The 1978 PGA Tour was the 63rd season of the PGA Tour, the main professional golf tour in the United States. It was also the 10th season since separating from the PGA of America.
Schedule
The following table lists official events during the 1978 season.[1]
| Date | Tournament | Location | Purse (US$) |
Winner(s)[a] | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan 8 | Joe Garagiola-Tucson Open | Arizona | 200,000 |  Tom Watson (9) |
|
| Jan 15 | Phoenix Open | Arizona | 225,000 | Miller Barber (11) |
|
| Jan 23 | Bing Crosby National Pro-Am | California | 225,000 | Tom Watson (10) |
Pro-Am |
| Jan 29 | Andy Williams-San Diego Open Invitational | California | 200,000 | Jay Haas (1) |
|
| Feb 5 | Hawaiian Open | Hawaii | 250,000 | Hubert Green (13) |
|
| Feb 13 | Bob Hope Desert Classic | California | 225,000 | Bill Rogers (1) |
Pro-Am |
| Feb 19 | Glen Campbell-Los Angeles Open | California | 200,000 | Gil Morgan (2) |
|
| Feb 26 | Jackie Gleason-Inverrary Classic | Florida | 250,000 | Jack Nicklaus (65) |
|
| Mar 6 | Florida Citrus Open | Florida | 200,000 | Mac McLendon (3) |
|
| Mar 12 | Doral-Eastern Open | Florida | 200,000 | Tom Weiskopf (14) |
|
| Mar 19 | Tournament Players Championship | Florida | 300,000 | Jack Nicklaus (66) |
Special event |
| Mar 26 | Heritage Classic | South Carolina | 225,000 | Hubert Green (14) |
Invitational |
| Apr 2 | Greater Greensboro Open | North Carolina | 240,000 |  Seve Ballesteros (1) |
|
| Apr 9 | Masters Tournament | Georgia | 262,402 |  Gary Player (22) |
Major championship |
| Apr 9 | Magnolia Classic | Mississippi | 35,000 | Craig Stadler (n/a) |
Second Tour[b] |
| Apr 16 | MONY Tournament of Champions | California | 225,000 | Gary Player (23) |
Winners-only event |
| Apr 16 | Tallahassee Open | Florida | 80,000 | Barry Jaeckel (1) |
Alternate event |
| Apr 23 | Houston Open | Texas | 200,000 | Gary Player (24) |
|
| Apr 30 | First NBC New Orleans Open | Louisiana | 200,000 | Lon Hinkle (1) |
|
| May 7 | Byron Nelson Golf Classic | Texas | 200,000 | Tom Watson (11) |
|
| May 14 | Colonial National Invitation | Texas | 200,000 | Lee Trevino (23) |
Invitational |
| May 14 | Oklahoma City Open | Oklahoma | 45,000 | Jeff Hewes (n/a) |
Second Tour[b] |
| May 21 | Memorial Tournament | Ohio | 250,000 | Jim Simons (2) |
Invitational |
| May 28 | Atlanta Classic | Georgia | 200,000 | Jerry Heard (5) |
|
| Jun 4 | Kemper Open | North Carolina | 300,000 | Andy Bean (2) |
|
| Jun 11 | Danny Thomas Memphis Classic | Tennessee | 250,000 | Andy Bean (3) |
|
| Jun 18 | U.S. Open | Colorado | 310,200 | Andy North (2) |
Major championship |
| Jun 18 | Buick-Goodwrench Open | Michigan | 100,000 |  Jack Newton (1) |
Alternate event |
| Jun 25 | Canadian Open | Canada | 250,000 | Bruce Lietzke (3) |
|
| Jul 2 | Western Open | Illinois | 225,000 | Andy Bean (4) |
|
| Jul 9 | Greater Milwaukee Open | Wisconsin | 150,000 | Lee Elder (3) |
|
| Jul 15 | The Open Championship | Scotland | £125,000 | Jack Nicklaus (67) |
Major championship[c] |
| Jul 16 | Ed McMahon-Jaycees Quad Cities Open | Illinois | 150,000 |  Victor Regalado (2) |
Alternate event |
| Jul 23 | IVB-Philadelphia Golf Classic | Pennsylvania | 250,000 | Jack Nicklaus (68) |
|
| Jul 30 | Sammy Davis Jr.-Greater Hartford Open | Connecticut | 210,000 | Rod Funseth (3) |
|
| Aug 6 | PGA Championship | Pennsylvania | 300,000 | John Mahaffey (2) |
Major championship |
| Aug 13 | American Optical Classic | Massachusetts | 225,000 | John Mahaffey (3) |
|
| Aug 20 | American Express Westchester Classic | New York | 300,000 | Lee Elder (4) |
|
| Aug 27 | Colgate Hall of Fame Classic | North Carolina | 250,000 | Tom Watson (12) |
|
| Sep 4 | B.C. Open | New York | 225,000 | Tom Kite (2) |
|
| Sep 10 | Southern Open | Georgia | 175,000 | Jerry Pate (5) |
|
| Sep 17 | San Antonio Texas Open | Texas | 200,000 | Ron Streck (1) |
|
| Sep 24 | Anheuser-Busch Golf Classic | California | 200,000 | Tom Watson (13) |
|
| Oct 1 | World Series of Golf | Ohio | 400,000 | Gil Morgan (3) |
Limited-field event |
| Oct 29 | Pensacola Open | Florida | 125,000 | Mac McLendon (4) |
|
| Nov 5 | Walt Disney World National Team Championship | Florida | 200,000 | Wayne Levi (1) and Bob Mann (1) |
Team event |
Unofficial events
The following events were sanctioned by the PGA Tour, but did not carry official money, nor were wins official.
| Date | Tournament | Location | Purse ($) |
Winner(s) | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dec 3 | World Cup | Hawaii | n/a | John Mahaffey and Andy North
|
Team event |
| World Cup Individual Trophy | John Mahaffey
|
Money list
The money list was based on prize money won during the season, calculated in U.S. dollars.[2]
| Position | Player | Prize money ($) |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Tom Watson |
362,429 |
| 2 | Gil Morgan |
267,459 |
| 3 | Andy Bean |
267,241 |
| 4 | Jack Nicklaus |
256,672 |
| 5 | Hubert Green |
247,406 |
| 6 | Lee Trevino |
228,723 |
| 7 | Hale Irwin |
191,666 |
| 8 | Billy Kratzert |
183,681 |
| 9 | Gary Player |
177,336 |
| 10 | Jerry Pate |
171,999 |
Awards
| Award | Winner | Ref. |
|---|---|---|
| PGA Player of the Year | Tom Watson |
[3] |
| Scoring leader (Vardon Trophy) | Tom Watson |
[3] |
Notes
- ^ The number in parentheses after each winner's name is the number of PGA Tour events they had won up to and including that tournament. This information is only shown for PGA Tour members.
- ^ a b Official money; unofficial win.
- ^ Unofficial money event at the time, but retrospectively counted as an official win.
References
- ^ "1979 PGA Tour Media Guide" (PDF). PGA Tour. Retrieved November 7, 2023.
- ^ "Final 1978 PGA Money Winners". News-Journal. Mansfield, Ohio. November 5, 1978. p. 51 (7-E in paper). Retrieved November 7, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ a b "Watson Named PGA Player of Year". The Roanoke Times. Roanoke, Virginia. November 13, 1978. p. 14 (B-6 in paper). Retrieved November 7, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
