1973 PGA Championship

The 1973 PGA Championship was the 55th PGA Championship, played August 9–12 at Canterbury Golf Club in Beachwood, Ohio, a suburb east of Cleveland. Ohio native Jack Nicklaus won the third of his five PGA Championships, four strokes ahead of runner-up Bruce Crampton.^[2]

1973 PGA Championship

Tournament information
Dates	August 9–12, 1973
Location	Beachwood, Ohio
Course(s)	Canterbury Golf Club
Organized by	PGA of America
Tour(s)	PGA Tour
Statistics
Par	71
Length	6,852 yards (6,265 m)
Field	148 players, 74 after cut[1]
Cut	149 (+7)
Prize fund	$225,000
Winner's share	$45,000
Champion
Jack Nicklaus
277 (−7)
← 1972 1974 →

Canterbury
Golf Club

Location in the United States

Canterbury
Golf Club

Location in Ohio

It was the 12th of Nicklaus' 18 major titles as a professional.^[3] At the time, the holder of the most major titles was the late Bobby Jones, with 13. As a lifelong amateur, his majors were the Open and amateur championships in the U.S. and Britain. Including his two U.S. Amateur titles, Nicklaus now had 14 majors, surpassing Jones.^[2] With his 12th professional major win Nicklaus also usurped Walter Hagen's record of 11 professional major victories.

Sam Snead, age 61, shot even-par each day and finished in the top ten for the second straight year; he tied for ninth after a tie for fourth in 1972 and would improve on those in 1974.

This was the third major at Canterbury, which hosted the U.S. Open twice in the 1940s, both decided in playoffs. Lawson Little was the champion in 1940 with a three-stroke win over Gene Sarazen. Following World War II in 1946, the first U.S. Open in five years was played at the course. Lloyd Mangrum won in the second 18-hole playoff round, one stroke ahead of major winners Byron Nelson and Vic Ghezzi.

Round summaries

First round

Thursday, August 9, 1973

Place	Player	Score	To par
T1	Al Geiberger	67	−4
	Don Iverson
T3	Bob Dickson	69	−2
	Mike Hill
	Don Iverson
T6	Don Bies	70	−1
	Bob Brue
	Raymond Floyd
	Gibby Gilbert
	Tony Jacklin
	Tom Weiskopf

Source:^[4]

Second round

Friday, August 10, 1973

Place	Player	Score	To par
T1	Don Iverson	67-72=139	−3
	Mason Rudolph	69-70=139
T3	Gibby Gilbert	70-70=140	−2
	Jack Nicklaus	72-68=140
	Dan Sikes	72-68=140
T6	Tony Jacklin	70-70=141	−1
	Dave Stockton	72-69=141
	Tom Weiskopf	70-71=141
T9	Don Bies	70-72=142	E
	Bob Brue	70-72=142
	Jim Colbert	72-70=142
	Mike Hill	69-73=142
	Sam Snead	71-71=142
	Lanny Wadkins	73-69=142

Source:^[5]

Third round

Saturday, August 11, 1973

Place	Player	Score	To par
1	Jack Nicklaus	72-68-68=208	−5
T2	Don Iverson	67-72-70=209	−4
	Mason Rudolph	69-70-70=209
4	Dennis Lyons	73-70-67=210	−3
T5	Bruce Crampton	71-73-67=211	−2
	Jim Colbert	72-70-69=211
T7	Dan Sikes	72-68-72=212	−1
	Tom Weiskopf	70-71-71=212
T9	Don Bies	70-72-71=213	E
	Gibby Gilbert	70-70-73=213
	Sam Snead	71-71-71=213
	Lanny Wadkins	73-69-71=213

Source:^[6][7]

Final round

Sunday, August 12, 1973

Place	Player	Score	To par	Money ($)
1	Jack Nicklaus	72-68-68-69=277	−7	45,000
2	Bruce Crampton	71-73-67-70=281	−3	25,700
T3	Mason Rudolph	69-70-70-73=282	−2	11,909
	J. C. Snead	71-74-68-69=282
	Lanny Wadkins	73-69-71-69=282
T6	Don Iverson	67-72-70-74=283	−1	7,312
	Dan Sikes	72-68-72-71=283
	Tom Weiskopf	70-71-71-71=283
T9	Hale Irwin	76-72-68-68=284	E	5,625
	Sam Snead	71-71-71-71=284
	Kermit Zarley	76-71-68-69=284

Source:^[8][9]