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Bruce Crampton

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Bruce Crampton
Crampton with wife Joan and two-years-old son Jay after winning the 1970 Westchester Classic
Personal information
Born (1935-09-28) 28 September 1935 (age 89)
Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
Height5 ft 11 in (180 cm)
Weight180 lb (82 kg)
Sporting nationality Australia
Career
Turned professional1953
Former tour(s)PGA Tour
Champions Tour
Professional wins45
Number of wins by tour
PGA Tour14
PGA Tour Champions20 (Tied-10th all-time)
Other9 (regular)
2 (senior)
Best results in major championships
Masters TournamentT2: 1972
PGA Championship2nd: 1973, 1975
U.S. Open2nd: 1972
The Open ChampionshipT13: 1956
Achievements and awards
Vardon Trophy1973, 1975
Senior PGA Tour
money list winner
1986

Bruce Crampton (born 28 September 1935) is an Australian professional golfer.

Early life and amateur career

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Crampton was born in Sydney, New South Wales, and attended Kogarah High School from 1948 to 1950. In August 1953 he reached final of the New South Wales Amateur Championship, losing 5&4 to Harry Berwick.[1] In October, he led the Lakes Open after two rounds. According to Norman Von Nida, he was "probably" the first amateur in roughly 15 years, since Jim Ferrier, "to lead a big tournament after two rounds." Von Nida also stated that, "Crampton proves my prediction that he would become one of the greatest players Australia has produced."[2]

Professional career

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Crampton turned professional in late 1953, becoming an assistant to Billy McWilliam at Beverley Park in Sydney.[3] His decision to turn professional came soon after he had been left out of the Australian amateur team to tour Britain in 1954 and play in the Commonwealth Tournament at St Andrews.[4]

Crampton won the Vardon Trophy for the player with the lowest stroke average on the PGA Tour in 1973 and 1975. He had 14 career wins on the PGA Tour between 1961 and 1975 and was runner up in four major championships – one Masters, one U.S. Open, and two PGA Championships – all to Jack Nicklaus. He was ranked among the top five golfers in the world in both 1972 and 1973, according to Mark McCormack's world golf rankings. His other regular career victories included the Australian Open, New Zealand PGA Championship, Far East Open and the Philippine Open. As a senior, he won 20 times on the Champions Tour, and topped the money list in 1986.

Awards and honors

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Crampton was inducted into the Sport Australia Hall of Fame in 2001.[5]

Professional wins (45)

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PGA Tour wins (14)

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No. Date Tournament Winning score Margin of
victory
Runner(s)-up
1 23 Jul 1961 Milwaukee Open Invitational −8 (70-64-67-71=272) 1 stroke United States Gay Brewer, United States Bob Goalby
2 15 Jul 1962 Motor City Open −17 (66-65-70-66=267) 3 strokes United States Dave Hill, United States Don Massengale
3 26 Apr 1964 Texas Open Invitational −7 (71-69-68-65=273) 1 stroke New Zealand Bob Charles, United States Chi-Chi Rodríguez
4 24 Jan 1965 Bing Crosby National Pro-Am −3 (75-67-73-69=284) 3 strokes United States Tony Lema
5 11 May 1965 Colonial National Invitation −4 (71-68-71-66=276) 3 strokes Canada George Knudson
6 30 May 1965 500 Festival Open Invitation −5 (71-70-67-71=279) 1 stroke United States Jacky Cupit, United States Lionel Hebert
7 9 Nov 1969 Hawaiian Open −14 (71-71-65-67=274) 4 strokes United States Jack Nicklaus
8 2 Aug 1970 Westchester Classic −15 (67-71-68-67=273) 1 stroke United States Larry Hinson, United States Jack Nicklaus
9 18 Jul 1971 Western Open −5 (66-73-69-71=279) 2 strokes United States Bobby Nichols
10 14 Jan 1973 Phoenix Open −12 (68-67-68-65=268) 1 stroke United States Steve Melnyk, United States Lanny Wadkins
11 21 Jan 1973 Dean Martin Tucson Open −11 (70-70-66-71=277) 5 strokes United States George Archer, United States Gay Brewer,
United States Labron Harris Jr.
12 6 May 1973 Houston Open −11 (72-66-67-72=277) 1 stroke United States Dave Stockton
13 24 Jun 1973 American Golf Classic −7 (70-67-68-68=273) 3 strokes United States Gay Brewer, United States Bob Murphy,
United States Lanny Wadkins
14 4 May 1975 Houston Open (2) −15 (68-70-66-69=273) 2 strokes United States Gil Morgan

PGA Tour playoff record (0–2)

No. Year Tournament Opponent Result
1 1970 Houston Champions International United States Gibby Gilbert Lost to par on third extra hole
2 1974 B.C. Open United States Richie Karl Lost to birdie on first extra hole

PGA Tour satellite wins (1)

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Other wins (8)

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this list may be incomplete

Senior PGA Tour wins (20)

