Billy Casper

Billy Casper, 52, of Mapleton, Utah, holed a 10-foot putt for a birdie on the first extra hole of a playoff round against Rod Funseth to win the U.S. Senior Open Championship, his third USGA title. Casper, the 1959 and 1966 U.S. Open Champion, shot 288, four over par, on rounds of 73-69-73-73. Funseth shot 73-71-74-70-288. Each shot 75 in the scheduled 18-hole playoff, and Casper then birdied the extra hole. The Championship was played at the Hazeltine National Golf Club, in Chaska, Minnesota.

Three players tied for the lead at the end of the first round, with 70, one under par. They were Jack Harden, 70; John Cook, a Minnesota club professional; and Richard King, who played the first nine in 30, a record. Roberto De Vicenzo, the first Senior Open Champion, in 1980, was among a group of eight players at 71. Defending Champion Miller Barber, Casper, Funseth, and Arnold Palmer, the 1981 Senior Open Champion, were at 73. De Vicenzo moved into the 36-hole lead, at 141, by shooting 70 in the second round. One stroke behind, at 142, were Casper, who had 69, the lowest round of the Championship; Miller Barber and Dan Sikes, Jr., each with 70; and Guy Wolstenholme, with his second consecutive 71. Funseth's 71 left him at 144, two strokes behind.

Gusty winds caused high scores in the third round. Casper took the lead with a 73 that gave him a 54-hole score of 215, two over par, and a three-stroke lead over De Vicenzo, who struggled to a 77; Jerry Barber, with 73; and Funseth, with 74. Miller Barber, Wolstenholme, and Sikes all shot 78 to fall five strokes behind Casper. In the fourth round, Casper played the first nine in even par while Funseth lost one stroke. With nine holes to play, Casper led Funseth by four strokes. Miller Barber and Wolstenholme were five back. Funseth birdied the 10th and 11th holes to move two strokes closer, and when Casper bogeyed the 12th, Funseth was only one behind. He drew even when Casper bogeyed the 14th. Miller Barber, meanwhile, birdied three holes on the closing nine, but he lost a stroke at the 18th and shot 70, for a 290 finish, one stroke ahead of Wolstenholme, who had another 71. Funseth took the lead with a birdie at the 17th. Playing just ahead of Casper, Funseth drove into a fairway bunker on the 18th hole and bogeyed. Tied with Funseth at that point, Casper drove from the 18th tee into the rough, missed the green with a 7-iron, but chipped within two feet and holed the putt to set up the playoff. Casper, who had lost a playoff for the 1981 Senior Open to Palmer, fell three strokes behind after four holes, but by the end of nine, he had made up all three strokes. He was one stroke ahead going to the last hole, but bogeyed, causing extra holes.

On the extra hole, Casper drove 280 yards, hit his 8-iron to within 10 feet of the hole, and holed the winning putt. Despite the overall high scoring, the field recorded 12 under-par rounds, the most for any Senior Open. Fifty-three professionals and nine amateurs mad the 36-hole cut, at 155, 13 over par. A total of $173, 280 in prize money was awarded, including $30, 566 to Casper. The USGA accepted a record 756 entries.