1955 PGA Championship: Doug Ford wins at Meadowbrook Country Club
Doug Ford won the 1955 PGA Championship at Meadowbrook Country Club in Northville Township, Michigan, beating Cary Middlecoff 4 & 3 in the final.
Updated October 23, 2026
See 1955 in Wanamaker Avenue, the PGA Championship room, or every year on the PGA Championship winners list.
- Dates
- July 20, 1955 to July 26, 1955
- Course
- Meadowbrook Country Club, Northville Township, Michigan
- Edition
- 37th PGA Championship
- Format
- match play
- Par
- 71
- Field
- 64
- Match-play field
- 64 · 18 (rounds of 64 and 32); 36 from round of 16
- Stroke-play medalist
- Doug Ford (135)
- Purse
- $20,700 · winner's share $5,000
- Champion
- Doug Ford · age 32 · United States · born West Haven, Connecticut
- Champion's title
- 1st PGA Championship
- Final
- 4 & 3 (36-hole final)
- Runner-up
- Cary Middlecoff
The draw as recorded: Round of 64 to final (complete).
The final, 1955 PGA Championship
| Winner | Beaten | Result | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Doug Ford | def. | Cary Middlecoff | 4 & 3 |
Semifinals, 1955 PGA Championship
| Winner | Beaten | Result | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Doug Ford | def. | Shelley Mayfield | 4 & 3 |
| Cary Middlecoff | def. | Tommy Bolt | 4 & 3 |
Quarterfinals, 1955 PGA Championship
| Winner | Beaten | Result | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Doug Ford | def. | Fred Hawkins | 5 & 4 |
| Shelley Mayfield | def. | Don Fairfield | 3 & 2 |
| Tommy Bolt | def. | Lew Worsham | 8 & 7 |
| Cary Middlecoff | def. | Jack Burke Jr. | won on 40th hole |
Round of 16, 1955 PGA Championship
| Winner | Beaten | Result | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Don Fairfield | def. | Brien Charter | 2 & 1 |
| Shelley Mayfield | def. | Claude Harmon | 2 & 1 |
| Fred Hawkins | def. | Ed Furgol | 6 & 5 |
| Doug Ford | def. | Wally Ulrich | 12 & 10 |
| Lew Worsham | def. | Johnny Palmer | 6 & 5 |
| Tommy Bolt | def. | Jack Fleck | 3 & 1 |
| Cary Middlecoff | def. | Mike Pavella | 8 & 6 |
| Jack Burke Jr. | def. | Marty Furgol | 2 & 1 |
Round of 32, 1955 PGA Championship
| Winner | Beaten | Result | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Brien Charter | def. | Lionel Hebert | 1 up |
| Don Fairfield | def. | Vic Ghezzi | won on 23rd hole |
| Shelley Mayfield | def. | Gene Sarazen | 4 & 3 |
| Claude Harmon | def. | Eldon Briggs | 2 & 1 |
| Ed Furgol | def. | Gus Salerno | won on 20th hole |
| Fred Hawkins | def. | Fred Haas Jr. | 2 up |
| Wally Ulrich | def. | Leonard Wagner | 2 up |
| Doug Ford | def. | Ted Kroll | 2 & 1 |
| Johnny Palmer | def. | Chick Harbert | 1 up |
| Lew Worsham | def. | Ray Hill | 2 & 1 |
| Tommy Bolt | def. | Sam Snead | 3 & 2 |
| Jack Fleck | def. | Jay Hebert | 2 & 1 |
| Cary Middlecoff | def. | Bill Nary | 3 & 2 |
| Mike Pavella | def. | Jim Browning | 4 & 3 |
| Marty Furgol | def. | Tony Holguin | 1 up |
| Jack Burke Jr. | def. | Dave Douglas | 8 & 6 |
Round of 64, 1955 PGA Championship
| Winner | Beaten | Result | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Brien Charter | def. | Jimmy Johnson | 2 & 1 |
| Lionel Hebert | def. | Jerry Barber | 2 & 1 |
| Don Fairfield | def. | Walter Romans | 3 & 1 |
| Vic Ghezzi | def. | Pete Cooper | 4 & 3 |
| Gene Sarazen | def. | Clarence Doser | 6 & 4 |
| Shelley Mayfield | def. | Ted Neist | 6 & 5 |
| Claude Harmon | def. | Mike Turnesa | 5 & 4 |
| Eldon Briggs | def. | Errie Ball | 1 up |
| Gus Salerno | def. | Gunnard Johnson | 2 & 1 |
| Ed Furgol | def. | Jimmy Gauntt | won on 20th hole |
| Fred Hawkins | def. | Eddie Joseph | 3 & 2 |
| Fred Haas Jr. | def. | Skee Riegel | 3 & 2 |
| Leonard Wagner | def. | Mike Dietz | 1 up |
| Wally Ulrich | def. | Dutch Harrison | won on 19th hole |
| Ted Kroll | def. | Buck White | 3 & 2 |
| Doug Ford | def. | George Fazio | 2 & 1 |
| Chick Harbert | def. | Eric Monti | 3 & 1 |
| Johnny Palmer | def. | Roy Wallin | 5 & 4 |
| Lew Worsham | def. | Dick Lundahl | 2 & 1 |
| Ray Hill | def. | Jackson Bradley | 2 & 1 |
| Sam Snead | def. | Albert Feminelli | 2 & 1 |
| Tommy Bolt | def. | Al Watrous | won by default |
| Jack Fleck | def. | Joe Zarhardt | 4 & 2 |
| Jay Hebert | def. | Alex Redl | 4 & 3 |
| Cary Middlecoff | def. | Walter Burkemo | 2 & 1 |
| Bill Nary | def. | Darwin White | 2 & 1 |
| Jim Browning | def. | Ed Oliver | 3 & 2 |
| Mike Pavella | def. | Bob Kay | 3 & 2 |
| Marty Furgol | def. | Jack Igoe | 3 & 2 |
| Tony Holguin | def. | Joe Greer | 1 up |
| Jack Burke Jr. | def. | Guy Paulsen | 4 & 2 |
| Dave Douglas | def. | Herman Scharlau | 4 & 3 |
What happened at the 1955 PGA Championship
In a nine-hour, 40-hole quarterfinal, Middlecoff holed a roughly 25-foot putt on the 36th to square with Jack Burke Jr., then won on the 40th after Burke missed from a greenside bunker.
Ford squared the final on the 26th hole, won three of the next six, and closed out Middlecoff on the 33rd.
How this was built
Every value is shown as recorded in GNN's PGA Championship data. A value no source confirmed is left out; nothing is estimated. Where sources disagree, the organizer's own record is used.
Data: pga.json (the PGA Championship room's data: Tables 1A–1H and 2B, every recorded match).