Jack Fleck, who beat Ben Hogan, watched and remembered as Ben Curtis pulled his own remarkable upset.
By BOB HARIG
Published July 31, 2003
Jack Fleck turned on the BBC telecast of the British Open at his room in Scotland, where he was preparing for the British Senior Open, and noticed names he recognized and one he didn't.
There were Tiger Woods and Davis Love and Vijay Singh competing in the final round of the British Open at Royal St. George's in England. And then there was this guy named Ben Curtis. Who was he?
A short time later, Curtis holed a dramatic par putt on the 18th green, the other challengers faltered around him, and one of the biggest upset winners in golf history was holding the Claret Jug.
"I thought, "Hey, that's similar to my situation,"' Fleck said.
It took a little longer, however, for the enormity of Curtis' accomplishment to sink in and for the comparisons to hit Fleck. As he played practice rounds last week at Turnberry, other players who would be competing in the Senior British Open mentioned it.
And, of course, the memories came flooding back.
Fleck, who shot his age of 81 during the first round of the tournament last Thursday, is remembered most for his 1955 U.S. Open victory at the Olympic Club in San Francisco, where he tied the legendary Ben Hogan in regulation, then beat him in an 18-hole playoff.
It is one of golf's great upsets, just as Curtis' win will be remembered.
"He's an unknown and I don't know him from a bale of hay," Fleck said. "I guess it's poetic justice."
Curtis, a rookie on the PGA Tour, had been ranked 396th in the world going into the British Open. He qualified for the tournament only because he tied for 13th at the Western Open two weeks earlier. That was his lone top-25 finish of the year.
While Curtis held off some of the top players in the world to win the British Open, Fleck's accomplishment was just as stunning.
Hogan had won four of the previous seven Opens and was bidding for a record fifth title. Fleck, then 33, was the pro at two municipal courses in Davenport, Iowa, and had to qualify for the Open.
With Hogan, considered a sure winner, sitting in the clubhouse being congratulated by some, Fleck was still on the course. He played the last four holes in 2 under par, including a 7-foot birdie putt at the 18th, to shoot 67 and force a playoff.
If that wasn't enough pressure, playing alongside Hogan the next day would surely fell Fleck.
Instead, Fleck shot 69 to defeat Hogan by three strokes.
How improbable was it?
Fleck, a pro since 1939, was playing his first summer on the tour and had won just $2,700 in 15 tournaments in 1955. His best finish had been eighth.
To get to the Open, Fleck had to qualify in Chicago, then drive 49 hours from Davenport to San Francisco.
"It was a great thrill for me," Fleck said this week from his home in Fort Smith, Ark. "I was an unknown. Some of the pros on the tour at that time knew I could play a little bit. Jerry Barber told me two or three weeks later, "Jack, I knew you were the only guy that would be able to beat Ben Hogan in the playoff, if you could just putt a little bit. You made it to the playoff, so you must have putted pretty well.' I loved that Olympic course when I got there."
Fleck is bothered that some consider his victory a fluke. True, he never won another major championship, though he came close, tying for third in the 1960 U.S. Open. And he did win two more titles, at Phoenix in 1960 and Bakersfield, Calif. in 1961.
Fleck played in 11 U.S. Opens, later competed with some success on the Senior PGA Tour and still competes in the annual Legends of Golf tournament.
"I wasn't as bad a player as it was made out to be because I didn't win a lot," he said. "But because I beat Hogan ... now you're the villain. I was very disappointed that I didn't win more. I felt I should have. Funny, except for that one Open, I was always a lousy putter. I think Sam Snead was more bitter toward me than Hogan, because Snead never won an Open.
"I just couldn't put it all together again. But winning one Open is better than never winning one."
