1979 Tournament Players Championship
| Tournament information | |
|---|---|
| Dates | March 22–25, 1979 |
| Location | Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida 30°11′20″N 81°22′12″W / 30.189°N 81.370°W |
| Course(s) | Sawgrass Country Club, East-West course |
| Tour(s) | PGA Tour |
| Statistics | |
| Par | 72 |
| Length | 7,083 yards (6,477 m)[1] |
| Field | 143 players, 71 after cut |
| Cut | 147 (+3) |
| Prize fund | $440,000 |
| Winner's share | $72,000 |
| Champion | |
 Lanny Wadkins | |
| 283 (−5) | |
| Location map | |
  Sawgrass CC Location in the United States  Sawgrass CC Location in Florida | |
The 1979 Tournament Players Championship was a golf tournament in Florida on the PGA Tour, held March 22–25 at Sawgrass Country Club in Ponte Vedra Beach, southeast of Jacksonville. The sixth Tournament Players Championship, it was the third at Sawgrass and Lanny Wadkins won in the wind at 283 (−5), five strokes ahead of runner-up Tom Watson.[1][2][3][4]
The first two years at Sawgrass had resulted with both winners at 289 (+1), but Wadkins jumped out to a 36-hole score of 135 (−9).[5] Gusty winds and dry greens on the weekend caused high scores, but he held on with an even-par 72 in the final round for a comfortable win.[1][2][4]
Defending champion Jack Nicklaus finished seventeen strokes back, in a tie for 33rd place.
Venue
This was the third of five Tournament Players Championships held at Sawgrass Country Club; it moved to the nearby TPC at Sawgrass Stadium Course in 1982. The course length this year was reduced by 91 yards (83 m) to 7,083 yards (6,477 m).[1]
Past champions in the field
| Player | Country | Year(s) won | R1 | R2 | R3 | R4 | Total | To par | Finish |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jack Nicklaus |  United States |
1974, 1976, 1978 | 67 | 73 | 82 | 78 | 300 | +12 | T33 |
| Mark Hayes | United States |
1977 | 72 | 75 | 79 | 80 | 306 | +18 | T60 |
| Al Geiberger | United States |
1975 | 71 | 75 | 80 | 82 | 308 | +20 | T67 |
Round summaries
First round
Thursday, March 22, 1979
Source:[6]
Second round
Friday, March 23, 1979
| Place | Player | Country | Score | To par |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Lanny Wadkins | United States |
67-68=135 | −9 |
| 2 | George Burns | United States |
72-66=138 | −6 |
| T3 | Dan Halldorson |  Canada |
69-70=139 | −5 |
| Bill Kratzert | United States |
69-70=139 | ||
| Lee Trevino | United States |
70-69=139 | ||
| T6 | Ed Fiori | United States |
69-71=140 | −4 |
| Mark McCumber | United States |
70-70=140 | ||
| Jack Nicklaus | United States |
67-73=140 | ||
| T9 | Wayne Levi | United States |
69-72=141 | −3 |
| Andy North | United States |
67-74=141 | ||
| Dave Stockton | United States |
69-72=141 |
Source:[5]
Third round
Saturday, March 24, 1979
| Place | Player | Country | Score | To par |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Lanny Wadkins | United States |
67-68-76=211 | −5 |
| T2 | George Burns | United States |
72-66-76=214 | −2 |
| Bill Kratzert | United States |
69-70-75=214 | ||
| Jack Renner | United States |
73-70-71=214 | ||
| Lee Trevino | United States |
70-69-75=214 | ||
| 6 | Gary Koch | United States |
70-72-74=216 | E |
| T5 | Phil Hancock | United States |
69-73-75=217 | +1 |
| Andy North | United States |
67-74-76=217 | ||
| Victor Regalado |  Mexico |
70-74-73=217 | ||
| Tom Watson | United States |
70-72-75=217 |
Source:[7]
Final round
Sunday, March 25, 1979
| Place | Player | Country | Score | To par | Money ($) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Lanny Wadkins | United States |
67-68-76-72=283 | −5 | 72,000 |
| 2 | Tom Watson | United States |
70-72-75-71=288 | E | 43,200 |
| 3 | Jack Renner | United States |
73-70-71-75=289 | +1 | 27,200 |
| 4 | Phil Hancock | United States |
69-73-75-74=291 | +3 | 19,200 |
| T5 | Bill Kratzert | United States |
69-70-75-79=295 | +5 | 14,600 |
| Wayne Levi | United States |
69-72-77-75=295 | |||
| Lee Trevino | United States |
70-69-75-79=295 | |||
| 8 | Andy Bean | United States |
72-73-74-75=294 | +6 | 12,400 |
| T9 | Jay Haas | United States |
71-74-74-76=295 | +7 | 10,800 |
| Tom Kite | United States |
72-73-75-75=295 | |||
| Jack Newton |  Australia |
69-74-77-75=295 |
References
- ^ a b c d e f "Lanny Wadkins plays 'best ever,' wins". Spokesman-Review. (Spokane, Washington). Associated Press. March 26, 1979. p. 17.
- ^ a b c d "Wadkins' effort leaves field in awe". Eugene Register-Guard. (Oregon). wire services. March 26, 1979. p. 7D.
- ^ "Wadkins wins Players golf". Chicago Tribune. wire services. March 26, 1979. p. 4, sec. 5.
- ^ a b Jenkins, Dan (April 2, 1979). "Lanny's a two-time winner". Sports Illustrated. p. 24.
- ^ a b "Wadkins beats the wind to grab 3-stroke TPC lead". Eugene Register-Guard. (Oregon). UPI. March 24, 1979. p. 2B.
- ^ "Jack says he's 'back' and a 67 proves it". Eugene Register-Guard. (Oregon). Associated Press. March 23, 1979. p. 6D.
- ^ "Wadkins keeps star's role in a pro golf horror shoe". Eugene Register-Guard. (Oregon). Associated Press. March 25, 1979. p. 6E.