1972 European Tour


The 1972 European Tour was a series of golf tournaments that comprised the Professional Golfers' Association tournament circuit. It is officially recognised as the first season of the PGA European Tour.
Historically, the PGA's Order of Merit only included tournaments in Great Britain and Ireland, but in 1970 events in continental Europe were included for the first time. The circuit and organisation evolved further over the following years, adopting the name PGA European Golf Tour in 1979.
The Order of Merit was won by England's Peter Oosterhuis, who also led the standings in prize money and stroke average.

Schedule

The table below shows the 1972 European Tour schedule which was made up of 20 tournaments counting for the Order of Merit, and some non-counting tournaments that later became known as "Approved Special Events". The schedule included the major national opens around Europe, with other tournaments mostly held in England and Scotland.
There were several changes from the previous year's British PGA circuit schedule, with the inclusion of the Madrid Open, the Dutch Open and the Lancia d'Oro tournament; they joined the five national opens in continental Europe that were included in 1971. Also added were the John Player Trophy and the Scottish Open, and the returning John Player Classic and Sumrie Better-Ball tournaments; lost from the calendar were the Agfa-Gevaert Tournament, the Classic International, the Daks Tournament and the Gallaher Ulster Open.
DatesTournamentHost countryWinnerNotes
6–9 AprMasters TournamentUnited States Jack Nicklaus Major championship; non-tour event
12–15 AprSpanish OpenSpain Antonio Garrido
19–22 AprMadrid OpenSpain Jimmy Kinsella New tournament to the circuit
24–27 AprPiccadilly MedalEngland Tommy Horton
11–13 MayPenfold-Bournemouth TournamentEngland Peter Oosterhuis
17–20 MaySumrie Better-BallEngland Malcolm Gregson &
Brian Huggett 		Pairs event; not counting for the Order of Merit
25–27 MayJohn Player TrophyEngland Ross Whitehead
1–3 JunCoca-Cola Young Professionals' ChampionshipEngland Peter Oosterhuis Approved special event
8–10 JunMartini InternationalEngland Brian Barnes
17–20 JunU.S. OpenUnited States Jack Nicklaus Major championship; non-tour event
22–25 JunCarroll's InternationalRepublic of Ireland Christy O'Connor Snr
28 Jun – 1 JulSunbeam Electric Scottish OpenScotland Neil Coles
12–15 JulThe Open ChampionshipScotland Lee Trevino Major championship
20–23 JulFrench OpenFrance Barry Jaeckel
27–30 JulSwiss OpenSwitzerland Graham Marsh
3–6 AugPGA ChampionshipUnited States Gary Player Major championship; non-tour event
3–6 AugGerman OpenWest Germany Graham Marsh
10–13 AugDutch OpenNetherlands Jack Newton New tournament to the circuit
16–19 AugBenson & Hedges FestivalEngland Jack Newton
23–26 AugViyella PGA ChampionshipEngland Tony Jacklin
31 Aug – 2 SepDouble Diamond InternationalEngland EnglandApproved special event; team event
11–16 SepBenson & Hedges Match Play ChampionshipEngland John Garner
20–23 SepW.D. & H.O. Wills TournamentScotland Peter Thomson
27–30 SepJohn Player ClassicScotland Bob Charles
4–7 OctDunlop MastersEngland Bob Charles
12–14 OctPiccadilly World Match PlayEngland Tom Weiskopf Approved special event
12–15 OctItalian OpenItaly Norman Wood
19–22 OctLancia d'OroItaly José María Cañizares New tournament to the circuit

Order of Merit

The PGA European Tour's money list was known as the "Order of Merit". It was based on a points system, which meant that some players could finish lower than others despite accumulating more prize money.
PositionPlayerCountryPointsPrize money
1Peter Oosterhuis175118,525
2Guy Hunt17109,808
3Brian Huggett170210,166
4Peter Townsend16398,592
5Jack Newton16368,899
6John Garner16168,005
7Peter Butler16138,375
8Brian Barnes16029,103
9Neil Coles15978,629
10Clive Clark15755,831

Awards