| Tournament information | |
|---|---|
| Location | Speedway, Indiana |
| Established | 1960 |
| Course | Speedway Golf Course |
| Par | 72 |
| Tour | PGA Tour |
| Format | Stroke play |
| Prize fund | US$100,000 |
| Final year | 1968 |
| Tournament record score | |
| Aggregate | 264Billy Casper (1962) |
| To par | −20as above |
| Final champion | |
 Billy Casper | |
| Location map | |
The500 Festival Open Invitation was a professionalgolf tournament on thePGA Tour, played during the 1960s inIndianapolis,Indiana. It was sponsored byThe 500 Festival, a not-for-profit volunteer organization created in 1957 to organize civic events to promote theIndianapolis 500.[1]
The tournament was played at theSpeedway Golf Course, located in theIndianapolis Motor Speedway complex; the exception was in1965, when it was played at Greentree Country Club while the Speedway was undergoing renovations.
In 1961Doug Ford won on the second hole of a sudden-death playoff overArnold Palmer.
In 1963 the Indianapolis 500 was held on Thursday May 30, and the tournament was held over four days from Friday, May 31 to Monday, June 3. Previously the golf tournament was held prior to the running of the race. The one-day turnaround required grounds crews to quickly clean up the nine holes inside the track, used on race day for parking by fans. Considerable attention was given to the fact that several top names on the PGA Tour decided to skip the event.[2] Among the reasons cited was the low purse, and the overall unchallenging nature of the course.
In 1964 the tournament was held from Wednesday, May 27 through Friday, May 29, then concluded Sunday May 31. The Indianapolis 500 was held Saturday May 30.Gary Player sank a birdie putt on the final hole to clinch the victory.
The 1965 tournament was held at Greentree Country Club. The Speedway Golf Course was undergoing a renovation project. In 1966 the tournament was moved out of the month of May and away from the activities directly surrounding the Indy 500.Billy Casper won the event three times whileDoug Ford won it twice.
| Year | Winner | Score | To par | Margin of victory | Runner(s)-up | Winner's share ($) | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1968 | Billy Casper (3) | 280 | −8 | 1 stroke | Frank BeardMike Hill | 20,000 | [3] |
| 1967 | Frank Beard | 279 | −9 | 3 strokes | Rod FunsethRives McBee | 20,000 | [4] |
| 1966 | Billy Casper (2) | 277 | −11 | 3 strokes | R. H. Sikes | 16,400 | [5] |
| 1965 |  Bruce Crampton | 279 | −5 | 1 stroke | Jacky CupitLionel Hebert | 15,200 | [6] |
| 1964 |  Gary Player | 273 | −11 | 1 stroke | Doug SandersArt Wall Jr. | 12,000 | [7] |
| 1963 | Dow Finsterwald | 268 | −16 | 2 strokes | Tommy AaronJulius BorosTony LemaBobby Nichols | 10,000 | [8] |
| 1962 | Billy Casper | 264 | −20 | 1 stroke | George BayerJerry Steelsmith | 9,000 | [9] |
| 1961 | Doug Ford (2) | 273 | −11 | Playoff | Arnold Palmer | 9,000 | [10] |
| 1960 | Doug Ford | 270 | −14 | 2 strokes | Jerry Barber | 9,000 | [11] |
39°47′20″N86°13′44″W / 39.789°N 86.229°W /39.789; -86.229
