| Tournament information | |
|---|---|
| Dates | June 8–11, 1950 |
| Location | Ardmore, Pennsylvania |
| Course(s) | Merion Golf Club, East Course |
| Organized by | USGA |
| Tour | PGA Tour |
| Statistics | |
| Par | 70 |
| Length | 6,694 yards (6,121 m)[1] |
| Field | 150 players, 52 after cut |
| Cut | 149 (+9) |
| Prize fund | $15,000[2] |
| Winner's share | $4,000 |
| Champion | |
 Ben Hogan | |
| 287 (+7), playoff | |
The1950 U.S. Open was the 50thU.S. Open, held June 8–11 at the East Course ofMerion Golf Club inArdmore, Pennsylvania, a suburb northwest ofPhiladelphia. In what became known as the "Miracle at Merion,"1948 championBen Hogan won the second of his four U.S. Open titles in an 18-hole playoff over1946 championLloyd Mangrum andGeorge Fazio, just 16 months after being severely injured in an automobile accident.[3][4] It was the fourth of Hogan's ninemajor titles.[5]
Lee Mackey established a new tournament record by shooting a 64 in the first round,[6][7][8] but followed that up with an 81 and finished in 25th place.[9] His score of 64 was not bettered in any other major championship for 23 years, untilJohnny Miller closed with a 63 at the U.S. Open in1973 to win atOakmont.Tommy Armour, three-time major champion and winner in1927, played in his final major and missed the cut.
This was the second U.S. Open played at Merion's East Course, which previously hosted sixteen years earlier in1934, won byOlin Dutra. Opened in 1912, the course was the site of theU.S. Amateur in 1916, 1924, and 1930; the first was the debut ofBobby Jones at age 14 (quarterfinalist) and the latter two he won. The 1930 victory was the fourth and final leg of hisgrand slam.
Hogan made his U.S. Open debut at Merion in 1934 at age 21. He shot 79 (+9) twice[10] and missed the 36-hole cut by three strokes. He made his first cut at the U.S. Open in1939 and did not miss another; his last was in1967 at age 54.
East Course
| Hole | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | Out | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | In | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Yards | 360 | 555 | 195 | 595 | 425 | 435 | 360 | 367 | 185 | 3,477 | 335 | 378 | 400 | 133 | 443 | 395 | 445 | 230 | 458 | 3,217 | 6,694 |
| Par | 4 | 5 | 3 | 5 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 3 | 36 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 3 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 3 | 4 | 34 | 70 |
Source:[11]
Thursday, June 8, 1950
| Place | Player | Score | To par |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Lee Mackey | 64 | −6 |
| 2 | Al Brosch | 67 | −3 |
| T3 | Skip Alexander | 68 | −2 |
| Julius Boros | |||
| T5 | Harold Williams | 69 | −1 |
| Henry Williams, Jr. | |||
| T7 | Pat Abbott | 71 | +1 |
| John Barnum | |||
| Al Besselink | |||
 Jim Ferrier | |||
| Claude Harmon | |||
| Loddie Kempa | |||
| Joe Kirkwood, Jr. | |||
| Jack Mallon | |||
| Cary Middlecoff | |||
| Henry Picard | |||
| Denny Shute |
| Hole | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Par | 4 | 5 | 3 | 5 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 3 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 3 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 3 | 4 |
| Mackey | E | E | E | −1 | −1 | −1 | −2 | −3 | −3 | −3 | −4 | −4 | −5 | −5 | −6 | −6 | −5 | −6 |
Source:[8]
Friday, June 9, 1950
| Place | Player | Score | To par |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Dutch Harrison | 72-67=139 | −1 |
| T2 | Julius Boros | 68-72=140 | E |
 Johnny Bulla | 74-66=140 | ||
| Jim Ferrier | 71-69=140 | ||
| 5 | Ben Hogan | 72-69=141 | +1 |
| T6 | Skip Alexander | 68-74=142 | +2 |
| Lloyd Mangrum | 72-70=142 | ||
| Cary Middlecoff | 71-71=142 | ||
| Henry Picard | 71-71=142 | ||
| Skee Riegel | 73-69=142 | ||
| Bob Toski | 73-69=142 |
Saturday, June 10, 1950 (morning)
| Place | Player | Score | To par |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Lloyd Mangrum | 72-70-69=211 | +1 |
| 2 | Dutch Harrison | 72-67-73=212 | +2 |
| T3 | Ben Hogan | 72-69-72=213 | +3 |
| Cary Middlecoff | 71-71-71=213 | ||
| Johnny Palmer | 73-70-70=213 | ||
| 6 | Jim Ferrier | 71-69-74=214 | +4 |
| 7 | Henry Ransom | 72-71-73=216 | +6 |
| T8 | Julius Boros | 68-72-77=217 | +7 |
| George Fazio | 73-72-72=217 | ||
| Bill Nary | 73-70-74=217 |
Source:
Saturday, June 10, 1950 (afternoon)
Mangrum began the final round with a one-shot lead overDutch Harrison and a two-stroke lead over Hogan,defending championCary Middlecoff, andJohnny Palmer. Fazio was the first to post 287 (+7) after an even-par 70. Mangrum struggled early in his round, carding six bogeys on the first seven holes and shot 76 (+6), which also left him at 287. Hogan had a chance to win the tournament in regulation but missed a short putt for par at 15 and then bogeyed the par-3 17th. In a three-way tie for the lead going to the difficult 18th, Hogan hit one of his most famous shots, a 1-iron approach to 40 feet (12 m).[14] He two-putted for par to join Mangrum and Fazio in the Sunday playoff.[15][16] Middlecoff and Palmer both shot 79 and fell to tenth place.
