The 1936 U.S. Open was the 40th U.S. Open, held June 4–6 at Baltusrol Golf Club in Springfield, New Jersey, west of New York City.

1936 U.S. Open
Tournament information
DatesJune 4–6, 1936
LocationSpringfield, New Jersey
Course(s)Baltusrol Golf Club
Upper Course[1]
Organized byUSGA
Tour(s)PGA Tour
FormatStroke play − 72 holes
Statistics
Par72[2]
Length6,866 yards (6,278 m)[2]
Field164 players, 76 after cut
Cut151 (+7)
Prize fund$5,000[3]
Winner's share$1,000
Champion
United States Tony Manero
282 (−6)
← 1935
1937 →
Baltusrol GC  is located in the United States
Baltusrol GC 
Baltusrol GC 
Baltusrol GC  is located in New Jersey
Baltusrol GC 
Baltusrol GC 
Baltusrol GC is located in Union County, New Jersey
Baltusrol GC
Baltusrol GC

Tony Manero, a relatively unknown pro from New York playing out of North Carolina, surpassed third round leader Harry Cooper in the final round to claim his only major title. The purse was $5,000 and the winner's share was $1,000.[3] The Upper Course was used for this championship;[1] the Lower Course has been used for all subsequent majors at Baltusrol.

Entering the final round, Cooper led Manero by four strokes. Manero's final round 67 (−5) was a course record and gave him a 72-hole total of 282 (−6), two strokes ahead of Cooper, who shot 73 (+1) for 284. Manero's total of 282 set a new U.S. Open tournament record by four shots; the previous record of 286 was set in 1916.[4]

Manero was fortunate to even be in the championship, because during sectional qualifying, he needed a chip-in on his final hole just to qualify. His victory was not without controversy. During the final round he was paired with Gene Sarazen, whose tournament scoring record he would break. Sarazen apparently requested the pairing as he believed he could help the notoriously high-strung Manero, a close friend, stay calm. Afterwards a complaint was filed with the USGA alleging that Sarazen was actually giving advice to Manero, a violation of the rules. After a meeting, the USGA ruled that there was no evidence of any wrongdoing, and Manero was allowed to keep the championship.

In contrast to the previous year, scoring conditions at the Open were ideal throughout the week. For the tournament, 38 players broke par and the scoring average was 76.04, both numbers setting U.S. Open records. Chuck Kocsis finished as low amateur in a tie for 14th place.

A record field of 1,278 entered the qualifying for this U.S. Open, up from 1,177 in 1935.[5]

Course

edit

Upper Course

Hole 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 Out 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 In Total
Yards 471 423 186 390 385 439 216 538 346 3,394 158 602 340 365 40 140 439 563 465 3,472 6,866
Par 5 4 3 4 4 4 3 5 4 36 3 5 4 4 4 3 4 5 4 36 72

Source:[1][2]

  • Note: The Lower Course has been used for all subsequent majors at Baltusrol.

Lengths of the courses for previous major championships at Baltusrol:

  • 6,212 yards (5,680 m), par 74 - 1915 U.S. Open (Old Course)   The Old Course was plowed under in 1918
  • 6,003 yards (5,489 m), par      - 1903 U.S. Open (Old Course)

Round summaries

edit

First round

edit

Thursday, June 4, 1936

Place Player Score To Par
T1   Clarence Clark 69 −3
  Ray Mangrum
  Paul Runyan
T4   Vic Ghezzi 70 −2
  Tom Kerrigan
  Leslie Madison
  Frank Moore
  Henry Picard
  Johnny Revolta
T10   Johnny Bulla 71 −1
  Harry Cooper
  Ky Laffoon
  Ted Longworth
  Craig Wood

Source:[6]

Second round

edit

Friday, June 5, 1936

Place Player Score To Par
T1   Vic Ghezzi 70-70=140 −4
  Ray Mangrum 69-71=140
T3   Harry Cooper 71-70=141 −3
  Henry Picard 70-71=141
  Johnny Revolta 70-71=141
  Denny Shute 72-69=141
7   Tony Manero 73-69=142 −2
T8   Ralph Guldahl 73-70=143 −1
  Chuck Kocsis (a) 72-71=143
T10   Clarence Clark 69-75=144 E
  Frank Moore 70-74=144
  Jack Munger (a) 74-70=144
  Paul Runyan 69-75=144

Source:[7]

Third round

edit

Saturday, June 6, 1936 (morning)

Place Player Score To Par
1   Harry Cooper 71-70-70=211 −5
2   Vic Ghezzi 70-70-73=213 −3
3   Denny Shute 72-69-73=214 −2
T4   Clarence Clark 69-75-71=215 −1
  Ky Laffoon 71-74-70=215
  Tony Manero 73-69-73=215
  Henry Picard 70-71-74=215
T8   Herman Barron 73-74-69=216 E
  Ralph Guldahl 73-70-73=216
  Chuck Kocsis (a) 72-71-73=216
  Ray Mangrum 69-71-76=216

Source:[3][8]

Final round

edit

Saturday, June 6, 1936 (afternoon)

Place Player Score To Par Money ($)
1   Tony Manero 73-69-73-67=282 −6 1,000
2   Harry Cooper 71-70-70-73=284 −4 750
3   Clarence Clark 69-75-71-72=287 −1 650
4   Macdonald Smith 73-73-72-70=288 E 550
T5   Wiffy Cox 74-74-69-72=289 +1 350
  Ky Laffoon 71-74-70-74=289
  Henry Picard 70-71-74-74=289
T8   Ralph Guldahl 73-70-73-74=290 +2 137
  Paul Runyan 69-75-73-73=290
10   Denny Shute 72-69-73-77=291 +3 100

Source:[3][8]

References

edit
  1. ^ a b c "Parks eliminated in National Open". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Associated Press. June 6, 1936. p. 16.
  2. ^ a b c "Par and yardage for Baltusrol". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Associated Press. June 4, 1936. p. 17.
  3. ^ a b c d "Here's how the $5,000 U.S. Open prize was distributed". Chicago Sunday Tribune. Associated Press. June 7, 1936. p. 6, part 2.
  4. ^ Kirksey, George (June 7, 1936). "Manero's dizzy dash down the stretch unequaled". Miami News. United Press. p. 12.
  5. ^ "Record field of 1,278 plays in U.S. 'Open'". Milwaukee Journal. United Press. May 7, 1936. p. 2-sports.
  6. ^ "First round scores in National Open tourney". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. June 5, 1936. p. 19.
  7. ^ "National Open scores". Chicago Daily Tribune. June 6, 1936. p. 22.
  8. ^ a b "National Open scores". Chicago Sunday Tribune. June 7, 1936. p. 6, part 2.
edit

40°42′18″N 74°19′41″W / 40.705°N 74.328°W / 40.705; -74.328