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1965

Robert J. Murphy, Jr.

Robert J. Murphy, Jr., of Nichols, Fla., won the first Amateur Championship he entered with a 72-hole score of 291 at the Southern Hills Country Club, Tulsa, Okla. It was the first Amateur Championship to be decided entirely at stroke play.

The format provided for four 18-hole rounds in as many days. Murphy, a 22-year-old senior at the University of Florida, had taken up golf in a required physical education class at 18. Murphy's rounds were 73-69-76-73- 291.

Bob Dickson, of Muskogee, Okla., a student at Oklahoma State University, was the runner-up at 292. Dickson had the misfortune to carry a 15th club in his bag for the first two holes of the second round and so incurred a penalty of four strokes; the club was not his and he did not use it. Dickson recovered from the penalty to lead after 70 holes.

Murphy, already in with 291, waited as Dickson went one over par on each of the final two holes. Don Allen, of Rochester, a member of the 1965 Walker Cup Team, tied for third at 293 with Cesar Sanudo, of El Cajon, Calif. William C. Campbell, of Huntington, W.Va., the 1964 Champion, tied for eighth with 296. Charles R. Coe, of Oklahoma City, was the 54-hole leader at 217 and finished with an 80.

 
Championship Facts

U.S. Amateur

PAR AND YARDAGE – The Lakeside Course at The Olympic Club will play at 6,948 yards and par 35-35—70. The Ocean Course at The Olympic Club, which will be used for the first two days of stroke play only, will play at 6,786 yards and par 35-35—70.

THE OLYMPIC CLUB – Sam Whiting, a former English professor at the University of California at Berkley, designed the Lakeside Course, which opened in 1927. Whiting also supervised construction on the Ocean Course. Following completion of the jobs, Whiting stayed on as golf course superintendent until 1954. Tom Weiskopf worked on the recently completed re-design of the Ocean Course.

TICKETS AVAILABLE – Tickets can be purchased online at www.ticketmaster.com or www.ticketweb.com. Daily tickets are $15 and a weekly pass is $60. Other ticket options are also available. Children 12 and under are admitted free if accompanied by a paying adult.

COURSE SETUP – The Lakeside Course at the Olympic Club will be set for green speeds of approximately 11 feet, 6 inches on the Stimpmeter. The primary rough will be grown to 4 inches, with a strip of intermediate rough cut to 1½ inches in height. Poa annua grass covers the greens. The fairways are a rye and poa annual grass combination. The roughs also have a bit of bluegrass mixed in.

USGA SLOPE RATING® AND COURSE RATING™ – The Lakeside Course at the Olympic Club will carry a USGA Course Rating™ of 74.8 and a USGA Slope Rating® of 143. The Ocean Course will carry a USGA Course Rating™ of 74.0 and a USGA Slope Rating® of 136. An "average" Slope Rating in the U.S. is about 113.

TOTAL ENTRIES – The USGA accepted 7,398 entries for the 2007 U.S. Amateur. The most entries ever received for an Amateur championship was 7,920 in 1999 when the U.S. Amateur was played at Pebble Beach (Calif.) Golf Links.

WHO CAN ENTER – The U.S. Amateur Championship is open to amateur golfers who have a USGA Handicap Index not exceeding 2.4.

 

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