1950: Bill Campbell put on a blazing finish with rounds of 68 and 65 on the final day at Parkersburg Country Club and became the first amateur to win the West Virginia Open in the 18-year history of the tournament. Campbell ended up with a 72-hole total of 274, 14 under par, and finished 13 strokes ahead of runnerup Larry Wiechman. Campbell’s brilliant 33-32–65 round equalled the amateur course record which he already shared with Jack Hoblitzell of Parkersburg. Bill Loving, an Air Force staff sergeant recruiter, held a two-stroke lead over Campbell after 36 holes but faded with 81 and 75 rounds on the last day to finish tied for seventh at 295. Wiechmancame on strong with 70 and 68 the final day to post a 287 score and take the top pro prize of $250. Finishing third at 289 was Campbell’s arch amateur rival, Ed Tutwiler. Campbell won the State Amateur earlier in the year. Leaders by rounds: first, Campbell and Loving, 69s; second, Loving 139, by two; third, Campbell 209, by eight.
a-Bill Campbell, Huntington 69-72-68-65–274
Larry Wiechman, Charleston 75-74-70-68–287
a-Ed Tutwiler, Mount Hope 70-73-74-72–289
George Hoffer, Huntington 76-74-72-68–290
a-Jack Peck, Logan 76-73-73-70–292
a-Phil Wiechman, Logan 78-71-75-70–294
a-Bill Loving, White Sulphur Springs 69-70-81-75–295
Benny Varda, Parkersburg 75-71-74-75–295
Stan Zontek, Buckhannon 73-75-75-73–296
P. O. Hart, Parkersburg 80-72-75-72–299
1951: Ed Tutwiler became the second amateur to capture the West Virginia Open by staging a final day charge at White Oak Country Club in Oak Hill for a six-stroke victory. Tutwiler began the last day two strokes behind pro Ray Vaughan, Jr., but took command on his home course with a four-under-par 66 in the morning and finished up with a 68 for a 276 total. Tutwiler, who said the Open title was the thing he wanted most, accepted his trophy from Gov. Okey Patteson. Vaughan ran in an eight-foot birdie putt on the final hole to finish second at 282 and take the top pro prize of $300. Pro Rut Coffey also birdied the last hole to finish third at 283 and pick up $200. Defending champion Bill Campbell got off to a poor start with a 42 on his first nine holes but came back with a 31 to salvage an opening 73 and eventually finished tied for fifth with a 290 total. Pro Lorn Parrish shot a 66 in the second round. Leaders by rounds: first, Vaughan and Herb Shreves 71s; second, Vaughan 140, by two; third, Tutwiler 208, by three.
a-Ed Tutwiler, Mount Hope 73-69-66-68–276
Ray Vaughan, Jr., Lewisburg 71-69-71-71–282
Rut Coffey, Moundsville 74-68-73-68–283
a-Jack Peck, Logan 73-72-72-72–289
a-Bill Campbell, Huntington 73-70-71-76–290
Deege Rangeley, Bluefield 73-71-76-70–290
a-Frank Harned, Huntington 76-71-71-73–291
George Hoffer, Huntington 75-71-73-72–291
Lorn Parrish, Parkersburg 76-66-72-79–293
Joe Kuhn, Gary 74-76-72-72–294
1952: Sam Snead missed a lot of makable putts but it didn’t really matter as he still rolled to his sixth West Virginia Open title in as many attempts. Snead strung together rounds of 68, 68, 70 and 66 on a course he knew very well, the par 70 Old White at The Greenbrier. His 272 total gave him a nine-stroke victory over defending champion Ed Tutwiler and earned him a $500 check. Snead displayed his usual brilliant tee shots and generally good approach shots but failed to make numerous six and seven-foot putts, causing him to observe that he couldn’t remember when he had been worse on the greens. Tutwiler fired a 67 in the second round and ended with a 281 total to take low amateur honors for the fourth time in five years. Pro L. B. “”Dazzy” Vance canned birdie putts on the last two holes to shoot a 68 and finish at 282, good for a $300 check. A new Sam Snead trophy for the low net score among amateurs went to John Hess of Fairmont, who had a 16-stroke handicap, a gross of 338 and a net of 274. Leaders by rounds: first, Snead 68, by three; second, Snead 136, by four; third, Snead 206, by five.
