Bass Pro Shops Legends of Golf Winners and History

Bass Pro Shops Legends of Golf Winners and History

Founded in 1978 as a 54-hole better ball event for players fifty and older, the success of the Legends of Golf was the spark for the creation of the Senior PGA Tour in 1980. It is often called “The Tournament that launched the Champions Tour.”

The current incarnation of the event is known as the Bass Pro Shops Legends at Big Cedar. It is played at the Big Cedar Lodge on the par-3 Top of the Rock course, designed by Jack Nicklaus and the 18-hole Buffalo Ridge course, redesigned by Tom Fazio in Ridgedale, Missouri. Bass Pro Shops owns the Big Cedar Lodge.

Bass Pro Shops’ Legends of Golf consists of two separate events using four-ball and alternate shot formats with two-man teams. The Champions division, for players age 50 – 65, plays 54 holes. The Legends Division, for players age 65+, play 45.

The Champions Division is an official money/official victory event.

For 2008 to 2013, the Legends of Golf consisted of three separate events: the Legends Division, which was a 54-hole two-man team better-ball event for men over 50; the Raphael Division, a 36-hole two-man team better-ball event for men age 50–69, and; the Demaret Division, a 36-hole two-man team better-ball event for men over 70.

The Legends of Golf came to national attention in its second year, with a televised playoff victory by Julius Boros and Roberto De Vicenzo over Tommy Bolt and Art Wall, Jr. The excitement generated by that event is often thought of one of the founding moments of the Champions Tour.

A complete list of Legends of Golf winners follows:

Legends of Golf Winners