The virtual PGA: These 13 could contend
By Bill Felber
Chick Harbert, 1954 (1946-55), -1.03
Nick Price, 1992, 1994, 1990-1999), -1.03
Denny Shute, 1936, 1937 (1930-1939), -1.00
Johnny Revolta, 1935 (1933-1942), -0.98
A Chick Harbert victory would loom as a major surprise if only because Harbert is not routinely ranked among the game’s greats. He has the best PGA Championship profile of any contender not already in the World Golf Hall of Fame or destined to be thereupon eligibility.
Players would overlook Harbert at their peril. In 1954 he took out Jerry Barber, Tommy Bolt, and defending champion Walter Burkemo for his victory, the last by a 4 & 3 score. Two years earlier Harbert finished second to Jim Turnesa, losing 1-up when he hooked his drive on the final hole under a tree and made bogey.
He was also second to Jim Ferrier in 1947.
Price beat four players by three strokes at Bellerive in 1992. Two years later at Southern Hills, he dominated the field, winning by six strokes. During the 1990s, Price had three other top 10s, topped by a tie for fourth at Sahalee in 1998.
Shute was a PGA Championship force throughout the 1930s. An upset 2 & 1 loser to rookie Tom Creavy in 1931, he reached the semis in 1934, then reeled off 14 consecutive match victories between 1936 and 1938. Shute beat Jimmy Thomson 3 & 2 in the 1936 final, and one year later out-lasted Jug McSpaden 1 up in 37 holes.
His bid for a third straight title in 1938 ended in the third round when Jimmy Hines took him out 2 & 1.
Revolta won the 1935 Championship as a 24-year-old in 1935…it was only his third PGA Championship start. He faced a challenging early match matrix that included defeating Walter Hagen 1-up in the first round and Jim Hines, also 1-up in the second.
In the final, Revolta polished off former champion Tommy Armour 5 & 4. His putter was a powerful weapon, Revolta one-putting 13 of the match’s 31 holes and never three-putting.