Completed Edition

1974 PGA Championship

PGA Championship August 8–August 11, 1974

Lee Trevino won his first PGA Championship at Tanglewood Park in August 1974, one stroke ahead of Jack Nicklaus. The public golf facility in Clemmons, North Carolina, gave the championship a different setting from its private-club hosts.¹³

Results

Published results

Recorded score

Won byLee Trevino
276

Venue

Primary venueChampionship Course
Hosted by Tanglewood Park

A Putter from the Attic

The PGA’s retrospective credits an unlikely piece of equipment: an old putter Trevino found in the attic of his rented house. Rain marked the week. After an opening 73, he shot 66 and 68 to reach 207, one stroke ahead of Nicklaus before the final round.¹³

The contemporary Associated Press report describes a final-round three-ball of Trevino, Nicklaus and Bobby Cole. Cole drew level five times during the round, but Trevino never dropped out of the lead. Trevino and Nicklaus each finished with 69. Their totals were 276 and 277; Cole ended at 279.²³

Afterward, Trevino turned the press gathering into another performance. When there was no cold drink waiting, he offered to buy one and produced his winner’s check. The next day’s newspaper preserved the exchange alongside Nicklaus’s assessment that Trevino had scarcely made a mistake. The result gave Trevino a PGA title to add to his U.S. Open and Open Championship victories.²

Nearby editions

Sources and record notes

Archive note

The 1974 edition was won by Lee Trevino. Verified venue assignments are published in this record.

Record sources

2026 PGA Championship Media Guide
- 1974 PGA Championship · Championship identity
  The official Media Guide directly enumerates the 56th playing, champion, site, and its year-page date span. The recorded venue and champion preserve the official PGA Championship History entry’s published text.
  Verified 2026-08-20
PGA dated host record and researched venue identity
- Championship Course
  The 1974 PGA record names Tanglewood. The operator explicitly identifies Championship as the host layout. Reynolds remains separate. Dated PGA host authority: https://www.pgachampionship.com/news-media/articles/pga-championship-winners-venues
  Verified 2026-09-10
PGA official Championship result
- Lee Trevino
  The official detailed result and four published rounds corroborate the regulation total and relative score. Playoff status is checked against the Guide playoff table and detailed tied scores.
  Verified 2026-09-10

Sources for this history

PGA Championship HistoryPGA of America
1971-1978 year panels: dates, settings and retrospective accounts; scores checked against the full leaderboards.
Consulted 2026-10-16
Lee Trevino Wins PGA OpenAssociated Press / Big Spring Herald / Texas Tech University archive
August 12, 1974, printed page 11 (PDF page 9): the final pairing, scores and post-round reporting.
Consulted 2026-10-16
1974 PGA Championship LeaderboardPGA of America
Round-by-round scores and final totals.
Consulted 2026-10-16