The Portland Open Invitational was a professional golf tournament in the northwest United States on the PGA Tour, played in Portland, Oregon. Established by Robert A. Hudson with a $10,000 purse in 1944, it was played from 1944 to 1948 and again from 1959 to 1966. The event was hosted eight times at the Portland Golf Club, and four times at the Columbia Edgewater Country Club.Tradition finds new home, title sponsor First played as the Portland Open, the revived 1959 event played as the Portland Centennial Open Invitational, in honor of Oregon's centennial of statehood.
Sam Snead won the inaugural event in 1944, and Ben Hogan won in 1945 by fourteen strokes, and also won the 1946 PGA Championship, then a match play event, held at the Portland Golf Club. The club also hosted the Ryder Cup in 1947; the U.S. team was captained by Hogan and won 11–1. Hogan was a runner-up in 1948, a stroke back in an 18-hole playoff.
The tournament was dominated by three-time winners Billy Casper (1959–61) and Jack Nicklaus (1962, 1964–65). Nicklaus' $3,500 win during his rookie season in 1962 concluded three weeks of victories; he took the massive winner's share of $50,000 in the exhibition World Series of Golf in Ohio, and then won his second tour title at the Seattle Open Invitational, which paid $4,300. Both Casper and Nicklaus won at both courses.
Bert Yancey won the last edition in 1966 and took only 102 putts. It stood as the tour's 72-hole record for fewest putts for over a decade, until Bob Menne had only 99 at the Tournament Players Championship in 1977, but tied for 47th.
Tournament hosts Venue Years Portland Golf Club 1944, 1945, 1947, 1948,1959, 1960, 1964, 1965 Columbia Edgewater Country Club 1961, 1962, 1963, 1966
Winners YearWinnerScoreTo parMargin ofvictoryRunner(s)-upPurse(US$)Winner'sshare ($)Ref.Portland Open Invitational 1966 Bert Yancey 271 −17 3 strokes Billy Casper50,0006,600 1965 Jack Nicklaus (3) 273 −15 3 strokes Dave Marr50,0006,600 1964 Jack Nicklaus (2) 275 −13 3 strokes Ken Venturi40,0005,800 1963 George Knudson 272 −16 Playoff Mason Rudolph30,0004,300 1962 Jack Nicklaus 269 −19 1 stroke George Bayer25,0003,500 1961 Billy Casper (3) 273 −15 1 stroke Dave Hill25,0003,500 1960 Billy Casper (2) 266 −22 2 strokes Paul Harney27,5002,800Portland Centennial Open Invitational 1959 Billy Casper 269 −19 3 strokes Bob Duden Dave Ragan20,0002,800Portland Open Invitational1949–1958: No tournament 1948 Fred Haas 270 −18 Playoff Ben Hogan (2nd) Johnny Palmer (3rd) 15,0002,450 1947 Charles Congdon 270 −18 6 strokes Clayton Heafner Herman Keiser Johnny Palmer George Payton 10,0002,0001946: No tournament' 1945 Ben Hogan 261 −27 14 strokes Byron Nelson 14,3332,666 Portland Open 1944 Sam Snead 289 +1 2 strokes Mike Turnesa 16,0002,675
Playoffs 1948: 18-hole Monday playoff: Haas 70 (−2), Hogan 71 (−1), Palmer 75 (+3). 1963: Knudson chipped in for eagle on the first playoff hole, a par-5, for the win; Rudolph nearly matched it, but his bounced out.
See also Culture of Portland, Oregon WinCo Foods Portland Open, a current event on the Korn Ferry Tour Cambia Portland Classic, a current event on the LPGA Tour
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