| Place | Player | Score | To par | Money ($) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| T1 | Ben Hogan | 72-69-72-74=287 | +7 | Playoff |
| Lloyd Mangrum | 72-70-69-76=287 | |||
| George Fazio | 73-72-72-70=287 | |||
| 4 | Dutch Harrison | 72-67-73-76=288 | +8 | 800 |
| T5 | Jim Ferrier | 71-69-74-75=289 | +9 | 500 |
| Joe Kirkwood, Jr. | 71-74-74-70=289 | |||
| Henry Ransom | 72-71-73-73=289 | |||
| 8 | Bill Nary | 73-70-74-73=290 | +10 | 350 |
| 9 | Julius Boros | 68-72-77-74=291 | +11 | 300 |
| T10 | Cary Middlecoff | 71-71-71-79=292 | +12 | 225 |
| Johnny Palmer | 73-70-70-79=292 |
| Hole | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Par | 4 | 5 | 3 | 5 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 3 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 3 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 3 | 4 |
| Hogan | +3 | +3 | +4 | +4 | +4 | +4 | +4 | +4 | +4 | +4 | +4 | +5 | +5 | +5 | +6 | +6 | +7 | +7 |
| Mangrum | +2 | +3 | +2 | +3 | +4 | +5 | +6 | +6 | +6 | +6 | +6 | +6 | +6 | +6 | +7 | +7 | +7 | +7 |
| Fazio | +7 | +6 | +7 | +7 | +7 | +7 | +8 | +8 | +8 | +8 | +8 | +8 | +7 | +8 | +7 | +7 | +7 | +7 |
| Harrison | +3 | +2 | +4 | +5 | +5 | +5 | +5 | +6 | +7 | +7 | +7 | +8 | +8 | +8 | +8 | +8 | +8 | +8 |
| Ferrier | +7 | +6 | +7 | +7 | +7 | +7 | +8 | +8 | +8 | +8 | +9 | +9 | +9 | +9 | +10 | +9 | +9 | +9 |
| Middlecoff | +3 | +4 | +4 | +5 | +7 | +7 | +7 | +6 | +6 | +8 | +8 | +8 | +8 | +8 | +9 | +11 | +12 | +12 |
| Palmer | +4 | +4 | +5 | +5 | +7 | +8 | +8 | +8 | +8 | +8 | +9 | +10 | +11 | +11 | +11 | +11 | +11 | +12 |
Cumulative tournament scores, relative to par
Source:[11]
Sunday, June 11, 1950
The three players were within one stroke of each other as late as the 13th hole, with Hogan at even par and Fazio and Mangrum at one-over. Fazio bogeyed four of the last five holes to fall out of contention, while Hogan led Mangrum by a single stroke through 15. Mangrum's tee shot at 16 went into heavy rough but his third shot stopped 15 feet (4.6 m) from the hole. As he putted to save par, he picked up his ball to remove a bug that had landed on it, a violation of therules (then rule 10, paragraph 2).[3] Mangrum rolled it in, but was assessed a two-stroke penalty at the next tee; the double-bogey allowed Hogan to cruise to a four-stroke victory.[1][3] Hogan had just one bogey, while Fazio had seven and Mangrum four, plus the double-bogey for the rules violation.
| Place | Player | Score | To par | Money ($) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Ben Hogan | 69 | −1 | 4,000 |
| 2 | Lloyd Mangrum | 73 | +3 | 2,500 |
| 3 | George Fazio | 75 | +5 | 1,000 |
| Hole | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Par | 4 | 5 | 3 | 5 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 3 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 3 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 3 | 4 |
| Hogan | E | E | E | E | E | E | −1 | E | E | E | E | E | E | E | E | E | −1 | −1 |
| Mangrum | E | −1 | E | E | E | E | E | E | E | +1 | E | +1 | +1 | +2 | +1 | +3 | +3 | +3 |
| Fazio | +1 | E | E | E | E | +1 | +2 | +1 | +1 | +1 | +1 | +1 | +1 | +2 | +3 | +4 | +4 | +5 |
| Birdie | Bogey | Double bogey |
40°00′04″N75°18′43″W / 40.001°N 75.312°W /40.001; -75.312