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No. Date Tournament Winning score Margin of
victory
Runner(s)-up
1 11 May 1986 Benson & Hedges Invitational −14 (67-67-68=202) 2 strokes New Zealand Bob Charles
2 27 Jul 1986 MONY Syracuse Senior's Pro Golf Classic −11 (70-65-71=206) 1 stroke Argentina Roberto De Vicenzo, United States Orville Moody,
United States Chi-Chi Rodríguez
3 17 Jul 1986 GTE Northwest Classic −6 (77-71-72=210) 2 strokes United States Don January, United States George Lanning
4 21 Sep 1986 PaineWebber World Seniors Invitational −9 (68-69-72=70=279) 1 stroke United States Lee Elder, United States Chi-Chi Rodríguez
5 26 Oct 1986 Pepsi Senior Challenge −8 (65-71=136)* 1 stroke South Africa Gary Player
6 9 Nov 1986 Las Vegas Senior Classic −10 (71-67-68=206) 2 strokes United States Dale Douglass
7 23 Nov 1986 Shearson-Lehman Brothers Senior Classic −16 (65-67-68=200) 4 strokes United States Butch Baird
8 31 May 1987 Denver Champions of Golf −12 (73-64-67=204) 1 stroke United States Walt Zembriski
9 6 Jul 1987 The Greenbrier American Express Championship −16 (63-70-67=200) 6 strokes United States Orville Moody
10 19 Jul 1987 MONY Syracuse Senior Classic (2) −7 (65-67-65=197) 6 strokes United States Chi-Chi Rodríguez
11 6 Sep 1987 Bank One Senior Golf Classic −13 (63-64-70=197) 6 strokes United States Miller Barber, New Zealand Bob Charles,
United States Joe Jimenez
12 15 May 1988 United Hospitals Classic −5 (71-65-69=205) Playoff United States Billy Casper
13 10 Jul 1988 GTE Northwest Classic (2) −9 (69-68-70=207) 1 stroke United States Don Bies, Australia Bruce Devlin
14 12 Mar 1989 MONY Arizona Classic −16 (67-64-69=200) 1 stroke United States Bobby Nichols
15 23 Jul 1989 Ameritech Senior Open −11 (70-67-68=205) 1 stroke United States Jim Ferree, United States Orville Moody
16 5 Aug 1990 PaineWebber Invitational (2) −11 (68-69-68=205) 3 strokes United States Tom Shaw
17 14 Oct 1990 Gatlin Brothers Southwest Senior Classic −12 (67-68-69=204) 4 strokes United States Lee Trevino
18 6 Jan 1991 Infiniti Senior Tournament of Champions −9 (70-69-69-71=279) 4 strokes United States Frank Beard
19 8 Mar 1992 GTE West Classic −15 (66-63-66=195) 3 strokes United States Chi-Chi Rodríguez
20 18 May 1997 Cadillac NFL Golf Classic −6 (76-67-67=210) Playoff South Africa Hugh Baiocchi

*Note: The 1986 Pepsi Senior Challenge was shortened to 36 holes due to rain.

Senior PGA Tour playoff record (2–2)

No. Year Tournament Opponent Result
1 1988 United Hospitals Classic United States Billy Casper Won with birdie on first extra hole
2 1990 GTE North Classic United States Mike Hill Lost to birdie on first extra hole
3 1993 PGA Seniors' Championship United States Tom Wargo Lost to par on second extra hole
4 1997 Cadillac NFL Golf Classic South Africa Hugh Baiocchi Won with birdie on third extra hole

Other senior wins (2)

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Results in major championships

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Tournament 1956 1957 1958 1959
Masters Tournament T21 T26 CUT
U.S. Open T19 CUT
The Open Championship T13 T39 T34
PGA Championship
Tournament 1960 1961 1962 1963 1964 1965 1966 1967 1968 1969
Masters Tournament T16 CUT T29 T11 T21 T11 T17 T49 T13
U.S. Open T38 T22 T45 T5 T14 T32 T57 T46 T6
The Open Championship
PGA Championship T17 T3 T56 T20 T43 T26 T23 T15
Tournament 1970 1971 1972 1973 1974 1975 1976
Masters Tournament T38 T18 T2 T43 T11 CUT 27
U.S. Open T30 T49 2 CUT T23 CUT
The Open Championship T18 CUT
PGA Championship T6 T57 T24 2 T48 2 T38
  Top 10
  Did not play

CUT = missed the half-way cut
"T" indicates a tie for a place

Summary

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Tournament Wins 2nd 3rd Top-5 Top-10 Top-25 Events Cuts made
Masters Tournament 0 1 0 1 1 10 19 16
U.S. Open 0 1 0 2 3 7 17 14
The Open Championship 0 0 0 0 0 2 5 4
PGA Championship 0 2 1 3 4 9 15 15
Totals 0 4 1 6 8 28 56 49
  • Most consecutive cuts made – 33 (1961 U.S. Open – 1973 Masters)
  • Longest streak of top-10s – 2 (twice)

Team appearances

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Amateur

Professional

See also

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References

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  1. ^ "Berwick's first N.S.W. title". The Sun (Sydney). No. 2625. New South Wales, Australia. 16 August 1953. p. 31. Retrieved 17 February 2021 – via National Library of Australia.
  2. ^ "Oct 16, 1953, page 44 - The Daily Telegraph at Newspapers.com". Newspapers.com. Retrieved 22 July 2024.
  3. ^ "Crampton now pro". The Sun (Sydney). No. 13644. New South Wales, Australia. 2 November 1953. p. 27. Retrieved 17 February 2021 – via National Library of Australia.
  4. ^ "Turn pro' advices Von Nida". The Daily Telegraph. Vol. XVIII, no. 186. New South Wales, Australia. 26 October 1953. p. 20. Retrieved 17 February 2021 – via National Library of Australia.
  5. ^ "Bruce Crampton". Sport Australia Hall of Fame. Retrieved 25 September 2020.
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