1925 PGA Championship

Walter Hagen defeated "Wild Bill" Mehlhorn, 6 and 5, in the finals of the 1925 PGA Championship to win his second straight PGA and third overall. Hagen began a streak of PGA victories in 1924 that continued through 1927, winning 22 straight matches and four straight championships in that span.
Mehlhorn was a Texan whose nickname derived from his occasional habit of playing golf in a cowboy hat. His loss to Hagen in the championship match here was as close as Mehlhorn ever got to winning a major.

He won 20 times in tournaments now recognized as PGA Tour events, and during one six-year stretch in the U.S. Open finished no worse than 15th and inside the Top 8 five times. But he never won a major.

To reach the final, Hagen defeated Al Watrous, Mike Brady, Leo Diegel and "Lighthorse" Harry Cooper. Mehlhorn got there by beating Emmett French, Al Espinosa, Tom Kerrigan and Mortie Dutra.

Hagen's match against Diegel in the quarterfinals was a highlight. Diegel held a 5-up lead following the morning 18, but Hagen narrowed his deficit to 2-down with nine holes to play in the afternoon. Hagen didn't square the match until the 36th hole, then won it on the 40th hole. Their match here was the first in a string of significant battles between Hagen and Diegel. Hagen beat Diegel in the final to win the 1926 PGA Championship, then Diegel got his revenge with wins over Hagen in 1928 and 1929 en route to back-to-back PGA Championship titles for Diegel.

In the championship match, Hagen and Mehlhorn both shot 33 on their first nine, but Hagen stayed hot the whole match and Mehlhorn couldn't keep up.

One of losers in the first round was Gene Sarazen, who lost to Jack Burke Sr., 8 and 7. Twenty-six years later, at the 1951 PGA Championship, Sarazen would lose to Burke's son, Jack Burke Jr.

1925 PGA Championship Scores
Results from the 1925 PGA Championship golf tournament played at Olympia Fields Country Club in Olympia Fields, Illinois:

Championship Match (36 holes)
Walter Hagen def. Bill Mehlhorn, 6 and 5

Semifinals (36 holes)
Walter Hagen def. Harry Cooper, 3 and 1
Bill Mehlhorn def. Mortie Dutra, 8 and 6

Quarterfinals (36 holes)
Walter Hagen def. Leo Diegel, 1-up (40 holes)
Harry Cooper def. Johnny Farrell, 2 and 1
Bill Mehlhorn def. Tom Kerrigan, 7 and 6
Mortie Dutra def. Tommy Armour, 2-up

1924 PGA Championship | 1926 PGA Championship

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