The 1976 European Tour, titled as the 1976 PGA Tournament Players' Division, was the fifth season of the European Tour, the main professional golf tour in Europe since its inaugural season in 1972.
Changes for 1976 The season was made up of 21 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 the other tournaments mostly held in England and Scotland.
There were several changes from the previous season, with the addition of the Greater Manchester Open and the Uniroyal International; along with non-counting events the Cacharel World Under-25 Championship and the Lancome Trophy; and the Benson & Hedges Festival being retitled as the Benson & Hedges International Open.
Schedule The following table lists official events during the 1976 season.
DateTournamentHost countryPurse(£)WinnerNotes11 AprMasters TournamentUnited StatesUS$254,852 Raymond Floyd (n/a)Major championship17 AprPortuguese OpenPortugal15,000 Salvador Balbuena (1)24 AprSpanish OpenSpain30,525 Eddie Polland (3)1 MayMadrid OpenSpain18,500 Francisco Abreu (2)9 MayFrench OpenFrance22,200 Vincent Tshabalala (1)15 MayPiccadilly MedalEngland40,000 Sam Torrance (1)31 MayPenfold PGA ChampionshipEngland50,000 Neil Coles (5)6 JunKerrygold International ClassicIreland12,500 Tony Jacklin (5)12 JunMartini InternationalEngland15,000 Sam Torrance (2)20 JunGreater Manchester OpenEngland12,000 John O'Leary (1)New to European Tour20 JunU.S. OpenUnited StatesUS$259,000 Jerry Pate (n/a)Major championship26 JunUniroyal InternationalEngland25,000 Tommy Horton (3)New tournament10 JulThe Open ChampionshipEngland75,000 Johnny Miller (n/a)Major championship18 JulScandinavian Enterprise OpenSweden38,600 Hugh Baiocchi (3)25 JulSwiss OpenSwitzerland31,300 Manuel Piñero (2)8 AugDutch OpenNetherlands26,205 Seve Ballesteros (1)15 AugGerman OpenWest Germany23,100 Simon Hobday (1)15 AugPGA ChampionshipUnited StatesUS$250,000 Dave Stockton (n/a)Major championship18 AugDouble Diamond Individual ChampionshipScotland10,000 Simon Owen (2)29 AugCarroll's Irish OpenIreland35,000 Ben Crenshaw (n/a)5 SepSun Alliance Match Play ChampionshipEngland20,000 Brian Barnes (4)25 SepBenson & Hedges International OpenEngland40,000 Graham Marsh (4)2 OctDunlop MastersWales30,000 Baldovino Dassù (1)24 OctItalian OpenItaly27,000 Baldovino Dassù (2)
Unofficial events The following events were sanctioned by the European Tour, but did not carry official money, nor were wins official.
DateTournamentHost countryPurse(£)Winner(s)Notes22 MaySumrie-Bournemouth Better-BallEngland12,000 Eamonn Darcy and Christy O'Connor JnrTeam event5 JunCacharel World Under-25 ChampionshipFrancen/a Eamonn DarcyNew tournament3 JulPhillip Morris InternationalFrancen/a Team USATeam event21 AugDouble Diamond InternationalScotland25,000 Team EnglandTeam event18 Sep17 JulT.P.D. Under-25 ChampionshipEngland5,000 Howard Clark9 OctPiccadilly World Match Play ChampionshipEngland75,000 David GrahamLimited-field event17 OctTrophée LancômeFranceUS$40,000 Seve BallesterosNew to European Tour12 DecWorld CupUnited StatesUS$4,200 Seve Ballesteros and Manuel PiñeroTeam eventWorld Cup Individual TrophyUS$2,100 Ernesto Pérez Acosta
Order of Merit The Order of Merit was based on tournament results during the season, calculated using a points-based system.
Position Player Points Prize money (£)1 Seve Ballesteros 21,495 39,5042 Eamonn Darcy 16,741 25,0273 Sam Torrance 16,627 20,9174 Manuel Piñero 16,474 19,9465 Tommy Horton 16,185 22,7816 Neil Coles 15,976 20,5437 Martin Foster 12,669 17,4368 Brian Barnes 12,256 23,3509 Baldovino Dassù 11,961 13,40510 Simon Hobday 11,893 15,196
Awards AwardWinner Sir Henry Cotton Rookie of the Year Mark James
Notes
References
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