1960: Famed touring pros Arnold Palmer and Art Wall played in the West Virginia Open at Spring Valley Country Club in Huntington but the championship was won by an old, familiar name, Sam Snead. The Slammer put together rounds of 64, 64 (including 29 on the back nine) and 67 on the hilly par-70 course for a 195 total and a one-stroke victory over Wall and a four-stroke margin over Palmer. Snead, who won the State Open for the ninth time, didn’t stay around to collect the $1,200 first prize because he thought Wall was going to win. Wall shot a course-record 62 to take the first round lead and was tied with Snead at 128 after the second round. Wall started two hours later than Snead in the final round and was a stroke behind with eight holes left. “”Wall’s got this thing going away,” Snead said before hopping in his car. However, Wall seemed to lose his putting touch and finished with eight straight pars for a 68 and 196 total, good for a $750 check. Palmer, the 1960 Masters and U.S. Open champion, helped lure a crowd estimated at 3,500 on the final day of the $5,000 Open. Palmer didn’t putt especially well but stayed in contention with rounds of 66, 67 and 66 for a 199 total and a $450 prize. Young pro Tom Nichols of South Charleston fired a final round 64 to take fourth place at 203. Leaders by rounds: first, Wall 62, by two; second, Snead and Wall, 128s.
Sam Snead, White Sulphur Springs 64-64-67–195
Art Wall, Pocono Manor, Pa. 62-66-68–196
Arnold Palmer, Ligonier, Pa. 66-67-66–199
Tom Nichols, South Charleston 72-67-64–203
Joe Taylor, Charleston 71-69-66–206
Don Shock, Columbus, Ohio 70-66-70–206
a-Ed Tutwiler, Charleston 67-72-67–206
Al Atkins, Ashland, Ky. 70-70-67–207
Roy Shreves, Sistersville 73-71-65–209
Jim Barber, Winchester, Ky. 69-67-74–210
1961: Sam Snead, rolling along like the Ohio River that borders the Riviera Country Club near Huntington, finished 19 under par for 54 holes and captured his 10th West Virginia Open crown. Snead shot rounds of 65, 63 and 63 for a 191 total on the par-70 Riviera course and finished five strokes ahead of runnerup Al Atkins of Ashland, Ky. Snead birdied four of the first five holes in the final round to pull away. Snead’s total doesn’t include a course record 61, including three eagles and three birdies, that he fired in a practice round the first time he saw the course. Snead was not the only golfer burning up the short, flat course. Atkins, the 1961 Kentucky PGA champion and 1960 Kentucky Open winner, posted a 62 in the second round and took second at 196. Young pro Roy Shreves, 24, of Sistersville had a 64 to take the first round lead and finished third at 197. Denny Shute, a Huntington native and currently a pro in Akron, Ohio, shot a final round 64 to tie for fourth at 199 with Joe Taylor of Charleston. Pro George Hoffer fired a 63 and amateur Ed Tutwiler a 64 in the second round. A field of 122 players from six states took part. Leaders by rounds: first, Shreves 64, by one; second, Snead 128, by one.
Sam Snead, White Sulphur Springs 65-63-63–191
Al Atkins, Ashland, Ky. 69-62-65–196
Roy Shreves, Sistersville 64-65-68–197
Joe Taylor, Charleston 67-65-67–199
Denny Shute, Akron, Ohio 69-66-64–199
George Hoffer, Hurricane 67-63-70–200
Jack Radcliff, Columbus, Ohio 68-67-66–201
a-Don Stickney, Columbus, Ohio 66-70-65–201
a-Ed Tutwiler, Charleston 67-64-71–202
a-Jim Ward, Huntington 66-67-69–202
1962: Amateur Ed Tutwiler won his third West Virginia Open title at Sleepy Hollow Golf Club in Hurricane despite a record-breaking round by pro Joe Taylor. Tutwiler put together rounds of 71 and 67 for a winning total of 138. Taylor broke the Sleepy Hollow course record with a 65 in the final round to finish a stroke behind at 139. The tournament was reduced from 54 to 36 holes because rain, snow and near-freezing temperature in late October caused cancellation of the first day’s round. The players completed their rounds the next day despite temperature in the mid-30s. Bill Campbell carried a hand-warmer in each pocket and wore heavy mittens between shots. The temperature warmed up for the final day and so did Taylor, who eagled the par-five No. 2 and No. 7 holes and birdied No. 5, No. 11 and No. 14. for his 65. Tutwiler had five birdies of his own to hold onto the lead. Tom Weiskopf, an amateur from Columbus who later became a famous pro, tied for eighth place. John Shelton, a black golfer and the captain of the West Virginia State College team, was denied the right to play in the tournament. Leaders by rounds: first, Tutwiler 71, by one.
