1956 LPGA Tour
The 1956 LPGA Tour was the seventh season since the LPGA Tour officially began in 1950. The season ran from January 14 to October 21. The season consisted of 25 official money events. Marlene Hagge won the most tournaments, eight. She also led the money list with earnings of $20,235.
The season saw the first tournament outside United States, the Havana Open in Cuba. There were five first-time winners in 1956, Kathy Cornelius, Betty Dodd, Mary Lena Faulk, Mickey Wright, and Joyce Ziske. Wright would win 82 LPGA events in her career, second only to Kathy Whitworth's 88.
The tournament results and award winners are listed below.
Tournament results
The following table shows all the official money events for the 1956 season. "Date" is the ending date of the tournament. The numbers in parentheses after the winners' names are the number of wins they had on the tour up to and including that event. Majors are shown in bold.Date | Tournament | Location | Winner | Score | Purse | 1st prize |
Jan 15 | Sea Island Open | Georgia | Marlene Hagge | 152 | 3,000 | 630 |
Jan 22 | Tampa Open | Florida | Betsy Rawls | 293 | 4,500 | 900 |
Feb 5 | Havana Open | Cuba | Louise Suggs | 227 | 4,500 | 1,000 |
Feb 12 | Serbin Open | Florida | Fay Crocker | 144 | 3,500 | 630 |
Feb 19 | St. Petersburg Open | Florida | Kathy Cornelius | 287 | 5,000 | 900 |
Feb 26 | Sarasota Open | Florida | Betsy Rawls | 291 | 5,000 | 1,000 |
Mar 5 | Jacksonville Open | Florida | Mickey Wright | 294 | 4,500 | 900 |
Mar 11 | Titleholders Championship | Georgia | Louise Suggs | 302 | 5,000 | 1,000 |
Apr 15 | Babe Zaharias Open | Texas | Marlene Hagge | 219 | 4,000 | 900 |
Apr 22 | Dallas Open | Texas | Patty Berg | 291 | 7,500 | 1,350 |
Apr 29 | Peach Blossom Open | South Carolina | Betsy Rawls | 292 | 4,000 | 900 |
Jun 3 | Pittsburgh Open | Pennsylvania | Marlene Hagge | 293 | 6,000 | |
Jun 10 | Triangle Round Robin | Virginia | Marlene Hagge | +50 | 10,000 | 2,000 |
Jun 24 | LPGA Championship | Michigan | Marlene Hagge | 291 | 6,500 | 1,350 |
Jul 1 | Women's Western Open | Iowa | Beverly Hanson | 304 | 5,000 | 1,000 |
Jul 8 | Syracuse Open | New York | Joyce Ziske | 221 | 6,500 | 1,316 |
Jul 29 | U.S. Women's Open | Minnesota | Kathy Cornelius | 302 | 6,000 | 1,500 |
Aug 5 | All American Open | Illinois | Louise Suggs | 301 | 5,000 | 1,000 |
Aug 12 | World Championship | Illinois | Marlene Hagge | 298 | 14,000 | 6,000 |
Aug 19 | St. Louis Open | Missouri | Fay Crocker | 288 | 4,000 | 880 |
Aug 26 | Denver Open | Colorado | Marlene Hagge | 284 | 4,000 | 800 |
Sep 16 | Clock Open | California | Marlene Hagge | 292 | 4,500 | 900 |
Oct 7 | Kansas City Open | Missouri | Mary Lena Faulk | 214 | 5,000 | 880 |
Oct 14 | Arkansas Open | Arkansas | Patty Berg | 287 | 4,000 | 880 |
Oct 21 | Lawton Open | Oklahoma | Betty Dodd | 214 | 4,000 | 880 |