Jay Haas wins 1975 NCAA title
Wake Forest Wins Golf National Title
6/28/2020 4:00:00 PM | Men's Golf
This year marks the 45th anniversary of Wake Forest's 1975 NCAA Men's Golf Championship. GoDeacs.com will re-live that journey to the national championship by re-telling the story of each round on the corresponding date. The Deacons started on the road to the national title on June 25, 1975.
COLUMBUS, Ohio (June 28, 1975) – Wake Forest turned a six shot lead after three rounds into a 33-shot victory at the NCAA Golf Championships.
What could have been a dog fight never materialized. Wake Forest coasted on the final day, with its best team round of the week at 284 and a four-round total of 1,156. Oklahoma State had a team score of 311 and finished second at 1,189. The 33-stroke victory over the Cowboys broke the previous margin of victory in an NCAA golf championship by 20 strokes. Texas had beaten Houston by 13 shots in 1972.
Wake Forest's Jay Haas and Curtis Strange, along with Alabama's Jerry Pate, battled down the stretch for the individual title. Haas made a four-foot putt on the 18th hole to win medalist honors. He closed with a 70 and a six-under 282 total. Pate, who tied Haas for low amateur in last week's U.S. Open, finished second at 283.
More than a thousand spectators encircled the final green when the Deacons reached the 72nd hole.
Strange shot a 67, the day's best round, to finished two strokes back in third place at 284.
"I wasn't concerned with Curtis or Pate. But with my game," said Haas. "Our team spirit was unbelievable. The first three days was all team. Once I started realizing that we had it locked up then did I start to play for myself. But like Coach (Jesse) Haddock says, if you think about the team, individual honors will come."
With Haas' national title, the Deacons have claimed the top individual spot two years in a row. Strange was the medalist in 1974.
"I was making birdies out of my ear and still couldn't catch you," Strange told his victorious teammate after the round.
Other final round scores for the Deacons included a 73 for Bob Bynam, David Thore shot 74 and Tim Saylor finished at 80. Byman finished in a tie for fourth individually while Thore finished in a tie for 33rd.
Ahead by six strokes entering the day, the Deacons extended that to a 14-shot lead after the first nine.
"I felt all along that we were number one but I haven't said anything much about it," said Wake Forest head coach Jesse Haddock. "I knew we'd get a chance to prove it here. Now I don't think there's any doubt. I've kept this back, but I really felt we could play better than we had."
Haddock was proud of Strange's final day 67 which jumped him into contention for medalist honors. Strange was the NCAA individual champion in 1974.
"Strange is so explosive that after his two-over par yesterday, I knew he'd be coming back," said Haddock.
The victory marks the second national championship for Haddock.
"I'm not going to get into which of the teams I've had at Wake Forest is best, but there's no doubt that this one stacks up," said Jesse. "There was pressure being defending champions but once you get the first one, you know how."
Haas was tied with Pate going to the 14th tee. Haas reached the par five in two and two-putted for a birdie and a one-stroke lead that he would not relinquish.
"There was more pressure than in the U.S. Open," Haas admitted. "Here I was in a position to win it. I was out of it the last day in the Open."
"I was aware that Pate had caught me in the last round of the Open. I was trying not to match up with Jerry. I didn't want him to catch me again."
Strange was reflective of his final round and thrilled with the national championship.
"I could have shot a 60 today," said Curtis. "I thought yesterday 'I have blown it.' I just came out today prepared to scramble for the team. But the team race got so out of hand, the individual championship was all that remained. I gave it all that I had on the back side going for birdie. I would have been disappointed losing the title if anyone other than Jay had won."
Wake Forest finished with two of the top three individuals, three of the top six and four of the top 10.
The national championship makes Wake Forest the leader in the Atlantic Coast Conference in national titles. Combined with the 1955 baseball national championship, Wake Forest now has three national titles. No other ACC school owns more than one national championship.
PROLOGUE
Jim Waters Orlando Sentinel Star, summarized Wake Forest's win thusly: "Three Deacons were in the top five and they weren't Arnold Palmer, Lanny Wadkins and Eddie Pearce. They were three fuzzy-faced, limber-backed kids named Jay Haas, Curtis Strange and Bob Byman. Add 21-year-old David Thore and you have the murderer's row of collegiate golf."
