1973 European Tour
The 1973 European Tour was a series of golf tournaments that comprised the Professional Golfers' Association (PGA) tournament circuit. It is officially recognised as the second season of the PGA European Tour.
| Duration | 28 March 1972 – 6 October 1972 |
|---|---|
| Number of official events | 21 |
| Most wins | 3: Peter Oosterhuis |
| Order of Merit | Peter Oosterhuis |
| Sir Henry Cotton Rookie of the Year | Pip Elson |
← 1972 1974 → | |
Historically, the PGA's Order of Merit only included tournaments in Great Britain and Ireland, but in 1970 events in continental Europe were included for the first time. The circuit and organisation evolved further over the following years, adopting the name PGA European Golf Tour in 1979.[1]
The season was made up of 21 tournaments counting for the Order of Merit, and some non-counting tournaments that later became known as "Approved Special Events". The schedule included the major national opens around Europe, with other tournaments mostly held in England, Scotland and Wales.[2]
The Order of Merit was won by England's Peter Oosterhuis.
Changes for 1973
There were three changes from the previous season, with the addition of the Portuguese Open and the Scandinavian Enterprise Open, and the loss of the John Player Trophy.[3]
Schedule
The following table lists official events during the 1973 season.
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Unofficial events
The following events were sanctioned by the European Tour, but did not carry official money, nor were wins official.
| Date | Tournament | Host country | Purse (£) |
Winner(s) | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 19 May | Sumrie Better-Ball | England | 10,000 | Neil Coles and Bernard Hunt |
Team event |
| 16 Jun | Coca-Cola Young Professionals' Championship | England | 5,000 |  Bernard Gallacher |
|
| 1 Sep | Double Diamond International | England | 15,000 | Team Scotland |
Team event |
| 22 Sep | Ryder Cup | Scotland | n/a |  Team USA |
Team event |
| 13 Oct | Piccadilly World Match Play Championship | England | 25,000 | .svg.png.webp){kind=small} Gary Player |
Limited-field event |
| 25 Nov | World Cup | Spain | US$4,200 | Johnny Miller and Jack Nicklaus |
Team event |
| World Cup Individual Trophy | US$2,100 | Johnny Miller |
Order of Merit
The Order of Merit was based on prize money won during the season, calculated using a points-based system.[4]
| Position | Player | Points | Prize money (£) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Peter Oosterhuis | 3,440 | 17,455 |
| 2 | Maurice Bembridge | 2,980 | 10,773 |
| 3 | Hugh Baiocchi | 2,904 | 11,870 |
| 4 | Dale Hayes | 2,736 | 10,188 |
| 5 | Brian Barnes | 2,676 | 9,778 |
| 6 | .svg.png.webp){kind=small} Eddie Polland | 2,635 | 8,146 |
| 7 | Tony Jacklin | 24,840 | |
| 8 | Bernard Gallacher | 8,676 | |
| 9 | Neil Coles | 14,748 | |
| 10 | .svg.png.webp){kind=small} Jack Newton | 7,939 |
Awards
| Award | Winner |
|---|---|
| Sir Henry Cotton Rookie of the Year | Pip Elson |
Notes
- The number in brackets after each winner's name is the number of European Tour events they had won up to and including that tournament. This information is only shown for European Tour members and are inclusive of the three United States-based major championships which were included on the schedule for the first time in 1998, with earlier editions having retrospectively been recognised as official tour wins. Victories in "Approved Special Events" are not recognised as official tour wins.
- Unofficial money event at the time, but retrospectively counted as an official win.
References
- "Tour History". PGA European Tour. Archived from the original on 4 April 2010.
- "£½m. to be won on PGA circuit". Glasgow Herald. 19 January 1973. p. 4. Retrieved 15 June 2020 – via Google News Archive.
- Rodney, Bob (26 January 1973). "Top two for Player Classic". Daily Mirror. p. 27. Retrieved 15 June 2020 – via British Newspaper Archive.
- "Oosty ahead of Bembridge". Birmingham Daily Post. 13 October 1973. p. 21. Retrieved 15 June 2020 – via British Newspaper Archive.