The Memorial Tournament is themed each year around a person, living or dead, who has contributed to the game of golf.
Each year, the Memorial Tournament honors a person, living or dead, who has made a significant contribution to the game of golf. The idea came from Nicklaus, with assistance from Joe Dey, the first commissioner of the PGA TOUR. The honorees are selected by the Captains Club, a group of golf-minded individuals who act independently of the tournament organization and advise Nicklaus on the conduct of the tournament. In 2017, the Memorial Tournament will honor Greg Norman, Tony Lema, Ken Venturi and Harvie Ward.
- 2016 Johnny Miller
- 2015 Sir Nick Faldo
- 2014 Annika Sorenstam, Jim Barnes, Joe Carr, Willie Park Sr.
- 2013 Raymond Floyd
- 2012 Tom Watson
- 2011 Nancy Lopez
- 2010 Severiano Ballesteros
- 2009 JoAnne Carner & Jackie Burke Jr.
- 2008 Tony Jacklin, Ralph Guldahl, Charles Blair MacDonald, Craig Wood
- 2007 Louise Suggs & Dow Finsterwald
- 2006 Michael Bonallack, Charles Coe, William Lawson Little Jr., Henry Picard, Paul Runyan & Densmore Shute
- 2005 Betsy Rawls & Cary Middlecoff
- 2004 Lee Trevino & Joyce Wethered
- 2003 Julius Boros & William Campbell
- 2002 Kathy Whitworth & Bobby Locke
- 2001 Payne Stewart
- 2000 Jack Nicklaus
- 1999 Ben Hogan
- 1998 Peter Thomson
- 1997 Gary Player
- 1996 Billy Casper
- 1995 Willie Anderson, John Ball, James Braid, Harold Hilton & J.H. Taylor
- 1994 Mickey Wright
- 1993 Arnold Palmer
- 1992 Joseph C. Dey Jr.
- 1991 Babe Zaharias
- 1990 Jimmy Demaret
- 1989 Sir Henry Cotton
- 1988 Patty Berg
- 1987 Tom Morris Sr. & Tom Morris Jr.
- 1986 Roberto De Vicenzo
- 1985 Charles "Chick" Evans
- 1984 Sam Snead
- 1983 Tommy Armour
- 1982 Glenna Collette Vare
- 1981 Harry Vardon
- 1980 Byron Nelson
- 1979 Gene Sarazen
- 1978 Francis Ouimet
- 1977 Walter Hagen
- 1976 Robert Tyre Jones Jr.
Jack develops the land he once hunted on as a kid
Familiar ground
Jack develops the land he once hunted on as a kid
Jack Nicklaus was quite familiar with the land that good friend Ivor Young had brought to his attention as a possible site to build Muirfield Village. Nicklaus had roamed the area as a kid, joining his dad on hunting excursions that were more productive for bonding than collecting game.
“Never shot much,” Nicklaus said, “but we hunted it. An occasional rabbit we’d scare or something like that. I think we thought we were going to scare some pheasant but we didn’t scare many of those.”
From a golf course perspective, Nicklaus — and his site consultant, Pete Dye — saw plenty of opportunity in the plot of land in Dublin, Ohio. Lots of large trees and fields, good drainage and two long creeks that ran through the property. Those creeks were pivotal to Nicklaus’ design, as almost every hole on the course is connected to one of the creeks.
“When I first saw it, it was a lot of fields, and a lot of trees. I walked it, and I hunted it with my dad and some of my friends.”
— Jack Nicklaus
“It’s a pretty site,” said Nicklaus, who had worked on just nine golf course designs prior to taking on Muirfield Village. “When I saw it, I liked the way it flowed through the valleys, and I knew I wanted to create a gallery golf course. The valleys were wide enough to accommodate that goal.
“I can’t say I was a golf course designer because I didn’t have much experience. I just liked the property.”
His instincts were right.
Dye called it “the best site I’ve ever seen that doesn’t have mountains or the ocean. The best inland site I’ve ever seen.”
Muirfield Village, under construction
A fellow Ohioan encourages Jack’s course design skills
Design influence
A fellow Ohioan encourages Jack’s course design skills
On Labor Day in 1957, high school graduate Jack Nicklaus played an exhibition match at Urbana Country Club against Sam Snead, who was billed as “America’s Foremost Golfer.” Also competing that day was a club member named Pete Dye. Tickets were $2.50 for adults.
Nicklaus and Snead ended up as legendary golfers. Nicklaus and Dye ended up as legendary golf course designers.
In fact, it was Dye who first began tapping into the design mind of Nicklaus. In the mid-1960s, Dye asked Nicklaus to provide some input in a course on the outskirts of Columbus simply called The Golf Club.
“I want you to come out and see it,” Dye said. “Maybe you can tell me what you think.”
Replied Jack: “Pete, I wouldn’t have a clue. I don’t know anything about golf course design.”
Said Dye: “Ah, you know more than you think.”
So Nicklaus looked at the layout, was blunt in his honest assessment, and made a few suggestions that Dye incorporated. Later that decade, Nicklaus was asked to get involved in the creation of Harbour Town Golf Links in South Carolina. Still unsure that he could carry off such a project, he brought in Dye as a co-designer.
The Nicklaus and Dye partnership worked on about a half-dozen projects before Jack ultimately struck out on his own. Dye became one of the game’s great and unique architects, with his signature TPC Sawgrass hosting THE PLAYERS Championship.
But it wasn’t so much what they achieved together. It was that another door had been opened, one that would ultimately lead to Nicklaus designing 300 courses around the world, making a lasting impact for all golfers to enjoy.