a-Ed Tutwiler, Charleston 71-67–138
Joe Taylor, Charleston 74-65–139
Adolph Popp, Keyser 75-69–144
Dennis Bradley, Rocky River, Ohio 76-68–144
Don Spears, Columbus, Ohio 73-72–145
Linden Meade, Man 72-73–145
a-Bill Campbell, Huntington 74-72–146
Al Atkins, Ashland, Ky. 74-73–147
Jack Radcliff, Columbus, Ohio 76-71–147
Gene Thompson, Oak Hill 77-70–147
a-Tom Weiskopf, Columbus, Ohio 75-72–147
1963: Young pro Linden Meade, 26, of Man led all the way at Kanawha Country Club in South Charleston to win his first West Virginia Open title and become just the second state golfer to outshoot Sam Snead in an Open. Meade fired an opening round 65 with five birdies and added 69 and 71 scores for a 205 total, five under par. Pro Don Stickney of Columbus, Ohio, finished a stroke back at 206 while Snead came in third at 207. Meade thought the 11th hole in the final round was the most crucial. Leading Stickney by one and Snead by two strokes, Meade hooked his drive out of bounds. Meade then switched to a three-wood, drove down the middle, punched a five-iron shot to eight feet and made the putt for a bogey five. Snead three-putted and Stickney took three from the fringe for bogeys, failing to gain any ground. Bill Campbell congratulated Meade after the win, “”You beat Sam — the greatest in the world. To me, just to see him swing the club is a joy.” Snead had putting woes in the Open, missing nine putts of six feet or less and three more of from eight to 10 feet. Leaders by rounds: first, Meade 65, by two; second, Meade 134, by one.
Linden Meade, Man 65-69-71–205
Don Stickney, Columbus, Ohio 69-68-69–206
Sam Snead, White Sulphur Springs 67-68-72–207
a-Bill Campbell, Huntington 69-71-68–208
Joe Taylor, Charleston 72-69-68–209
Al Atkins, Ashland, Ky. 73-74-64–211
a-Bob Johnson, Charleston 73-68-71–212
Adolph Popp, Oak Hill 75-68-69–212
Tom Nichols, South Charleston 71-73-68–212
a-Chuck Smith, Columbus, Ohio 71-73-68–212
1964: Pro George Hoffer of Hurricane had to play the last three holes in the dark with the aid of automobile headlights but still rolled to an eight-stroke victory at the Par Mar Pines course in Parkersburg to claim his second West Virginia Open title. Hoffer began the tournament with a 77 to fall 10 strokes back but got into contention with a course record 65 in the second round. Hoffer trailed Joe Taylor by four strokes going into the final day but shot a 70 in the morning to grab a one-stroke lead. Hoffer then fired a 67 in the afternoon despite rain and darkness descending on his foursome. Hoffer ended up with a 72-hole total of 279, one under par for the Par Mar Pines course. Taylor led after the first two rounds with 67 and 71 scores but had problems in the rain on the final day for 75 and 74 rounds and a 287 total as the runnerup. Ohio Open champion Don Stickney tied for third with Billy Capps and Jerry McFerren with 290 scores. Herman Keiser of Copley, Ohio, the 1946 Masters champion, tied for seventh. Sam Snead was unable to play because of a virus and Bill Campbell and Ed Tutwiler also missed the tournament. Leaders by rounds: first, Taylor 67, by two; second, Taylor 138, by one; third, Hoffer 212, by one.
