1974_European_Tour
1974 European Tour
Golf tour season
The 1974 European Tour, titled as the 1974 PGA European Tour,[1] was the third season of the European Tour, the main professional golf tour in Europe since its inaugural season in 1972.
| Duration | 10 April 1974 (1974-04-10) – 26 October 1974 (1974-10-26) |
|---|---|
| Number of official events | 21[lower-alpha 1] |
| Most wins |  Maurice Bembridge (3) Peter Oosterhuis (3) |
| Order of Merit | Peter Oosterhuis |
| Sir Henry Cotton Rookie of the Year | Carl Mason |
← 1973 1975 → | |
There were several changes from the previous season, with the addition of the Double Diamond Strokeplay, the El Paraiso Open and the non-counting Ibergolf Trophy to conclude the season;[2] and the loss of the Scottish Open.[3] The John Player Classic was scheduled for late September, but ultimately cancelled due to a clash of dates with the PGA Tour's Kaiser International Open Invitational.[4]
The following table lists official events during the 1974 season.[5][6][2]
Unofficial events
The following events were sanctioned by the European Tour, but did not carry official money, nor were wins official.
| Date | Tournament | Host country | Purse (£) |
Winner(s) | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 18 May | Sumrie-Bournemouth Better-Ball | England | 12,000 | Clive Clark and Peter Butler |
Team event |
| 15 Jun | Coca-Cola Young Professionals' Championship | England | 10,000 |  Dale Hayes |
|
| 8 Aug | Lord Derby's Young Professionals' Tournament | England | 5,000 | Richard Jewell |
|
| 24 Aug | Double Diamond International | Scotland | n/a | Team England |
Team event |
| 12 Oct | Piccadilly World Match Play Championship | England | 30,000 |  Hale Irwin |
Limited-field event |
| 3 Nov | Sotogrande Match | Spain | 16,000 |   Team GB&I |
New team event |
| 10 Nov | European Ibergolf Trophy | Spain | 13,620 | Gary Player |
New tournament |
| 24 Nov | World Cup | Venezuela | US$2,000 | Bobby Cole and Dale Hayes |
Team event |
| World Cup Individual Trophy | US$1,000 | Bobby Cole |
The Order of Merit was based on tournament results during the season, calculated using a points-based system.[6][7][8]
| Position | Player | Points | Prize money (£) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Peter Oosterhuis | 2,965 | 32,127 |
| 2 | Dale Hayes | 2,379 | 18,396 |
| 3 |  Bernard Gallacher | 2,148 | 18,515 |
| 4 | Brian Barnes | 2,111 | 14,380 |
| 5 | Neil Coles | 2,080 | 13,961 |
| 6 |  Vicente Fernández | 2,061 | 7,819 |
| 7 | Tony Jacklin | 2,033 | 19,547 |
| 8 |  Brian Huggett | 2,032 | 12,373 |
| 9 | Peter Townsend | 1,980 | 15,828 |
| 10 | Tommy Horton | 1,902 | 11,343 |
| Award | Winner | Ref. |
|---|---|---|
| Sir Henry Cotton Rookie of the Year | Carl Mason | [9] |
- The number in brackets after each winner's name is the number of European Tour events they had won up to and including that tournament. This information is only shown for European Tour members and are inclusive of the three United States-based major championships which were included on the schedule for the first time in 1998, with earlier editions having retrospectively been recognised as official tour wins.
- "Tour History". European Tour. Archived from the original on 4 April 2010. Retrieved 17 October 2023.
- Jacobs, Raymond (21 December 1973). "Prize money next year will reach record £660,000". Glasgow Herald. p. 4. Retrieved 15 June 2020 – via Google News Archive.
- "No TV—No Scots' open". Glasgow Herald. Glasgow, United Kingdom. 23 November 1973. p. 4. Retrieved 15 June 2020 – via Google News Archive.
- Jacobs, Raymond (6 March 1974). "Player Classic is dropped". Glasgow Herald. Glasgow, United Kingdom. p. 4. Retrieved 15 June 2020 – via Google News Archive.
- "1974 Tournament schedule". European Tour. Retrieved 21 October 2023.
- Simms, George (1975). John Player Golf Yearbook 1975. Queen Anne Press. pp. 76–124. ISBN 0362002134.
- "Runaway win for Peter Oosterhuis". Aberdeen Press and Journal. Aberdeen, United Kingdom. 5 November 1974. p. 20. Retrieved 15 June 2020 – via British Newspaper Archive.
- "Europa-facit 1974" [European results 1974]. Svensk Golf (in Swedish). No. 1. January 1975. p. 44. Retrieved 21 October 2023.
- "Mason 'Rookie of the Year'". Evening Chronicle. Newcastle upon Tyne, United Kingdom. 5 October 1974. p. 18. Retrieved 21 October 2023 – via Newspapers.com.