The 1975 Wake Forest team has been widely acclaimed as the best college golf team of all-time. Scott Hoch, who went on to notch 11 PGA Tour wins, was a freshman on the team but did not play in the NCAA Championship, that's how good the Deacons were in 1975.
"We were young, we were cocky and the world was uncomplicated," Strange once told Golf Digest of his college team.
Curtis Strange would go on to win back-to-back U.S. Opens in 1988 and 1989. He won 17 times on the PGA Tour and topped the money list in 1985, 1987 and 1988. Strange was the first PGA Tour golfer to win $1 million in a season in 1988. He has worked as a TV analyst with ESPN/ABC and Fox. He was inducted into the Wake Forest Sports Hall of Fame, along with Jay Haas, in 1987, and into the World Golf Hall of Fame in 2007.
Jay Haas won nine times on the PGA Tour and added 18 senior tour wins including three majors. He played 798 carer PGA Tour events and made a record 592 cuts. He has won numerous awards including the Payne Stewart Award, the Jim Murray Award, the Champions Tour Rookie of the Year, the Bob Jones Award and both the Arnold Palmer Award and the Jack Nicklaus Trophy. In 2015, Jay was captain of the United States team in the President's Cup and his son, Bill, anchored the final day with a victory that gave the Americans the win over the International Team.
Bob Byman played on the PGA Tour and the European Tour, accumulating six professional wins world-wide. His lone PGA Tour victory came in 1979 at the Bay Hill Classic. He was an All-ACC selection in 1975 and 1976 and the 1972 US Junior Amateur Champion. Byman was the medalist at the 1974 ACC Championship and a second team All-American in 1975 and 1976.
Tim Saylor was one of the top amateur players in Forsyth County, winning the Forsyth County Invitational three times in the 1990s. He last appeared in the 2006 U.S. Senior Open Championship in Newport. R.I.
David Thore played 114 PGA Tour events and finished inside the top 125 on the money list in 1981. In 1982, he became the first pro in the history of the Tournament Players Championship to hit into the water surrounding the 17th hole's island green. He remains active in the Carolinas Section of the PGA and was the 2017 CPGA Senior Player of the Year. He was a third team All-American in 1975 and an honorable mention All-American in 1973, '74 and '76.
Jesse Haddock wound up coaching the Wake Forest golf team for 33 years. He won 15 ACC Championships and three NCAA Championships. Wake Forest's world-class golf facility, the Haddock House, is named in his honor. Jesse passed away in March 2018 at the age of 91.
COLUMBUS, Ohio (June 28, 1975) – Wake Forest turned a six shot lead after three rounds into a 33-shot victory at the NCAA Golf Championships.
What could have been a dog fight never materialized. Wake Forest coasted on the final day, with its best team round of the week at 284 and a four-round total of 1,156. Oklahoma State had a team score of 311 and finished second at 1,189. The 33-stroke victory over the Cowboys broke the previous margin of victory in an NCAA golf championship by 20 strokes. Texas had beaten Houston by 13 shots in 1972.
Wake Forest's Jay Haas and Curtis Strange, along with Alabama's Jerry Pate, battled down the stretch for the individual title. Haas made a four-foot putt on the 18th hole to win medalist honors. He closed with a 70 and a six-under 282 total. Pate, who tied Haas for low amateur in last week's U.S. Open, finished second at 283.
More than a thousand spectators encircled the final green when the Deacons reached the 72nd hole.
Strange shot a 67, the day's best round, to finished two strokes back in third place at 284.
"I wasn't concerned with Curtis or Pate. But with my game," said Haas. "Our team spirit was unbelievable. The first three days was all team. Once I started realizing that we had it locked up then did I start to play for myself. But like Coach (Jesse) Haddock says, if you think about the team, individual honors will come."
With Haas' national title, the Deacons have claimed the top individual spot two years in a row. Strange was the medalist in 1974.
"I was making birdies out of my ear and still couldn't catch you," Strange told his victorious teammate after the round.
Other final round scores for the Deacons included a 73 for Bob Bynam, David Thore shot 74 and Tim Saylor finished at 80. Byman finished in a tie for fourth individually while Thore finished in a tie for 33rd.
Ahead by six strokes entering the day, the Deacons extended that to a 14-shot lead after the first nine.
"I felt all along that we were number one but I haven't said anything much about it," said Wake Forest head coach Jesse Haddock. "I knew we'd get a chance to prove it here. Now I don't think there's any doubt. I've kept this back, but I really felt we could play better than we had."
