1977 European Tour

Golf tour season

1977 European Tour seasonDuration| 6 April 1977 (1977-04-06) – 1 October 1977 (1977-10-01)

|

Number of official events| 22
Most wins|  Seve Ballesteros (3)
Order of Merit|  Seve Ballesteros
Sir Henry Cotton Rookie of the Year|  Nick Faldo

← 1976

1978 →

The 1977 European Tour, titled as the 1977 PGA European Tournament Players' Division,[1][2][3] was the sixth season of the European Tour, the main professional golf tour in Europe since its inaugural season in 1972.

## Changes for 1977

[edit]

There were several changes from the previous season, with the addition of the Callers of Newcastle and the Tournament Players Championship, which replaced the Piccadilly Medal.[3][4] Two events not counting for the Order of Merit, the Phillip Morris Nations Cup and the Sumrie Better-Ball, originally pencilled in for May,[5] were cancelled.[6]

## Schedule

[edit]

The following table lists official events during the 1977 season.[7][8]

Date  | Tournament  | Host country  | Purse
(£)  | Winner[a] | Notes

|
|
|
|
|

9 Apr  | Portuguese Open | Portugal  | 25,000  |  Manuel Ramos (1)  |
10 Apr  | Masters Tournament | United States  | US$280,477  |  Tom Watson (2)  | Major championship[b]
16 Apr  | Spanish Open | Spain  | 30,000  |  Bernard Gallacher (4)  |
23 Apr  | Madrid Open | Spain  | 21,500  |  Antonio Garrido (2)  |
1 May  | Italian Open | Italy  | 25,000  |  Ángel Gallardo (1)  |
8 May  | French Open | France  | 23,500  |  Seve Ballesteros (2)  |
14 May  | Benson & Hedges International Open | England  | 40,000  |  Antonio Garrido (3)  |
21 May  | Sun Alliance Match Play Championship | England  | 20,000  |  Hugh Baiocchi (4)  |
28 May  | Penfold PGA Championship | England  | 50,000  |  Manuel Piñero (3)  |
5 Jun  | Kerrygold International | Ireland  | 15,000  |  Liam Higgins (1)  |
11 Jun  | Martini International | England  | 15,000  |  Greg Norman (1)  |
19 Jun  | Greater Manchester Open | England  | 20,000  |  Eamonn Darcy (1)  |
19 Jun  | U.S. Open | United States  | US$200,000  |  Hubert Green (n/a)  | Major championship[b]
25 Jun  | Uniroyal International Championship | England  | 30,000  |  Seve Ballesteros (3)  |
9 Jul  | The Open Championship | Scotland  | 100,000  |  Tom Watson (3)  | Major championship
17 Jul  | Swiss Open | Switzerland  | 35,000  |  Seve Ballesteros (4)  |
24 Jul  | Scandinavian Enterprise Open | Sweden  | 45,000  |  Bob Byman (1)  |
31 Jul  | Callers of Newcastle | England  | 25,000  |  John Fourie (1)  | New tournament
7 Aug  | German Open | West Germany  | 30,000  |  Tienie Britz (1)  |
14 Aug  | Dutch Open | Netherlands  | 30,000  |  Bob Byman (2)  |
14 Aug  | PGA Championship | United States  | US$250,000  |  Lanny Wadkins (n/a)  | Major championship[b]
17 Aug  | Skol Lager Individual | Scotland  | 20,000  |  Nick Faldo (1)  |
28 Aug  | Carroll's Irish Open | Ireland  | 40,000  |  Hubert Green (n/a)  |
10 Sep  | Tournament Players Championship | England  | 40,000  |  Neil Coles (6)  | New tournament
1 Oct  | Dunlop Masters | England  | 40,000  |  Guy Hunt (1)  |

### Unofficial events

[edit]

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

|
|
|
|
|

2 Jul  | Phillip Morris Nations Cup | France  | –  | Cancelled | Team event
20 Aug  | Double Diamond International | Scotland  | 25,000  |  Team USA  | Team event
17 Sep  | Ryder Cup | England  | n/a  |  Team USA  | Team event
8 Oct  | Colgate World Match Play Championship | England  | 130,000  |  Graham Marsh | Limited-field event
16 Oct  | Trophée Lancôme | France  | 50,000  |  Graham Marsh |
11 Dec  | World Cup | Philippines  | US$4,200  |  Seve Ballesteros and
Antonio Garrido | Team event
World Cup Individual Trophy | US$2,100  |  Gary Player |

## Order of Merit

[edit]

The Order of Merit was based on tournament results during the season, calculated using a points-based system.[8][9]

Position | Player | Points | Prize money (£)

|
|
|

1 |  Seve Ballesteros | 28,699 | 46,436
2 |  Hugh Baiocchi | 24,159 | 32,251
3 |  Antonio Garrido | 19,728 | 21,581
4 |  Manuel Piñero | 19,173 | 26,569
5 |  Bob Byman | 18,959 | 19,452
6 |  Brian Barnes | 16,344 | 17,557
7 |  Peter Dawson | 15,941 | 17,583
8 |  Nick Faldo | 14,752 | 23,978
9 |  Francisco Abreu | 13,019 | 13,293
10 |  Ángel Gallardo | 12,975 | 14,765

## Awards

[edit]

Award | Winner | Ref.

|
|

Sir Henry Cotton Rookie of the Year |  Nick Faldo | [10]

## Notes

[edit]

1. ^ 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.
2. ^ a b c Unofficial money event at the time, but retrospectively counted as an official win.

## References

[edit]

1. ^ "Tour History". European Tour. Archived from the original on 4 April 2010. Retrieved 17 October 2023.
2. ^ Corcoran, Michael (11 May 2010). Duel in the Sun. Simon and Schuster. p. 103\. ISBN 9781439141922.
3. ^ a b Foulger, Neville (23 December 1976). "Cash boost as top players chase rising pound!". Coventry Evening Telegraph. Coventry, United Kingdom. p. 29. Retrieved 12 June 2020 - via British Newspaper Archive.
4. ^ Davies, David (21 December 1976). "European golf prizes top £1m". Birmingham Daily Post. Birmingham, United Kingdom. p. 10. Retrieved 12 June 2020 - via British Newspaper Archive.
5. ^ "Golf". Liverpool Echo. Liverpool, United Kingdom. 16 December 1976. p. 22. Retrieved 12 June 2020 - via British Newspaper Archive.
6. ^ "No Sumrie". Reading Evening Post. Reading, United Kingdom. 20 April 1977. p. 26. Retrieved 12 June 2020 - via British Newspaper Archive.
7. ^ "1977 Tournament schedule". European Tour. Retrieved 21 October 2023.
8. ^ a b Simms, George (1978). World of Golf 1978. Macdonald and Jane's. pp. 70–110\. ISBN 0354090356. Retrieved 24 November 2023 - via Archive.org.
9. ^ "Penningligan-77: Europa" [Money list-77: Europe]. Svensk Golf (in Swedish). No. 1\. January 1978. p. 17. Retrieved 21 October 2023.
10. ^ "Award for Faldo". The Daily Telegraph. London, United Kingdom. 7 October 1977. p. 32. Retrieved 21 October 2023 - via Newspapers.com.

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[edit]

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