1957 LPGA Championship

1957 LPGA Championship
Tournament information
DatesJune 6–10, 1957
LocationBlackridge, Pennsylvania
Course(s)Churchill Valley Country Club
Tour(s)LPGA Tour
FormatStroke play – 72 holes
Statistics
Par70
Length5,711 yards (5,222 m)[1]
Field26 players[2]
Cutnone
Prize fund$7,600
Winner's share$1,316
Champion
United States Louise Suggs
285 (+5)
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1958 →
Churchill Valley Country Club is located in the United States
Churchill Valley Country Club
Churchill Valley Country Club
Churchill Valley Country Club is located in Pennsylvania
Churchill Valley Country Club
Churchill Valley Country Club

The 1957 LPGA Championship was the third LPGA Championship, held June 6–10 at Churchill Valley Country Club in Blackridge, Pennsylvania, a suburb east of Pittsburgh. It concluded on Monday, after rain washed out play on Saturday.[3]

Louise Suggs, president of the LPGA,[4] shot a final round 68 (−2) to win her only LPGA Championship, three strokes ahead of runner-up Wiffi Smith.[5] Defending champion Marlene Hagge and 1955 winner Beverly Hanson finished two strokes behind Smith, in a tie for third.[6] Smith, age 20, led after each of the first three rounds, but carded a 74 (+4) in the final round on Monday.[5] She won eight events on the LPGA Tour in her career, but no majors. It was the tenth of eleven major titles for Suggs.

The field consisted of 26 professionals; a concurrent event for amateurs was also held.[2] The championship returned to Churchill Valley the next year in 1958 and the course hosted its third major the following year, the U.S. Women's Open in 1959. The club closed in 2013.[7][8]

Final leaderboard

Monday, June 10, 1957

Place Player Score To par Money ($)
1 United States Louise Suggs 69-74-74-68=285 +5 1,316
2 United States Wiffi Smith 68-71-75-74=288 +8 921
T3 United States Marlene Hagge 69-75-73-73=290 +10 698
United States Beverly Hanson 75-73-73-69=290
5 United States Joyce Ziske 71-73-75-74=293 +13 557
6 United States Marilynn Smith 76-70-75-73=294 +14 473
7 United States Patty Berg 73-72-77-73=295 +15 404
T8 United States Alice Bauer 74-71-74-77=296 +16 303
United States Bonnie Randolph 76-76-69-75=296
10 United States Kathy Cornelius 77-72-73-75=297 +17 228

Source:[6]

References

  1. ^ Gundelfinger, Phil (June 8, 1957). "Wiffi Smith cards 71, leads LPGA by four". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. p. 15.
  2. ^ a b Gundelfinger, Phil (June 6, 1957). "Small, select field opens LPGA tourney". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. p. 27.
  3. ^ "Third round of Ladies PGA golf postponed". Reading Eagle. Pennsylvania. Associated Press. June 9, 1957. p. 31.
  4. ^ Jordan, Jimmy (June 11, 1957). "LPGA head had faith in herself". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. p. 22.
  5. ^ a b Gundelfinger, Phil (June 11, 1957). "Louise Suggs' 285 wins LPGA". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. p. 20.
  6. ^ a b "Suggs wins title in LPGA". Daytona Beach Morning Journal. Florida. Associated Press. June 11, 1957. p. 10.
  7. ^ "Churchill Valley Country Club sinks into financial hole". Pittsburgh Business Times. January 25, 2013. Retrieved July 19, 2014.
  8. ^ Varine, Patrick (August 14, 2013). "Churchill Valley Country Club seeks penalty against creditors". Trib Live. Retrieved July 19, 2014.

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