Cooper and Harmon Fire 142 to Win PGA Medalist Honors: Ferrier, Ghezzi and Klein Single Stroke off Leaders; DeVincenzo Fails to Qualify, Daily Racing Form, 1951-06-29

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► Cooper and Harmon Fire 142 To Win PGA Medalist Honors Ferrier, Ghezzi and Klein ] Single Stroke Off Leaders; DeVincenzo Fails to Qualify By OSCAR FRALEY United Press Sports Writer OAKMONT, Pa., June 28. — Pudgy Pete Cooper, a one-time Florida truck driver, and teaching pro Claude Harmon showed the major tournament stars the way today as they tied for early medalist honors in the Professional Golfers Association championship with 142 totals. Cooper, now a pro at White Plains, N. Y., and Harmon, from nearby Mamaroneck, N. Y., both carded 37-37 — 70 in the second and final qualifying round which precedes five days of match play over Oakmont Country Clubs rolling acres. That put them one stroke ahead of Jim Ferrier, the first round leader, with a 69 who skidded «to 74; another former champion, Vic Ghezzi, who added a 69 to a previous 74, and chunky Chuck Klein, of San Antonio, Tex., who posted a 71 to go with a first round 72. With three-quarters of the field in, only one major links luminary, Mexican open champion Roberto DeVincenzo, with a 158 total, appeared to have been shut out of the match play series which begins tomorrow and winds up next Tuesday, when two finalists battle it out for the crown. While four men bested par after an all-night rainstorm slowed Oakmonts tremendous greens, only one man was able to match regulation figures for the two qualifying rounds. He was Porky Oliver, of Seattle, whose closing 73 gave him a 144 total. Snead Has 145 Total Slammin Sam Snead, of White Sulphur Springs, W. Va., two-time champion favored to regain the title, was out today with a two under par 35, but rocketed to a two over par 37 coming home for a 72, which gave him a 145 total. That banked him in the same bracket with Chick Har-bert, the long-driving star from Northville, Mich., who fired a 70; George Fazio, of Pine Valley, N. J., former U. S. open run- [ ner-up, who had a 72, and Frank Com-misso, -of Brighton Station, N. Y., widely known as tutor pf national amateur champion Sam Urzetta, who had a 74. Out of the medalist race but safely into the match play rounds at 147 was Lawson Little, former National Open king from Pebble Beach, Calif., who had a second round 74. At 149 came Denny Shute, another former PGA kind, with a 74; long-driving Johnny Bulla of Verona, Pa., with 74, and Henry Williams of Kutztown, Pa., last years runner-up, with 74. Barely within the safety zone with 150 were Jackie Burke, young tournament star from Houston, Texas., with a 73; Herman Keiser of Niles, HI., with 76, and Clayton Heafner of Charlotte, N. C, with 73. On the extreme borderline but apparently safe with 151 were former champion Bob Hamilton of Evansville, Ind., who had a 74, and Toney Penna of Cincinnati, with a 75. Cooper was firing deadly irons as he went out in 33, four under the card, but ran into putting troubles, coming home with a two over par 37. On the 483 -yard par five opening hole he knocked a three iron 12 feet from the flag and ran it in for an eagle. He birdied the 343-yard par four second by hitting a nine iron five feet from the hole and canning it. For six straight holes after that he matched par and then closed the out-nine with a birdie four on the ninth by hitting his brassie second 40 feet from the cup and two-putting.


Persistent Link: https://drf.uky.edu/catalog/1950s/drf1951062901/drf1951062901_2_2
Local Identifier: drf1951062901_2_2
Library of Congress Record: https://lccn.loc.gov/unk82075800