The 1981 PGA Tour, titled as the 1981 TPA Tour, was the 66th season of the PGA Tour, the main professional golf tour in the United States. It was also the 13th season since separating from the PGA of America.
Changes for 1981 The tour changed its name to the TPA Tour in late August, for the "Tournament Players Association". After less than seven months, it reverted to the PGA Tour in mid-March 1982.
Schedule The following table lists official events during the 1981 season.
DateTournamentLocationPurse(US$)Winner(s)Notes Jan 11 Joe Garagiola-Tucson Open Arizona 300,000 Johnny Miller (20) Jan 18 Bob Hope Desert Classic California 250,000 Bruce Lietzke (6) Pro-Am Jan 25 Phoenix Open Arizona 300,000 David Graham (6) Feb 2 Bing Crosby National Pro-Am California 225,000 John Cook (1) Pro-Am Feb 8 Wickes-Andy Williams San Diego Open California 250,000 Bruce Lietzke (7) Feb 14 Hawaiian Open Hawaii 325,000 Hale Irwin (12) Feb 22 Glen Campbell-Los Angeles Open California 300,000 Johnny Miller (21) Mar 1 Bay Hill Classic Florida 300,000 Andy Bean (7) Mar 8 American Motors Inverrary Classic Florida 300,000 Tom Kite (3) Mar 15 Doral-Eastern Open Florida 250,000 Raymond Floyd (13) Mar 23 Tournament Players Championship Florida 400,000 Raymond Floyd (14) Special event Mar 29 Sea Pines Heritage South Carolina 300,000 Bill Rogers (2) Invitational Apr 5 Greater Greensboro Open North Carolina 300,000 Larry Nelson (4) Apr 12 Masters Tournament Georgia 365,000 Tom Watson (26) Major championship Apr 12 Magnolia Classic Mississippi 75,000 Tom Jones (n/a) Second Tour Apr 19 MONY Tournament of Champions California 300,000 Lee Trevino (28) Winners-only event Apr 19 Tallahassee Open Florida 100,000 Dave Eichelberger (4) Alternate event Apr 26 USF&G New Orleans Open Louisiana 350,000 Tom Watson (27) May 2 Michelob-Houston Open Texas 262,500 Ron Streck (2) May 10 Byron Nelson Golf Classic Texas 300,000 Bruce Lietzke (8) May 17 Colonial National Invitation Texas 300,000 Fuzzy Zoeller (3) Invitational May 24 Memorial Tournament Ohio 350,000 Keith Fergus (1) Invitational May 31 Kemper Open Maryland 400,000 Craig Stadler (3) Jun 7 Atlanta Classic Georgia 300,000 Tom Watson (28) Jun 14 Manufacturers Hanover Westchester Classic New York 400,000 Raymond Floyd (15) Jun 21 U.S. Open Pennsylvania 360,000 David Graham (7) Major championship Jun 28 Danny Thomas Memphis Classic Tennessee 300,000 Jerry Pate (6) Jul 5 Western Open Illinois 300,000 Ed Fiori (2) Jul 12 Greater Milwaukee Open Wisconsin 250,000 Jay Haas (2) Jul 19 The Open Championship England £200,000 Bill Rogers (3) Major championship Jul 19 Quad Cities Open Illinois 200,000 Dave Barr (1) Alternate event Jul 26 Anheuser-Busch Golf Classic Virginia 300,000 John Mahaffey (6) Aug 2 Canadian Open Canada 425,000 Peter Oosterhuis (1) Aug 9 PGA Championship Georgia 400,000 Larry Nelson (5) Major championship Aug 16 Sammy Davis Jr.-Greater Hartford Open Connecticut 300,000 Hubert Green (17) Aug 23 Buick Open Michigan 350,000 Hale Irwin (13) Aug 30 World Series of Golf Ohio 400,000 Bill Rogers (4) Limited-field event Sep 6 B.C. Open New York 275,000 Jay Haas (3) Sep 13 Pleasant Valley Jimmy Fund Classic Massachusetts 300,000 Jack Renner (2) Sep 20 LaJet Classic Texas 350,000 Tom Weiskopf (15) New tournament Sep 27 Hall of Fame North Carolina 250,000 Morris Hatalsky (1) Oct 1 Texas Open Texas 250,000 Bill Rogers (5) Oct 11 Southern Open Georgia 200,000 J. C. Snead (7) Oct 18 Pensacola Open Florida 200,000 Jerry Pate (7) Oct 25 Walt Disney World National Team Championship Florida 400,000 Vance Heafner (1) and Mike Holland (1) Team event
Unofficial events The following events were sanctioned by the PGA Tour, but did not carry official money, nor were wins official.
DateTournamentLocationPurse($)Winner(s)NotesSep 20Ryder CupEnglandn/a Team USATeam eventDec 6JCPenney Mixed Team ClassicFlorida550,000 Beth Daniel and Tom KiteTeam event
Money list The money list was based on prize money won during the season, calculated in U.S. dollars.
Position Player Prize money ($)1 Tom Kite 375,6992 Raymond Floyd 359,3603 Tom Watson 347,6604 Bruce Lietzke 343,4465 Bill Rogers 315,4116 Jerry Pate 280,6277 Hale Irwin 276,4998 Craig Stadler 218,8299 Curtis Strange 201,51310 Larry Nelson 193,342
Awards AwardWinner PGA Player of the Year Bill Rogers Rookie of the Year Mark O'Meara Scoring leader (PGA Tour – Byron Nelson Award) Tom Kite Scoring leader (PGA – Vardon Trophy) Tom Kite
See also 1981 Senior PGA Tour
Notes
References
External links