Sam Snead, White Sulphur Springs 68-68-70-66–272
a-Ed Tutwiler, Mount Hope 73-67-71-70–281
Dazzy Vance, White Sulphur Springs 71-71-72-68–282
Ray Vaughan, Jr., Lewisburg 72-68-71-73–284
George Hoffer, Huntington 71-74-70-70–285
Arnold Browning, Huntington 74-68-73-74–289
Stan Zontek, Richwood 75-71-74-73–293
Eddie Thompson, White Sulphur Springs 76-72-72-73–293
Benny Varda, Spencer 73-78-74-71–296
a-Phil Wiechman, Logan 71-71-76-80–298
Ben Wiechman, Man 72-77-77-72–298
1953: Amateur Bill Campbell became the first golfer to beat Sam Snead in the West Virginia Open, holding off the Slammer for a four-stroke victory at Parkersburg Country Club. Campbell opened with a 65 and maintained a slim lead over Snead after every round to capture his second Open title. Campbell was 17 under par at 271, Snead was 13 under at 275 and pro Joe Taylor was 10 under at 278 for third. Trailing by four strokes with nine holes left, Snead made a bid for the lead with an eagle three on the 10th hole and a birdie four on the 12th hole. But his chances died with bogeys on two of the final three holes. Campbell started his final round with four straight birdies, added another on the ninth hole and then played careful, steady par on the final nine holes to shoot a clinching 67. It was Snead’s first non-victory in seven Open attempts but he did take the top pro prize of $500. Snead and playing partners Dave Clovis and Leonard Crawley had trouble on the very first hole of the Open when a small boy dashed out onto the fairway, picked up their balls and ran. A stern Snead caught the boy and gave him a lecture. Leaders by rounds: first, Campbell 65. by two; second, Campbell 134, by one; third, Campbell 204, by two.
a-Bill Campbell, Huntington 65-69-70-67–271
Sam Snead, White Sulphur Springs 67-68-71-69–275
Joe Taylor, Charleston 70-68-71-69–278
Rut Coffey, Moundsville 72-70-72-72–286
a-Ed Tutwiler, Charleston 69-73-74-71–287
George Hoffer, Huntington 71-72-74-71–288
a-Dave Clovis, Parkersburg 73-73-70-72–288
Gary Nixon, White Sulphur Springs 72-74-74-71–291
Herb Shreves, Weirton 72-76-72-73–293
P. O. Hart, Buckhannon 75-73-73-72–293
1954: Charleston pro Joe Taylor played a cautious, deliberate game over a tough Williams Country Club course in Weirton to win the West Virginia Open by a 10-stroke margin over runnerup Ed Tutwiler. Taylor finished strong with a three-under-par 70, the best round of the tournament, and ended up with an even par total of 292. He sank putts of 30 and 20 feet on two of the last four holes to cap his victory. Taylor, the pro at Berry Hills Country Club, took home $500. He twice finished second in the Tennessee Open before moving to West Virginia. “”I played with a good man,” Taylor said, nudging Tutwiler, “”and he inspired me on.” Tutwiler, talking to the fans and his ball on every shot, matched par 73 in his final round to finish at 302. The Williams course, with its narrow fairways, played so difficult that there were only two subpar rounds: Taylor’s 70 and host pro Chuck Onoretta’s 72. Charleston pro Buddy Viar disqualified himself in the first round when he discovered that he had 15 clubs — one over the limit — in his bag. Leaders by rounds: first, Herb Shreves 74, by one; second, Taylor 149, by three; third, Taylor 222, by seven.
Joe Taylor, Charleston 76-73-73-70–292
a-Ed Tutwiler, Charleston 75-79-75-73–302
Benny Varda, Spencer 77-75-79-76–307
Sims Browning, Logan 81-76-74-76–307
Herb Shreves, Weirton 74-79-78-76–307
Chuck Onoretta, Weirton 79-82-78-72–311
a-Jack Peck, Logan 80-76-76-81–313
a-Dick Foutche, Charleston 80-80-76-77–313
Gary Nixon, White Sulphur Springs 81-81-76-76–314
Rut Coffey, Moundsville 78-79-82-76–315
a-Evo Petri, Wheeling 79-82-76-78–315
1955: The state’s two premier amateur golfers battled it out and Bill Campbell took advantage of his home course knowledge to finish five strokes ahead of Ed Tutwiler at Guyan Country Club in Huntington. It was the third West Virginia Open title for Campbell in six years. Campbell took command from the start with 67 and 66 rounds and held on for a 274 total, six under par. Tutwiler posted a 279 score. A 69 by Tut on the morning of the final day cut Campbell’s lead from six to three strokes. Campbell assured victory with birdies on the 10th and 16th holes to shoot a closing 69 while Tutwiler settled for a 71. After Tut had birdied the 15th hole with a 20-foot putt, he conceded that “”I can’t beat him now.” Campbell repeated his 1950 feat of winning both the State Amateur and State Open crowns. Defending champion Joe Taylor lost his trophy but he did finish third at 286 and earn the low pro prize of $500. Taylor trailed pro Buddy Viar by seven strokes going into the last round but made four straight birdies to fire a 68 and finish two strokes ahead of Viar. Leaders by rounds: first, Campbell 67, by three; second, Campbell 133, by six; third, Campbell 205, by three.
