1972 PGA Championship
The 1972 PGA Championship was the 54th PGA Championship, played August 3–6 at Oakland Hills Country Club in Bloomfield Hills, Michigan, a suburb northwest of Detroit. Gary Player won his second PGA Championship with a total of 281 (+1), two strokes ahead of runners-up Tommy Aaron and Jim Jamieson. It was the sixth of Player's nine major titles, but his first in over four years.
| Tournament information | |
|---|---|
| Dates | August 3–6, 1972 |
| Location | Bloomfield Hills, Michigan |
| Course(s) | Oakland Hills Country Club, South Course |
| Organized by | PGA of America |
| Tour(s) | PGA Tour |
| Statistics | |
| Par | 70 |
| Length | 7,054 yards (6,450 m) |
| Field | 138 players, 77 after cut |
| Cut | 150 (+10) |
| Prize fund | $224,087 |
| Winner's share | $45,000 |
| Champion | |
| Gary Player | |
| 281 (+1) | |
The PGA Championship returned to the month of August in 1972 after being played in late February in 1971 in Florida.
Defending champion Jack Nicklaus, winner of the year's Masters and U.S. Open and runner-up in the British Open, finished six strokes back in a tie for thirteenth place. He regained the title the following year.
It was the fifth major championship held on the South Course, which previously hosted the U.S. Open in 1924, 1937, 1951, and 1961. It later hosted the PGA Championship in 1979 and 2008, the U.S. Open in 1985 and 1996, and the Ryder Cup in 2004.