George Hoffer, Hurricane 77-65-70-67–279
Joe Taylor, Charleston 67-71-75-74–287
Billy Capps, Beckley 69-70-76-75–290
Don Stickney, Columbus, Ohio 77-68-72-73–290
a-Jerry McFerren, Silver Spring, Md. 71-69-77-73–290
Tom Cassady, Circleville, Ohio 75-69-72-76–292
Herman Keiser, Copley, Ohio 70-73-74-76–293
Jack Radcliff, Columbus, Ohio 76-74-70-73–293
Don Spears, Columbus, Ohio 71-77-69-77–294
Reggie Spencer, Morgantown 77-71-73-74–295
Dominick Capatosta, Akron, Ohio 71-73-72-79–295
Tim DeBaufre, Pittsburgh, Pa. 73-73-76-73–295
1965: Joe Taylor took command of the tournament with a 69 in the second round and breezed to a 10-stroke victory in the Open at Lakeview Country Club near Morgantown. Taylor earned $500 in nabbing his second Open title. He posted an even par 213 total for 54 holes in outplaying defending champion George Hoffer, who came in second with a 223 score. Taylor shared the first round lead with Adolph Popp with 72s but then built a seven-stroke lead on the second day with his 69, the tournament’s best round on the tough Lakeview course. Taylor coasted to victory on the third day with a closing 72. Hoffer carded a 73 in the final round to edge Reggie Spencer for second place. Popp faltered the last two rounds and tied for fourth. Jim Hess of Morgantown was the low amateur with a 238 total and earned $200, the maximum prize for an amateur. Tournament officials decided to shorten the Open from 72 to 54 holes to prevent a recurrence of the 1964 tournament which finished in the dark. Leaders by rounds: first, Taylor and Popp 72s; second, Taylor 141, by seven.
Joe Taylor, Charleston 72-69-72–213
George Hoffer, Hurricane 75-75-73–223
Reggie Spencer, Morgantown 76-74-75–225
Adolph Popp, Oak Hill 72-79-75–226
Ray Grabowski, Monongahela Valley, Pa. 77-75-74–226
Bill Durniak, Pittsburgh, Pa. 75-73-79–227
Charles Smith, Cleveland, Ohio 77-78-74–229
Chuck Scally, Pittsburgh, Pa. 80-77-73–230
Linden Meade, Man 74-77-79–230
Frank Sluciak, Morgantown 82-81-70–233
1966: Sam Snead led from start to finish at South Hills Golf Club in Parkersburg in locking up his 11th West Virginia Open championship. He increased his lead after every round in posting a 199 total — 11 under par — for 54 holes and winning by 10 strokes. Snead earned the top prize of $500 out of the total $3,000 purse. He shook off a double bogey six in the first round in shooting a 67 and then pulled away from the field with a competitive course record of 32-32–64 in the second round. Sam clipped two more strokes off par with a 68 in the final round, managing four birdies despite chilly 50-degree October breezes. Pro Tom Cassady of Marietta, Ohio, finished second at 209 ahead of Billy Capps (211) of Beckley and defending champion Joe Taylor (212) of Charleston. The low amateur was Ken Doyle, a sophomore at Morris Harvey College who was the West Virginia Conference golf champion the past school year. Doyle finished in a tie for seventh at 215. Being late at the tee cost pro Norm Rack of Elizabeth, Pa., a two-stroke penalty and $100. He tied for seventh at 215 and won $150 instead of $250. Leaders by rounds: first, Snead 67, by one; second. Snead 131, by seven.
Sam Snead, White Sulphur Springs 67-64-68–199
Tom Cassady, Marietta, Ohio 70-68-71–209
Billy Capps, Beckley 68-71-72–211
Joe Taylor, Charleston 70-70-72–212
Jim Keim, Jr., Erie, Pa. 72-67-74–213
Horace Ervin, Charleston 70-71-73–214
Billy Collins, Columbus, Ohio 70-71-74–215
a-Ken Doyle, Charleston 71-73-71–215
Norm Rack, Elizabeth, Pa. 68-74-73–215
Linden Meade, Man 71-72-73–216
Cliff Cook, Akron, Ohio 71-75-70–216
Joe Stoddard, Cleveland, Ohio 73-79-73–216
1967: Sam Snead birdied the third hole in a sudden death playoff with host pro Roy Shreves at Moundsville Country Club to capture his 12th West Virginia Open title. Snead hit a wedge shot from 90 yards to within one foot of the pin on the 346-yard third hole. Shreves’ second shot rolled over the green and his pitch shot from 30 feet missed two feet to the left. Shreves held a three-stroke lead with five holes remaining in regulation but bogeyed No. 14 and No. 15 to lose two of the strokes. Snead pulled into a tie by sinking an 18-foot birdie putt on the tough 464-yard 16th hole. Snead shot a final round 69 for a 54-hole total of even par 210. Shreves had a final 71 for his 210 total. Snead got a first place prize of $1,200 while Shreves earned $925 for second place in the $7,000 tournament. George Hoffer finished with a 69 for a 211 total, missing the playoff by a stroke and earning $750 for third place. Snead won despite being troubled with a stomach ailment. “”Roy was pretty nice to me on that back nine. He obliged me by making some bogeys. If you stick in there and keep plugging away, you don’t know what will happen,” Snead said. Shreves, 29, commented about Snead, 55, “”The old guy is pretty tough.” A record field of 171 entered the Open. Leaders by rounds: first, A. J. Gray, Jr., 68, by one; second, Shreves 139, by two.
