Dow Henry Finsterwald, Sr. (September 6, 1929 – November 4, 2022) was an American professional golfer. He won twelve PGA Tour titles between 1955 and 1963 including the 1958 PGA Championship. He also played on four Ryder Cup teams and served as non-playing captain for the 1977 U.S. Ryder Cup team.
Early life and amateur career Finsterwald was born and raised in Athens, Ohio. He attended Ohio University in his hometown, where he played on the golf team and graduated in the Class of 1952. He was a member of Beta Theta Pi Fraternity while at OU.
Professional career Finsterwald turned professional in 1951 and won 11 times on the PGA Tour during his career. He finished fifth or better more than 50 times in his career. He played on four Ryder Cup Teams (1957, 1959, 1961, 1963) and was the non-playing captain of the 1977 team. He won the Vardon Trophy in 1957, which is awarded to the tour professional with the lowest scoring average. In 1958, he was honored as PGA Player of the Year. Finsterwald finished in the money in 72 consecutive tournaments – second only to Byron Nelson's 113 consecutive cuts. This record stood for many years until eclipsed by Jack Nicklaus, Hale Irwin and Tiger Woods; however, he is still fifth on the list as of 2019.
The 1958 PGA Championship was held at Llanerch Country Club in Havertown, Pennsylvania. This was the first PGA Championship held after the format was switched from match play to stroke play. Finsterwald finished the tournament with a two-stroke victory over Billy Casper. Four years later, Finsterwald and Gary Player lost the 1962 Masters in a playoff to Arnold Palmer.
Finsterwald was once involved in litigation in which a plaintiff claimed she lost the sight in her right eye as a result of an errant tee shot he hit at the 18th hole at the 1973 Western Open. A jury found Finsterwald not liable; however, Midlothian (Illinois) Country Club's insurers had to pay the woman about $450,000.
Finsterwald served as director of golf at The Broadmoor in Colorado Springs, Colorado for 28 years. He simultaneously served as PGA of America vice-president from 1976–1978; and on the USGA Rules of Golf committee from 1979-1981. He was also the Pro Emeritus of the Pikewood National Golf Club, based in Morgantown, West Virginia.
Personal life Finsterwald lived in Orlando, Florida during the winter and Colorado Springs during the summer.
Awards and honors
In 1969, he was inducted into the Ohio University Athletics Hall of Fame. At the 2007 Memorial Tournament in Dublin, Ohio, Finsterwald was honored by fellow Ohio native Jack Nicklaus. In 2008, he was inducted into the Colorado Sports Hall of Fame.
Professional wins (13) PGA Tour wins (12) Legend Major championships (1) Other PGA Tour (10) No.DateTournamentWinning scoreMargin ofvictoryRunner(s)-up1 May 29, 1955 Fort Wayne Invitational −19 (65-66-71-67=269) 3 strokes Doug Ford2 Jul 3, 1955 British Columbia Open −18 (67-68-65-70270) 1 stroke Bud Holscher3 May 13, 1956 Carling Open Invitational −14 (65-71-69-69=274) 3 strokes Jack Burke Jr., Billy Casper, Billy Maxwell4 Feb 11, 1957 Tucson Open Invitational −11 (68-67-66-68=269) Playoff Don Whitt5 Jul 20, 1958 PGA Championship −4 (67-72-70-67=276) 2 strokes Billy Casper6 Sep 8, 1958 Utah Open −17 (69-65-67-66=267) 1 stroke Fred Hawkins, Arnold Palmer7 Apr 12, 1959 Greater Greensboro Open −6 (68-68-65-77=278) 2 strokes Art Wall Jr.8 Aug 9, 1959 Carling Open Invitational (2) −8 (74-68-66-68=276) 1 stroke Gene Littler, Mike Souchak9 Sep 7, 1959 Kansas City Open Invitational −13 (68-69-69-69=275) Playoff Don Fairfield10 Jan 11, 1960 Los Angeles Open −4 (70-68-71-71=280) 3 strokes Bill Collins, Jay Hebert, Dave Ragan11 Apr 24, 1960 Greater New Orleans Open Invitational −18 (69-66-66-69=270) 6 strokes Al Besselink12 Jun 3, 1963 500 Festival Open Invitation −16 (68-68-64-68=268) 2 strokes Tommy Aaron, Julius Boros, Tony Lema, Bobby Nichols
PGA Tour playoff record (2–4) No.YearTournamentOpponent(s)Result11956Canadian Open Doug SandersLost to par on first extra hole21957Tucson Open Invitational Don WhittWon 18-hole playoff;Finsterwald: −5 (65),Whitt: −1 (69)31958Rubber City Open Invitational Art Wall Jr.Lost to birdie on second extra hole41959Buick Open Invitational Art Wall Jr.Lost 18-hole playoff;Wall: −1 (71),Finsterwald: +1 (73)51959Kansas City Open Invitational Don FairfieldWon with birdie on first extra hole61962Masters Tournament Arnold Palmer, Gary PlayerPalmer won 18-hole playoff;Palmer: −4 (68),Player: −1 (71),Finsterwald: +5 (77)
Source:
Other wins (1) This list may be incomplete 1954 Carolinas Open
Major championships
Wins (1) YearChampionship54 holesWinning scoreMarginRunner-up 1958 PGA Championship 2 shot deficit −4 (67-72-70-67=276) 2 strokes Billy Casper
Results timeline Tournament1950195119521953195419551956195719581959Masters TournamentT50T46T24T7T17T18U.S. OpenCUTCUTT28T13T11PGA Championship214
Tournament1960196119621963196419651966196719681969Masters Tournament3CUT3T5T9T21T57CUTU.S. OpenT3T6T128CUTCUTT65PGA ChampionshipT15T41T11T3CUTT63T12T60T48T76
Tournament1970197119721973197419751976197719781979Masters TournamentU.S. OpenCUTCUTPGA ChampionshipCUTCUTT58CUTCUTT7070CUTCUT
Tournament19801981198219831984Masters TournamentU.S. OpenCUTPGA ChampionshipCUTCUT Note: Finsterwald never played in The Open Championship.
CUT = missed the halfway cut "T" indicates a tie for a place.
Summary Tournament Wins 2nd 3rd Top-5 Top-10 Top-25 Events Cuts madeMasters Tournament 0 0 2 3 5 9 14 12U.S. Open 0 0 1 1 3 6 15 8The Open Championship 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0PGA Championship 1 1 1 4 4 7 24 15Totals 1 1 4 8 12 22 53 35 Most consecutive cuts made – 13 (1955 U.S. Open – 1960 PGA) Longest streak of top-10s – 3 (twice)
U.S. national team appearances Professional Ryder Cup: 1957, 1959 (winners), 1961 (winners), 1963 (winners), 1977 (non-playing captain, winners)
See also List of men's major championships winning golfers
References
External links