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Amazing Amateurs - Charlie Coe
Missed putt halts run for unprecedented win
Posted: Sunday April 08, 2001 4:14 PM
Updated: Tuesday March 26, 2002 6:19 PM
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Charlie Coe, who narrowly missed a playoff with Gary Player and Arnold Palmer for the 1961 title, played a record 67 rounds as an amateur. Special/The Augusta Chronicle |
By Chris Gay
The Augusta Chronicle
The rain-delayed 1961 Masters Tournament is remembered for Arnold Palmer's double bogey on the 72nd hole, which gave Gary Player his first win at Augusta.
But Charlie Coe nearly became the first amateur to win the event. Coe fired a final-round 69 and missed a birdie putt on No. 18 that would have forced a playoff with Player. His 7-under-par 281 stands as the best 72-hole total by an amateur.
``I don't know about (winning the tournament),'' the 77-year-old Coe said from his home in Oklahoma City, Okla. ``I know I was in contention, though.''
Player led Palmer by four shots and Coe by five after 54 holes. Coe, an Augusta National Golf Club member, fired rounds of 72-71-69 but was over par Sunday until rain halted play and postponed the final round until Monday.
With new life, Coe carded a 1-under-par 35, trailing Player by six and Palmer by four with nine holes remaining. After a bogey on No. 11, Coe birdied Nos. 13 and 14. Then on the par-5 15th, Coe had a 25-foot putt for eagle that would have tied him with Player and left him one shot behind Palmer. His putt appeared to have the line but broke left at the hole, leaving him a tap-in birdie.
``I knew if I would have made it, I'd have a chance to do some good in the tournament. But I missed it, of course,'' Coe said.
Coe's putter remained in the icebox as he missed a 20-foot birdie putt on the par-3 16th. On Nos. 17 and 18, he missed two more birdie opportunities.
``I played the last hole and had a chance to tie Player,'' Coe said.
With Player in the clubhouse, Palmer needed to par the par-4 18th to become the first Masters champion to defend his title. But Palmer missed a 15-foot bogey putt that would've forced a playoff.
``He was a very nice man to play with,'' Coe said of his final-round pairing with Palmer.
Coe, who won the U.S. Amateur in 1949 and '58 and played in 19 Masters Tournaments from 1949-71, was low amateur six times. He holds assorted amateur records at the Masters, including most cuts (eight), most eagles (six) and most rounds played (67).
``I've always enjoyed Augusta National,'' Coe said of his favorite Masters memory. ``Just let it go at that.''
Despite a distinguished amateur career, Coe never turned professional. He retired from the oil business and recently stopped playing golf.
In 1998, the University of Oklahoma opened the Charlie Coe Golf Learning Center. The 7,000-square-foot facility houses men's and women's locker rooms, multiple putting and chipping greens and a driving range.
``I thought it was quite an honor,'' he said.
| Coe at the Masters |
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| Year |
Place |
Score |
| 1949 |
tie 16th |
77-72-72-74-295 |
| 1950 |
tie 32nd |
73-79-78-74-304 |
| 1951 |
tie 12th |
76-71-73-73-293 |
| 1952 |
tie 46th |
80-76-81-72-309 |
| 1953 |
tie 16th |
75-74-72-71-292 |
| 1954 |
20th |
76-75-73-74-298 |
| 1955 |
tie 32nd |
74-77-76-78-305 |
| 1957 |
disqualified |
86 |
| 1958 |
tie 23rd |
73-76-69-77-295 |
| 1959 |
sixth |
74-74-67-73-288 |
| 1960 |
tie 39th |
72-74-78-77-301 |
| 1961 |
tie second |
72-71-69-69-281 |
| 1962 |
tie ninth |
72-74-71-71-288 |
| 1963 |
tie 37th |
72-75-79-75-301 |
| 1964 |
missed cut |
80-72-152 |
| 1965 |
missed cut |
73-76-149 |
| 1966 |
tie 50th |
71-77-85-72-305 |
| 1970 |
tie 23rd |
74-71-72-75-292 |
| 1971 |
missed cut |
74-78-152 |
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