Sam Snead, White Sulphur Springs 70-71-69–210
Roy Shreves, Moundsville 69-70-71–210
George Hoffer, Hurricane 72-70-69–21l
a-A. J. Gray, Jr., Wheeling 68-73-72–213
a-Chester Guzak, Moundsville 69-74-70–213
Bob Shave, Hollywood, Fla. 74-72-67–213
Herman Keiser, Akron, Ohio 71-71-73–215
Joe Taylor, Charleston 71-70-74–215
Billy Capps, Beckley 72-73-70–215
Tom Cassady, Marietta, Ohio 76-70-69–215
Chuck Rotar, Lawton, Okla. 72-75-68–215
1968: Sam Snead captured his third straight West Virginia Open and 13th title overall in a rain-shortened tournament at Sleepy Hollow Golf Club in Hurricane. The first round and final round of the scheduled 72-hole tournament were washed out, reducing the event to 36 holes. Snead shot a pair of 69s in the two rounds that were played for a 138 total and a five-stroke victory over runnerup Billy Capps. Snead, Capps and Linden Meade actually played nine holes in the rain on the final day before the decision was made to halt play. Snead was two under par for the nine holes and nine strokes ahead of Capps and 12 ahead of Meade after 45 holes, although the scores for the nine holes didn’t count. “”I bet I have won more tournaments in the rain, in the mud and in the cold than I have in good weather. I can adjust to bad weather,” said Snead, who had 11 birdies in 45 holes. Snead won the $500 first prize while Capps earned $400 and Meade got $350 for finishing third. Jack McQuain of Charleston used a six-iron to ace the 168-yard fourth hole during the Open. Leaders by rounds: first, Snead 69, by two.
Sam Snead, White Sulphur Springs 69-69–138
Billy Capps, Beckley 71-72–143
Linden Meade, Chapmanville 74-70–144
a-Bob Johnson, Charleston 72-74–146
a- Kenny Bowen, South Charleston 71-76–147
Pete Byer, Huntington 73-77–150
Ben Varda, Spencer 73-79–152
Lowell Wilson, Parkersburg 76-76–152
a-Noble Holt, South Charleston 80-72–152
a-Ralph Pennington, Huntington 72-80–152
1969: Joe Taylor withstood final round charges by Horace Ervin and Linden Meade at Meadowbrook Recration Club in Charleston to win his third West Virginia Open title. Taylor shot back to back rounds of 66 with five birdies each day to build a four-stroke lead and then carded a 71 in the final round for a seven-under-par total of 203 and a one-stroke victory. The Berry Hills Country Club pro received the first place check of $500 and a trophy which he himself had donated. Taylor, 49, said he felt tired in the final round. “”I only hit one shot out there today that I got a charge out of,” he said. He referred to a recovery shot from underneath a small tree on which he punched the ball onto the 13th green with a five-iron and sank an 18-foot putt for a birdie. Ervin, the former Meadowbrook pro, came back from North Carolina by special invitation and shot a 68 on the last day to finish with a 204 total. Ervin, who was eligible to win the title but not any prize money, needed a par on the last hole to tie but took a bogey. Meade birdied the first three holes in his final round but two late bogeys stopped his bid as he posted a 69 for 206. State Amateur champion Barney Thompson shot the tournament’s low round, a 65 with an eagle and five birdies, and tied for third at 206. Pro George Hoffer made a hole-in-one on the uphill 135-yard 17th hole. Leaders by rounds: first, Taylor 66, by one; second, Taylor 132, by four.
Joe Taylor, South Charleston 66-66-71–203
Horace Ervin, Kinston, N.C. 69-67-68–204
Linden Meade, Chapmanville 69-68-69–206
a-Barney Thompson, Barboursville 73-65-68–206
a-Dick Young, Charleston 69-69-68–206
a-Ken Bowen, South Charleston 67-70-71–208
Pete Byer, Huntington 68-68-74–210
John Fletcher, Charleston 72-66-72–210
Buddy Cook, White Sulphur Springs 71-71-68–210
a-Dick Foutche, Charleston 72-71-69–212