a-Bill Campbell, Huntington 67-66-72-69–274
a-Ed Tutwiler, Charleston 71-68-69-71–279
Joe Taylor, Charleston 70-72-76-68–286
Buddy Viar, Charleston 71-71-69-77–288
a-Dave Clovis, Parkersburg 72-71-72-74–289
a-Jack Peck, Logan 77-69-73-72–291
George Hoffer, Huntington 73-69-75-75–292
Herb Shreves, Sistersville 73-73-73-75–294
George Smith, Parkersburg 74-79-72-71–296
a-P. T. Taylor, Huntington 74-73-75-75–297
a-Linden Meade, Chapmanville 74-75-73-75–297
a-Bill Rendleman, Huntington 78-74-72-73–297
1956: Ed Tutwiler put together four rounds of near-perfect golf at The Greenbrier in White Sulphur Springs to notch his second West Virginia Open triumph. Tutwiler finished with a three-under-par total of 277 and wound up seven strokes ahead of runnerup Joe Taylor. Tut was both the State Amateur and State Open champion that year. The first, third and fourth rounds of the Open were held on the Old White course and the second round on the Greenbrier course. Tutwiler made seven birdies and four bogeys during the tournament, showing the steadiness of his play. He was sharp with his drives and iron shots but had trouble making putts as rain plagued the last two rounds. Tut’s winning prize was a set of irons which he said he would give to his wife. Taylor earned the top pro prize of $400 for his 284 score while host pro Gary Nixon was third at 288. Defending champion Bill Campbell didn’t play because of a back injury. Leaders by rounds: first, Tutwiler and Rut Coffey, 70s; second, Tutwiler 138, by three; third, Tutwiler 206, by five.
a-Ed Tutwiler, Charleston 70-68-68-71–277
Joe Taylor, Charleston 72-73-68-71–284
Gary Nixon, White Sulphur Springs 73-68-70-77–288
Dazzy Vance, Bridgeport 73-76-69-72–290
a-Dave Clovis, Parkersburg 73-71-77-71–292
Charles Beverage, White Sulphur Springs 73-75-72-73–293
Rut Coffey, Moundsville 70-76-73-75–294
Herb Shreves, Weirton 77-74-76-73–300
a-Arch Knighton, White Sulphur Springs 77-75-76-73–301
Joe Kuhn, Gary 75-72-78-78–303
a-Linden Meade, Logan 78-71-79-75–303
1957: Sam Snead finished an incredible 22 strokes ahead of his nearest competitor in the 54-hole West Virginia Open at Berry Hills Country Club in Charleston. The Slammer shot 66, 67 and 66 on the par 70 course for a 199total — 11 under par . He had 14 birdies and an eagle over the three rounds and was putting for birdies on 41 of 54 holes. It was Snead’s seventh State Open title in eight attempts. He took first place money of $300, pocket change for him, and didn’t waste any time making his getaway. He was whisked away by helicopter from in front of the clubhouse to Kanawha Airport where he began a journey to Japan for an international tournament. The Open was held in October and none of the other golfers found Berry Hills easy at all. Morgantown pro Mike Krak was the runnerup at 221 — 11 over par. Nobody except Snead could shoot a subpar round and Charleston amateur Dick Foutche had the only even par round of 70. Bill Campbell and Ed Tutwiler played with Snead the last day and both carded 71s. Host pro Joe Taylor didn’t play because of an injury. Leaders by rounds: first, Snead 66, by seven; second, Snead 133, by 12.
Sam Snead, White Sulphur Springs 66-67-66–199
Mike Krak, Morgantown 74-71-76–221
Monty Onoretta, Weirton 73-78-71–222
Buddy Viar, South Charleston 74-71-77–222
a-Bill Campbell, Huntington 77-75-71–223
a-Ed Tutwiler, Charleston 74-79-71–224
a-Dick Foutche, Charleston 77-70-78–225
Jack Ratcliffe, Huntington 75-71-79–225
a-Bill Rendleman, Huntington 75-77-78–230
George Hoffer, Huntington 77-77-78–232
1958: Sam Snead shot a pair of 67 rounds at Lakeview Country Club near Morgantown to notch his eighth West Virginia Open victory. The scheduled 54-hole tournament was cut to 36 holes because of heavy rain which washed out the second day’s round. Snead, seeing the par 71 Lakeview course for the first time, fired a 67 in the opening round to break the course record of 70 held by club pro Mike Krak. Playing partner Ed Tutwiler said he had never seen Snead call his shots the way he did that day. “”He would say he was going to hook the ball to a certain spot — that’s where she would hook. It was unbelievable,” Tutwiler said. Snead posted another 67 two days later. He had four birdies and 14 pars in each round without a single bogey. His 134 total for 36 holes was 14 strokes better than runnerup Bill Campbell’s 148. The victory was worth $300 to Snead. He finished in time to grab a plane for Pittsburgh and then flew to Miami for a series of exhibitions. Because of Snead’s commitments, Open officials were unable to schedule 36 holes on the final day. Leaders by rounds: first, Snead 67, by four.
Sam Snead, White Sulphur Springs 67-67–134
a-Bill Campbell, Huntington 71-77–148
a-Dick Foutche, Charleston 73-77–150
a-Ed Tutwiler, Charleston 76-75–151
Joe Taylor, Charleston 78-73–151
Buddy Viar, South Charleston 76-77–153
Joe Kuhn, Gary 78-76-154
Herb Shreves, Weirton 77-78–155
Reggie Spencer, Morgantown 76-79–155
Mike Krak, Morgantown 79-77–156
a-Vince Martino, Clarksburg 81-75–156
1959: Tournament not played.