Haddock was proud of Strange's final day 67 which jumped him into contention for medalist honors. Strange was the NCAA individual champion in 1974.
"Strange is so explosive that after his two-over par yesterday, I knew he'd be coming back," said Haddock.
The victory marks the second national championship for Haddock.
"I'm not going to get into which of the teams I've had at Wake Forest is best, but there's no doubt that this one stacks up," said Jesse. "There was pressure being defending champions but once you get the first one, you know how."
Haas was tied with Pate going to the 14th tee. Haas reached the par five in two and two-putted for a birdie and a one-stroke lead that he would not relinquish.
"There was more pressure than in the U.S. Open," Haas admitted. "Here I was in a position to win it. I was out of it the last day in the Open."
"I was aware that Pate had caught me in the last round of the Open. I was trying not to match up with Jerry. I didn't want him to catch me again."
Strange was reflective of his final round and thrilled with the national championship.
"I could have shot a 60 today," said Curtis. "I thought yesterday 'I have blown it.' I just came out today prepared to scramble for the team. But the team race got so out of hand, the individual championship was all that remained. I gave it all that I had on the back side going for birdie. I would have been disappointed losing the title if anyone other than Jay had won."
Wake Forest finished with two of the top three individuals, three of the top six and four of the top 10.
The national championship makes Wake Forest the leader in the Atlantic Coast Conference in national titles. Combined with the 1955 baseball national championship, Wake Forest now has three national titles. No other ACC school owns more than one national championship.
PROLOGUE
Jim Waters Orlando Sentinel Star, summarized Wake Forest's win thusly: "Three Deacons were in the top five and they weren't Arnold Palmer, Lanny Wadkins and Eddie Pearce. They were three fuzzy-faced, limber-backed kids named Jay Haas, Curtis Strange and Bob Byman. Add 21-year-old David Thore and you have the murderer's row of collegiate golf."
The 1975 Wake Forest team has been widely acclaimed as the best college golf team of all-time. Scott Hoch, who went on to notch 11 PGA Tour wins, was a freshman on the team but did not play in the NCAA Championship, that's how good the Deacons were in 1975.
"We were young, we were cocky and the world was uncomplicated," Strange once told Golf Digest of his college team.
Curtis Strange would go on to win back-to-back U.S. Opens in 1988 and 1989. He won 17 times on the PGA Tour and topped the money list in 1985, 1987 and 1988. Strange was the first PGA Tour golfer to win $1 million in a season in 1988. He has worked as a TV analyst with ESPN/ABC and Fox. He was inducted into the Wake Forest Sports Hall of Fame, along with Jay Haas, in 1987, and into the World Golf Hall of Fame in 2007.
Jay Haas won nine times on the PGA Tour and added 18 senior tour wins including three majors. He played 798 carer PGA Tour events and made a record 592 cuts. He has won numerous awards including the Payne Stewart Award, the Jim Murray Award, the Champions Tour Rookie of the Year, the Bob Jones Award and both the Arnold Palmer Award and the Jack Nicklaus Trophy. In 2015, Jay was captain of the United States team in the President's Cup and his son, Bill, anchored the final day with a victory that gave the Americans the win over the International Team.
Bob Byman played on the PGA Tour and the European Tour, accumulating six professional wins world-wide. His lone PGA Tour victory came in 1979 at the Bay Hill Classic. He was an All-ACC selection in 1975 and 1976 and the 1972 US Junior Amateur Champion. Byman was the medalist at the 1974 ACC Championship and a second team All-American in 1975 and 1976.
Tim Saylor was one of the top amateur players in Forsyth County, winning the Forsyth County Invitational three times in the 1990s. He last appeared in the 2006 U.S. Senior Open Championship in Newport. R.I.
David Thore played 114 PGA Tour events and finished inside the top 125 on the money list in 1981. In 1982, he became the first pro in the history of the Tournament Players Championship to hit into the water surrounding the 17th hole's island green. He remains active in the Carolinas Section of the PGA and was the 2017 CPGA Senior Player of the Year. He was a third team All-American in 1975 and an honorable mention All-American in 1973, '74 and '76.
Jesse Haddock wound up coaching the Wake Forest golf team for 33 years. He won 15 ACC Championships and three NCAA Championships. Wake Forest's world-class golf facility, the Haddock House, is named in his honor. Jesse passed away in March 2018 at the age of 91.
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