Richie Karl | |
---|---|
Personal information | |
Full name | Richard Karl |
Born | Johnson City, New York | September 28, 1944
Height | 5 ft 11 in (1.80 m) |
Weight | 170 lb (77 kg; 12 st) |
Sporting nationality | United States |
Career | |
College | Florida State University |
Turned professional | 1968 |
Former tour(s) | PGA Tour Champions Tour |
Professional wins | 6 |
Number of wins by tour | |
PGA Tour | 1 |
Other | 5 |
Best results in major championships | |
Masters Tournament | 46th: 1975 |
PGA Championship | T55: 1974 |
U.S. Open | CUT: 1980 |
The Open Championship | DNP |
Richard Karl (born September 28, 1944) is an American professional golfer who is best known as the last golf club professional to win an official PGA Tour event. [1]
Karl was born in Johnson City, New York. He played college golf at Florida State University. [2] He won the Alaska State Amateur twice while stationed in the Army there. [3]
Karl turned professional in 1968. [2] He won the 1974 B.C. Open by sinking a 35-foot putt on the first hole in a playoff with Bruce Crampton. Karl, who worked at the En-Joie Golf Club in Endicott, New York where the B.C. Open was played and lived along the 10th fairway, is the last club professional to win on the PGA Tour. [1]
Karl played briefly on the Senior PGA Tour (now Champions Tour) starting after he turned 50 in September 1994. His best finish in this venue was a T-5 at the ACE Group Classic. In 2007, Karl played as a sponsor's exemption in the inaugural Dick's Sporting Goods Open, a Champions Tour event played on his home course. [4]
No. | Date | Tournament | Winning score | Margin of victory | Runner-up |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Jul 21, 1974 | B.C. Open | −11 (70-67-68-68=273) | Playoff | Bruce Crampton |
PGA Tour playoff record (1–0)
No. | Year | Tournament | Opponent | Result |
---|---|---|---|---|
1 | 1974 | B.C. Open | Bruce Crampton | Won with birdie on first extra hole |
Jack William Nicklaus, nicknamed "the Golden Bear", is an American retired professional golfer and golf course designer. He is widely considered to be one of the greatest golfers of all time. He won 117 professional tournaments in his career. Over a quarter-century, he won a record 18 major championships, three more than second-placed Tiger Woods. Nicklaus focused on the major championships—the Masters Tournament, U.S. Open, Open Championship and PGA Championship—and played a selective schedule of regular PGA Tour events. He competed in 164 major tournaments, more than any other player, and finished with 73 PGA Tour victories, third behind Sam Snead (82) and Woods (82).
Hal Evan Sutton is an American professional golfer, currently playing on the PGA Tour Champions, who achieved 14 victories on the PGA Tour, including the 1983 PGA Championship and the 1983 and 2000 Players Championships. Sutton was also the PGA Tour's leading money winner in 1983 and named Player of the Year.
Craig Robert Stadler is an American professional golfer who has won numerous tournaments at both the PGA Tour and Champions Tour level, including one major championship, the 1982 Masters Tournament.
Mark Francis O'Meara is an American retired professional golfer. He was a tournament winner on the PGA Tour and around the world from the mid-1980s to the late 1990s. He spent nearly 200 weeks in the top-10 of the Official World Golf Ranking from their debut in 1986 to 2000. He was inducted into the World Golf Hall of Fame in 2015.
Scott Rachal Verplank is an American professional golfer, who has played on the PGA Tour and the PGA Tour Champions.
John Neuman Cook is an American professional golfer, who won eleven times on the PGA Tour and was a member of the Ryder Cup team in 1993. He was ranked in the top ten of the Official World Golf Ranking for 45 weeks in 1992 and 1993. Cook currently plays on the PGA Tour Champions and is a studio analyst on Golf Channel.
Gay Robert Brewer Jr. was an American professional golfer who played on the PGA Tour and won the 1967 Masters Tournament.
Gabriel Hjertstedt is a Swedish professional golfer. In 1997, he became the first Swede to win on the U.S.-based PGA Tour.
Joseph Paul Sindelar is an American professional golfer who currently plays on the PGA Tour Champions. He previously played on the PGA Tour, winning seven tournaments between 1985 and 2004.
Donald Ray Massengale Sr. was an American professional golfer who won tournaments on both the PGA Tour and the Senior PGA Tour.
George Francis Burns III is an American professional golfer. Turning pro in 1975, Burns had four PGA Tour wins, 80 top-10 finishes and won several other tournaments at both the amateur and professional levels.
Brendan Mark Jones is an Australian professional golfer who plays on the Japan Golf Tour, where he has won 15 times between 2002 and 2019.
Michael Patrick Hulbert is an American professional golfer and sportscaster.
Richard Dan "Danny" Edwards is an American professional golfer who has played on the PGA Tour, Nationwide Tour and Champions Tour. He is the older brother of former PGA Tour player David Edwards.
Richie Ramsay is a Scottish professional golfer who plays on the European Tour.
Robert B. Dickson is an American professional golfer who played on the PGA Tour and the Champions Tour.
Mark Charles Wiebe is an American professional golfer who currently plays on the PGA Tour Champions. He also played on the PGA Tour and Nationwide Tour.
Thomas "Tom or Tommy" McGinnis was an American professional golfer who played on the PGA Tour and the Champions Tour.
The B.C. Open was a PGA Tour golf tournament in Broome County, New York, held annually from 1971 to 2006. In 1971, it was called the Broome County Open, and the next year it switched to the B.C. Open. In 1973, it became a PGA Tour regular 72-hole money event. From 2000 to 2006, it took place during the same week as The Open Championship, so the leading players were not available and it was one of the smaller events on the PGA Tour schedule. The purse for the final edition in 2006 was $3 million.
Lonnie Dean Nielsen was an American professional golfer.