|
Masters Playoffs - 1970s
Casper, Zoeller earn places in Masters history
Posted: Thursday April 05, 2001 5:10 PM
Updated: Tuesday March 26, 2002 6:06 PM
| |
Fuzzy Zoeller accepts congratulations from Gary Player after winning the 1979 Masters in the tournament's first sudden-death playoff. File/The Augusta Chronicle |
By John Boyette
The Augusta Chronicle
The turbulent 1970s saw changes aplenty at Augusta National Golf Club, home of the Masters Tournament. The decade began and ended with playoffs that were markedly different and showed just how much the tournament had changed at a venue steeped in tradition.
Bob Jones and Clifford Roberts, the two men who had built the Masters into one of the game's elite events, both passed away. A new chairman, Bill Lane, took over after Roberts' death. And the demand for tickets finally grew to the extent that the club closed its patron badge list and established a waiting list.
One of the more significant changes was the decision, announced in 1976, to switch to a sudden-death playoff format. The television-friendly setup came into play three years later in one of the most exciting tournaments in Masters history.
Three men - one a Masters champion, one a Masters rookie and one a journeyman pro - battled it out that memorable Sunday afternoon.
Ed Sneed, the veteran who had never won a major, appeared to have the tournament well in hand. Three straight rounds in the 60s had put him five strokes clear of the field through 54 holes.
But the back-nine pressure at Augusta National caught up with Sneed, who bogeyed the final three holes to force a playoff with Tom Watson and Fuzzy Zoeller.
Watson, the 1977 Masters champ, was the favorite. Zoeller was making his first Masters appearance.
Billy Casper won the 1970 Masters in a playoff against Gene Littler. File/The Augusta Chronicle |
|
The format called for the players to start on the 10th hole and continue until there was an outright winner. All three had good birdie opportunities at the long par-4, but all missed, and they went to the 11th hole, the start of Amen Corner.
Sneed blew his approach into the back bunker but almost holed out and had a tap-in left for par. Watson's medium-range birdie putt missed, setting the stage for Zoeller to make history as the first player since Gene Sarazen to win the tournament in his inaugural appearance. Zoeller's short birdie putt was true, and the man from New Albany, Ind., flung his putter into the air after becoming Masters champion.
``I don't think I'll notice it until tomorrow,'' Zoeller said, as quoted in a Chronicle story by Robert Eubanks. ``I'm on Cloud Nine, and I guess I'll be up there for three or four weeks.''
The decade started with the tournament's sixth playoff, albeit one with far less drama. Billy Casper Jr. and Gene Littler finished the 1970 Masters tied at 9-under 279.
Both had played steady golf, with Casper firing rounds of 72, 68, 68 and 71. Littler, nicknamed The Machine for his consistent play, opened with a 69 and finished with three rounds of 70.
In the Monday playoff, though, it was Casper who had precision and consistency. Long known as one of the game's best putters, Casper one-putted nine times in firing a 3-under 69. Littler finished with a 2-over 74, making it the most lopsided 18-hole playoff loss in tournament history.
Casper opened up a four-shot advantage after just four holes. The lead increased to seven through 11 holes, but Littler made it interesting down the stretch with birdies at Nos. 13 and 15. Bogeys by Casper on Nos. 12 and 14 had narrowed the deficit to three, but he put the tournament out of reach with birdies on two of the final three holes.
| 1970 Masters |
|---|
| Player |
Score |
Earnings |
| *Billy Casper Jr. |
72-68-68-71-279 |
$25,000 |
| Gene Littler |
69-70-70-70-279 |
$17,500 |
| Gary Player |
74-68-68-70-280 |
$14,000 |
| Bert Yancey |
69-70-72-70-281 |
$10,000 |
| Tommy Aaron |
68-74-69-72-283 |
$6,667 |
| Dave Hill |
73-70-70-70-283 |
$6,667 |
| Dave Stockton |
72-72-69-70-283 |
$6,667 |
| Jack Nicklaus |
71-75-69-69-284 |
$4,500 |
| Frank Beard |
71-76-68-70-285 |
$4,000 |
| Bob Lunn |
70-70-75-72-287 |
$3,500 |
| Chi Chi Rodriguez |
70-76-73-68-287 |
$3,500 |
|
* Casper won 18-hole playoff 69-74
|
| |
| 1979 Masters |
|---|
| Player |
Score |
Earnings |
| *Fuzzy Zoeller |
70-71-69-70-280 |
$50,000 |
| Ed Sneed |
68-67-69-76-280 |
$30,000 |
| Tom Watson |
68-71-70-71-280 |
$30,000 |
| Jack Nicklaus |
69-71-72-69-281 |
$15,000 |
| Tom Kite |
71-72-68-72-283 |
$13,000 |
| Bruce Lietzke |
67-75-68-74-284 |
$11,500 |
| Craig Stadler |
69-66-74-76-285 |
$9,000 |
| Leonard Thompson |
68-70-73-74-285 |
$9,000 |
| Lanny Wadkins |
73-69-70-73-285 |
$9,000 |
| Hubert Green |
74-69-72-71-286 |
$6,500 |
| Gene Littler |
74-71-69-72-286 |
$6,500 |
|
* Zoeller won on the second hole (No. 11) of sudden death with a birdie.
|
| Zoeller |
4-3 |
| Sneed |
4-4 |
| Watson |
4-4 |
| |
| Related information |
| Multimedia |
 Visit Video Plus for the latest audio and video
|
| Search our site |
Watch CNN/SI 24 hours a day |
|
|
Sports Illustrated and CNN have combined to form a 24 hour sports news and information channel. To receive CNN/SI at your home call your cable operator or DirecTV. |
|
