 2&1.[11] In the 36-hole semifinals on Saturday, Finsterwald defeated Whitt, 2 up, and Hebert prevailed over Burkemo, 3&1.[12]
The final match on Sunday was all-square after the first 18 holes in the morning. Hebert won the first three holes in the afternoon with birdies, but the match was back to all square after thirty holes. Hebert birdied the next three and Finsterwald matched two of them, but then bogeyed the 34th and was two down with two to play; the par-3 35th was halved with pars to end the match. Hebert earned $8,000 for the victory and Finsterwald received $5,000 as runner-up.[1] Burkemo, the 1953 champion, defeated Whitt 3&1 to claim third place and $3,500.[10] Finsterwald captured the title the following year in the new stroke play format; Hebert's older brother Jay won in 1960.
Quarter-finalsJuly 19 Semi-finalsJuly 20 FinalsJuly 21 Lionel Hebert 2&1 Claude Harmon Lionel Hebert 3&1 Walter Burkemo Walter Burkemo 2&1 Jay Hebert Lionel Hebert 2&1 Dow Finsterwald Dow Finsterwald 2up Charles Sheppard Dow Finsterwald 2up Third place Don Whitt Don Whitt 2&1 Walter Burkemo 3&1 Dick Mayer Don Whitt Consolation brackets[edit] Consolation matchJuly 20 Fifth placeJuly 21 Claude Harmon 20h Jay Hebert Claude Harmon Dick Mayer w/o Charles Sheppard Dick Mayer 2&1 Seventh place Jay Hebert 5&3 Charles Sheppard Final match scorecards[edit]Morning
Hole 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 Par 5 4 5 4 3 4 4 3 4 4 4 4 3 4 5 4 3 4 Hebert 4 4 6 4 3 4 4 3 3 3 4 4 3 4 5 4 3 4 Finsterwald 4 4 4 4 3 4 4 4 4 3 4 3 3 4 5 3 3 4 Leader – – F1 F1 F1 F1 F1 – H1 H1 H1 H1 H1 H1 H1 – – –Afternoon
Hole 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 Par 5 4 5 4 3 4 4 3 4 4 4 4 3 4 5 4 3 4 Hebert 4 3 4 4 4 4 4 3 4 4 4 5 2 3 4 4 3 Finsterwald 5 4 5 3 3 4 4 3 4 4 4 4 3 3 4 5 3 Leader H1 H2 H3 H2 H1 H1 H1 H1 H1 H1 H1 – H1 H1 H1 H2 H2Source:[1][3]
References[edit] ^ a b c d e "Hebert beats Finsterwald in PGA final, 2-1". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Associated Press. July 22, 1957. p. 21. ^ a b "Tournament Info for: 1957 PGA Championship". PGA.com. Archived from the original on October 23, 2006. Retrieved December 29, 2012. ^ a b Bartlett, Charles (July 22, 1957). "Hebert wins pro golf title, 2 and 1". Chicago Daily Tribune. p. 1, sec. 3. ^ a b Wind, Herbert Warren (August 5, 1957). "The PGA comes back". Sports Illustrated. p. 54. ^ Bartlett, Charles (July 19, 1957). "Burke eliminated from P.G.A." Chicago Daily Tribune. p. 3, sec. 4. ^ "Medal play in pro golf slated". Time-News. Hendersonville, North Carolina. United Press. November 15, 1957. p. 8. ^ "P.G.A. swings from match to medal play". Chicago Daily Tribune. November 15, 1957. p. 1, part 4. ^ Bartlett, Charles (July 17, 1957). "128 open P.G.A. today". Chicago Daily Tribune. p. 6, sec. 3. ^ "Lionel Hebert succeeds in his quest to 'make a name,' wins PGA crown". Milwaukee Journal. United Press. July 22, 1957. pp. Part 2–9, 12. ^ a b "Burkemo wins third-place cash". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Associated Press. July 22, 1957. p. 21. ^ "He nots meet the Hes as match into semi-finals". Fort Scott Tribune. Kansas. July 20, 1957. p. 6. ^ "Finsterwald, Hebert seek PGA crown". Milwaukee Journal. Associated Press. July 21, 1957. pp. Part 3–1, 5. External links[edit] PGA Media Guide 2012 PGA.com – 1957 PGA Championship vte1957 men's major golf championships The Masters U.S. Open The Open Championship PGA Championship vtePGA Championships 1916 1917 1918 1919 1920 1921 1922 1923 1924 1925 1926 1927 1928 1929 1930 1931 1932 1933 1934 1935 1936 1937 1938 1939 1940 1941 1942 1943 1944 1945 1946 1947 1948 1949 1950 1951 1952 1953 1954 1955 1956 1957 1958 1959 1960 1961 1962 1963 1964 1965 1966 1967 1968 1969 1970 1971 1972 1973 1974 1975 1976 1977 1978 1979 1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 2024 202539°47′31″N 84°14′31″W / 39.792°N 84.242°W / 39.792; -84.242