Azalea Open Invitational

Tournament information
Location	Wilmington, North Carolina
Established	1945
Course(s)	Cape Fear Country Club
Par	71
Length	6,575 yards (6,012 m)[1]
Tour(s)	PGA Tour
Format	Stroke play
Prize fund	US$35,000
Month played	November
Final year	1971
Tournament record score
Aggregate	270 Billy Maxwell (1955)
To par	−18 as above
Final champion
George Johnson
Location Map
Cape Fear Country Club Location in the United States Show map of the United States Cape Fear Country Club Location in North Carolina Show map of North Carolina

The Azalea Open Invitational was a golf tournament in North Carolina on the PGA Tour, held at Cape Fear Country Club in Wilmington. Last played in November 1971 as an unofficial event;^[1][2] it was an official PGA Tour event in 1945 and from 1949 through 1970. The Heritage in South Carolina debuted in 1969 and soon displaced it on the schedule.^[3]

It was also played under the names of the Azalea Open and the Wilmington Azalea Open; all were centerpieces of the city's Azalea Festival. Cape Fear was designed by noted course architect Donald Ross.^[3]

From 1950 through 1965, the Azalea Open was a tune-up event for the first major of the year, The Masters in Augusta, Georgia. Jerry Barber, the winner of the PGA Championship in 1961, won the Wilmington event three times (1953, 1961, 1963). Arnold Palmer won in 1957 and nearly repeated,^[4] falling by a stroke in an 18-hole playoff in 1958; the difference was a penalty stroke he called on himself.^[5][6]

Total prize money was initially $10,000, increasing to $12,500 in 1955 and $15,000 in 1958. It reduced to $12,000 in 1961 before increasing to $20,000 from 1962 to 1964. Prize money was $28,750 in 1965, $22,800 in 1966, $35,000 from 1967 to 1969 and $60,000 in 1970. The final non-tour event in 1971 had prize money of $35,000.

Tournament hosts

• 1949–1971 – Cape Fear Country Club, Wilmington, North Carolina
• 1945 – Mobile Country Club, Mobile, Alabama

Winners

Year	Tour[a]	Winner	Score	To par	Margin of victory	Runner(s)-up	Winner's share ($)	Ref.
Azalea Open Invitational
1971		George Johnson	274	−10	Playoff	Ralph Johnston	7,000	[1][2]
1970	PGAT	Cesar Sanudo	269	−15	1 stroke	Bobby Mitchell	12,000	[7]
1969	PGAT	Dale Douglass	275	−9	3 strokes	Jim Langley Larry Mowry Bob Stone Terry Wilcox	5,000	[8]
1968	PGAT	Steve Reid	271	−13	Playoff	Gary Player	5,000	[9]
1967	PGAT	Randy Glover	278	−10	Playoff	Joe Campbell	5,000	[10]
1966	PGAT	Bert Yancey	278	−10	1 stroke	Bob Johnson	3,200	[11]
1965	PGAT	Dick Hart	276	−12	Playoff	Phil Rodgers	3,850	[12]
Azalea Open
1964	PGAT	Al Besselink (2)	282	−6	1 stroke	Lionel Hebert	2,700	[13]
1963	PGAT	Jerry Barber (3)	274	−14	5 strokes	Larry Beck Bruce Crampton Doug Ford Billy Maxwell Jack Rule Jr.	2,800	[14]
1962	PGAT	Dave Marr	281	−7	Playoff	Jerry Steelsmith	2,800	[15]
1961	PGAT	Jerry Barber (2)	213	−3	Playoff	Chandler Harper	1,200	[16]
1960	PGAT	Tom Nieporte	277	−11	2 strokes	Gay Brewer	2,000	[17]
1959	PGAT	Art Wall Jr.	282	−6	3 strokes	Mike Souchak	2,000	[18]
1958	PGAT	Howie Johnson	282	−6	Playoff	Arnold Palmer	2,000	[5][6]
1957	PGAT	Arnold Palmer	282	−6	1 stroke	Dow Finsterwald	1,700	[4]
1956	PGAT	Mike Souchak	273	−15	1 stroke	Dick Mayer	2,200	[19]
1955	PGAT	Billy Maxwell	270	−18	1 stroke	Mike Souchak	2,200	[20]
1954	PGAT	Bob Toski	273	−15	3 strokes	George Fazio	2,000	[21]
1953	PGAT	Jerry Barber	276	−12	1 stroke	Doug Ford Ted Kroll Johnny Palmer	2,000	[22]
1952	PGAT	Jimmy Clark	272	−16	3 strokes	George Fazio Jim Turnesa	2,000	[23][24]
Wilmington Azalea Open
1951	PGAT	Lloyd Mangrum	281	−7	1 stroke	Jim Ferrier Ed Furgol Jim Turnesa	2,000	[25][26]
1950	PGAT	Dutch Harrison	280	−8	2 strokes	George Fazio	2,000	[27]
Wilmington Open
1949	PGAT	Henry Ransom	276	−12	2 strokes	Fred Haas Bob Hamilton Bobby Locke Cary Middlecoff	2,000	[28][29]
Azalea Open
1946		Al Besselink (a)
1945	PGAT	Sammy Byrd	283	−5	Playoff	Dutch Harrison	2,000	[30][31]