PGA Championship: A look back at 100 years of tournament history

1919: Jim Barnes

There was no question about the identity of the most dominant professional golfer of the World War I era. Jim Barnes was a 6’6″ force out of England by way of New Jersey who won four major championships, including the inaugural PGA Championship in 1916.

So when the professional tour’s 32 best players gathered at Engineers Country Club in Roslyn, N.Y. for the second PGA Championship in 1919 – following a two-year break induced by the War – the man called Long Jim in deference to his height was the obvious favorite. His chances were enhanced even more by the absence from the field of Barnes’ most respected challenger, Walter Hagen.

Barnes raced through his early 36-hole matches, defeating Carl Anderson 8 & 6 on the first day and eliminating Otto Hackbarth, a well-respected pro, 2 up in the second round. He eliminated Emmett French 3 & 2 in the quarter-finals, and advanced to the championship match with a 5 & 4 victory over Bob Macdonald.

That championship battle underscored the breadth of physical talents a successful golfer might possess. It pitted Barnes against Fred McLeod, the 1908 U.S. Open champion, who at 5’3″ was 15 inches shorter. Through 10 holes of the morning round, McLeod held a 2-up advantage, but he collapsed on the back nine, lost six of the final seven holes, and allowed Barnes to open up a five-hole lead.

The afternoon round was anti-climactic. McLeod never seriously threatened and Barnes closed him out with a 40-foot birdie putt on the 31st hole to win 6 & 5.

Barnes would go on to win the 1921 U.S. Open and 1925 British Open, adding runner-up finishes in the 1921 and 1924 PGAs. In both years he lost to Hagen. Barnes died in 1966.