The 1941 U.S. Open was the 45th U.S. Open, held June 5–7 at Colonial Country Club in Fort Worth, Texas. Craig Wood, who had lost in a playoff at the U.S. Open two years earlier, finally broke through and claimed his first U.S. Open title, three strokes ahead of runner-up Denny Shute in sweltering heat.[2][6] Eight years earlier, Shute had defeated him in a playoff at the 1933 British Open.
Wood opened the tournament with a 73 in the first round and followed that up with a 71 in the rain-delayed second. Part of a four-way tie for the lead after 36 holes,[1][5][7] Wood shot a pair of 70s in the final two rounds, capped by a birdie on the 72nd, to post a 284 total. Only Fort Worth's Ben Hogan managed better than Wood in the final two rounds, but he finished five behind in a tie for third. Denny Shute shot a 287 total to finish three strokes behind Wood in second.[2][6]
Wood, age 39, was almost forced to miss the tournament due to a nagging back injury he aggravated two weeks earlier. After recording a double-bogey 7 on his first hole of the championship, he considered withdrawing but was convinced to continue by playing partner Tommy Armour. With his win here, Wood became the first to win the first two majors in a season; he won the Masters two months earlier. Prior to 1941, he had several near misses, and had lost all four majors in extra holes.
Tyrrell Garth, a month shy of his 16th birthday, established a new tournament record for youngest competitor. He shot an 80 in the first round and withdrew during the second; his record stood for 65 years, until 2006 (Tadd Fujikawa).
This was the last U.S. Open played for five years, until 1946, due to World War II. Colonial has hosted an annual PGA Tour event since 1946, now known as the Fort Worth Invitational.
Course layout
| Hole | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | Out | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | In | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Yards | 569 | 395 | 468 | 250 | 469 | 395 | 418 | 198 | 343 | 3,505 | 403 | 593 | 400 | 192 | 455 | 447 | 207 | 406 | 427 | 3,530 | 7,035 |
| Par | 5 | 4 | 4 | 3 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 3 | 4 | 35 | 4 | 5 | 4 | 3 | 4 | 4 | 3 | 4 | 4 | 35 | 70 |
Source:[3]
Round summaries
First round
Thursday, June 5, 1941
| Place | Player | Score | To par |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  Denny Shute |
69 | −1 |
| T2 | Vic Ghezzi |
70 | E |
| Dutch Harrison
| |||
| T4 | Gene Kunes |
71 | +1 |
| Lawson Little
| |||
| Jug McSpaden
| |||
| Dick Metz
| |||
| Jack Ryan
| |||
| T9 | Clayton Heafner |
72 | +2 |
| Bill Kaiser
| |||
| Ted Kroll
| |||
| Johnny Morris
| |||
| Henry Ransom
| |||
| Harry Todd (a)
| |||
| Bunny Torpey
|
Second round
Friday, June 6, 1941
Thunderstorms caused delays in the morning and afternoon, but only a few players did not complete the second round on Friday.[1][5][7]
| Place | Player | Score | To par |
|---|---|---|---|
| T1 | Clayton Heafner |
72-72=144 | +4 |
| Lawson Little |
71-73=144 | ||
| Denny Shute |
69-75=144 | ||
| Craig Wood |
73-71=144 | ||
| T5 | Dick Metz |
71-74=145 | +5 |
| Paul Runyan |
73-72=145 | ||
| T7 | Herman Barron |
75-71=146 | +6 |
| Johnny Bulla |
75-71=146 | ||
| Harold McSpaden |
71-75=146 | ||
| Byron Nelson |
73-73=146 | ||
| Henry Ransom |
72-74=146 | ||
| Sam Snead |
76-70=146 |
Third round
Saturday, June 7, 1941 (morning)
| Place | Player | Score | To par |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Craig Wood |
73-71-70=214 | +4 |
| T2 | Paul Runyan |
73-72-71=216 | +6 |
| Denny Shute |
69-75-72=216 | ||
| 4 | Johnny Bulla |
75-71-72=218 | +8 |
| T5 | Ben Hogan |
74-77-68=219 | +9 |
| Lloyd Mangrum |
73-74-72=219 | ||
| Gene Sarazen |
74-73-72=219 | ||
| T8 | Herman Barron |
75-71-74=220 | +10 |
| Jug McSpaden |
71-75-74=220 | ||
| Byron Nelson |
73-73-74=220 |
Final round
Saturday, June 7, 1941 (afternoon)
| Place | Player | Score | To par | Money ($) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Craig Wood |
73-71-70-70=284 | +4 | 1,000 |
| 2 | Denny Shute |
69-75-72-71=287 | +7 | 800 |
| T3 | Johnny Bulla |
75-71-72-71=289 | +9 | 650 |
| Ben Hogan |
74-77-68-70=289 | |||
| T5 | Herman Barron |
75-71-74-71=291 | +11 | 413 |
| Paul Runyan |
73-72-71-75=291 | |||
| T7 | Dutch Harrison |
70-82-71-71=294 | +14 | 216 |
| Jug McSpaden |
71-75-74-74=294 | |||
| Gene Sarazen |
74-73-72-75=294 | |||
| T10 | Ed Dudley |
74-74-74-73=295 | +15 | 125 |
| Lloyd Mangrum |
73-74-72-76=295 | |||
| Dick Metz |
71-74-76-74=295 |
References
- ^ a b c d e "Four players deadlock for Open golf lead". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Associated Press. June 7, 1941. p. 12.
- ^ a b c d e "Craig Wood cards 284 to triumph in National Open tournament at Fort Worth". Youngstown Vindicator. Ohio. Associated Press. June 8, 1941. p. D2.
- ^ a b "See Texas golf test of nerves". Spokesman-Review. Spokane, Washington. April 6, 1941. p. 5, sports.
- ^ a b Considine, Bob (June 6, 1941). "Shute tops Open field with 69". Milwaukee Sentinel. INS. p. B3.
- ^ a b c d "Denny Shute's 69 paces Open field". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Associated Press. June 6, 1941. p. 18. Retrieved April 5, 2013.
- ^ a b c d Bartlett, Charles (June 8, 1941). "Woods' 284 captures Open title; Shute 2d". Chicago Sunday Tribune. p. 1, part 2.
- ^ a b c Bartlett, Charles (June 7, 1941). "Three tie Shute for Open lead with 144". Chicago Daily Tribune. p. 15.
- ^ Bartlett, Charles (June 6, 1941). "Shute's 69 leads Open; Little 4th with 71". Chicago Daily Tribune. p. 29.