Rio Grande Valley Open
Encyclopedia
The Rio Grande Valley Open was a golf
tournament on the PGA Tour
that played in the Rio Grande Valley
of south Texas
in 1949 and 1950.
On February 27, 1949, Cary Middlecoff
won the event. Jack Burke, Jr. won on February 19 of the following year. It was Burke's first PGA Tour victory, which he calls his "best memory" in golf.
The 1948 event, which played as the Lower Rio Grande Open, was won by Lloyd Mangrum
in an 18-hole playoff over Jimmy Demaret
. Mangrum received the $2,000 winners share out of a total of $10,000 in prize money.
The events were held at the Harlingen Municipal Golf Course in Harlingen, Texas
, a 6,320-yard, par-71 course opened in 1929. Today the site of the tournament is known as the "eighteen" course at the Tony Butler Municipal Golf Course. On June 20, 1973, the City of Harlingen re-named the course in honor of Butler for his more than 40 years of service as head professional.
Lower Rio Grande Open
Golf
Golf is a precision club and ball sport, in which competing players use many types of clubs to hit balls into a series of holes on a golf course using the fewest number of strokes....
tournament on the PGA Tour
PGA Tour
The PGA Tour is the organizer of the main men's professional golf tours in the United States and North America...
that played in the Rio Grande Valley
Rio Grande Valley
The Rio Grande Valley or the Lower Rio Grande Valley, informally called The Valley, is an area located in the southernmost tip of South Texas...
of south Texas
South Texas
South Texas is a region of the U.S. state of Texas that lies roughly south of and including San Antonio. The southern and western boundary is the Rio Grande River, and to the east it is the Gulf of Mexico. The population of this region is about 3.7 million. The southern portion of this region is...
in 1949 and 1950.
On February 27, 1949, Cary Middlecoff
Cary Middlecoff
Emmett Cary Middlecoff was a dentist who gave up his practice to become a professional golfer on the PGA Tour in the 1940s....
won the event. Jack Burke, Jr. won on February 19 of the following year. It was Burke's first PGA Tour victory, which he calls his "best memory" in golf.
The 1948 event, which played as the Lower Rio Grande Open, was won by Lloyd Mangrum
Lloyd Mangrum
Lloyd Eugene Mangrum was an American professional golfer. He was known for his smooth swing and his relaxed demeanour on the course, which earned him the nickname "Mr. Icicle".Mangrum was born in Trenton, Texas...
in an 18-hole playoff over Jimmy Demaret
Jimmy Demaret
James Newton Demaret was an American professional golfer. He won 31 PGA Tour events in a long career between 1935 and 1957, and was the first three-time winner of the Masters....
. Mangrum received the $2,000 winners share out of a total of $10,000 in prize money.
The events were held at the Harlingen Municipal Golf Course in Harlingen, Texas
Harlingen, Texas
Harlingen is a city in Cameron County in the heart of the Rio Grande Valley of south Texas, United States, about from the coast of the Gulf of Mexico. The city covers more than , and is the second largest city in Cameron County and the sixth largest in the Rio Grande Valley...
, a 6,320-yard, par-71 course opened in 1929. Today the site of the tournament is known as the "eighteen" course at the Tony Butler Municipal Golf Course. On June 20, 1973, the City of Harlingen re-named the course in honor of Butler for his more than 40 years of service as head professional.
Winners
Rio Grande Valley Open- 1950 Jack Burke, Jr.
- 1949 Cary MiddlecoffCary MiddlecoffEmmett Cary Middlecoff was a dentist who gave up his practice to become a professional golfer on the PGA Tour in the 1940s....
Lower Rio Grande Open
- 1948 Lloyd MangrumLloyd MangrumLloyd Eugene Mangrum was an American professional golfer. He was known for his smooth swing and his relaxed demeanour on the course, which earned him the nickname "Mr. Icicle".Mangrum was born in Trenton, Texas...