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Gene Littler

United States · born , San Diego, California, USA · died

1major championship

Summary

  • First major 1961 U.S. Open
  • Ryder Cup 7 Cups · 14-5-8 · 18 points (66.7%)
  • Runner-up in majors 3 times
  • Other titles 1953 U.S. Amateur

Wins

  1. 1953 U.S. Amateur Oklahoma City Golf & Country Club · 1 up
  2. 1961 U.S. Open Oakland Hills C.C. · 281 (+1) · by 1 stroke from Bob Goalby and Doug Sanders

Near misses

  1. 1954 U.S. Open Baltusrol G.C. · runner-up to Ed Furgol
  2. 1970 The Masters Augusta National Golf Club · runner-up to Billy Casper · 279 · lost playoff
  3. 1977 PGA Championship Pebble Beach Golf Links · runner-up to Lanny Wadkins · 282 · lost playoff

Ryder Cup

7 Cups, 27 matches: 14 won, 5 lost, 8 halved, 18 points. Foursomes 4-3-1, four-ball 5-0-4, singles 5-2-3.

  1. 1961 Royal Lytham & St Annes Golf Club USA · USA won 14.5–9.5 · 0-1-2, 1 point
  2. 1963 Atlanta Athletic Club (East Lake course) USA · USA won 23–9 · 3-0-2, 4 points
  3. 1965 Royal Birkdale Golf Club USA · USA won 19.5–12.5 · 2-2-2, 3 points
  4. 1967 Champions Golf Club USA · USA won 23.5–8.5 · 1-1-2, 2 points · automatic
  5. 1969 Royal Birkdale Golf Club USA · tied 16–16 · 3-0-0, 3 points
  6. 1971 Old Warson Country Club USA · USA won 18.5–13.5 · 2-1-0, 2 points
  7. 1975 Laurel Valley Golf Club USA · USA won 21–11 · 3-0-0, 3 points

Rivals

Beat him

Ryder Cup partners

Ryder Cup opponents

Next in the chain: Ed Furgol's rivals →

Results by championship

    Best day

    1961 U.S. Open

    Oakland Hills C.C., Birmingham, MI · 281 (+1) · by 1 stroke from Bob Goalby and Doug Sanders

    Chosen by rule: his widest winning margin in a major. Year page: 1961.

    Career line, 1953–1977

    Masters
    1970 Masters: runner-up to Billy Casper
    PGA Championship
    1977 PGA Championship: runner-up to Lanny Wadkins
    U.S. Open
    1954 U.S. Open: runner-up to Ed Furgol1961 U.S. Open: won
    Ryder Cup
    1961 Ryder Cup (USA): 0-1-21963 Ryder Cup (USA): 3-0-21965 Ryder Cup (USA): 2-2-21967 Ryder Cup (USA): 1-1-21969 Ryder Cup (USA): 3-0-01971 Ryder Cup (USA): 2-1-01975 Ryder Cup (USA): 3-0-0
    U.S. Amateur
    1953 U.S. Amateur: won
    19601970

    12 results. Hover or tap a mark; click it for the year.

    • Major win
    • Other win
    • Runner-up
    • Ryder Cup, USA

    Gene Littler was born on July 21, 1930, in San Diego, California, USA. Littler won one major championship: the 1961 U.S. Open. Littler played in 7 Ryder Cups for USA (1961, 1963, 1965, 1967, 1969, 1971, 1975), winning 14, losing 5 and halving 8 of 27 matches for 18 points.

    See Gene Littler in our rooms: The Masters, U.S. Open, Greatest Golfer by State and Every Ground.

    Cards you pull this visit stack here. Tap one to go back to it.

    The record

    Wins in the majors (1)

    1. 1953 U.S. Amateur Oklahoma City Golf & Country Club · 1 up
    2. 1961 U.S. Open Oakland Hills C.C., Birmingham, MI · 281 (+1) · by 1 stroke from Bob Goalby and Doug Sanders

    Near misses

    1. 1954 U.S. Open Baltusrol G.C. · runner-up to Ed Furgol
    2. 1970 The Masters Augusta National Golf Club · runner-up to Billy Casper · 279 · lost playoff
    3. 1977 PGA Championship Pebble Beach Golf Links · runner-up to Lanny Wadkins · 282 · lost playoff

    U.S. Open top-10 finishes in his career: 5 (GNN U.S. Open room data).

    Ryder Cup

    Littler played 7 Ryder Cups for USA: 27 matches, 14 won, 5 lost, 8 halved, 18 points (66.7% of those available). By format: foursomes 4-3-1, four-ball 5-0-4, singles 5-2-3 (won-lost-halved).

    1. 1961 Royal Lytham & St Annes Golf Club USA · USA won 14.5–9.5 · 0-1-2, 1 point
    2. 1963 Atlanta Athletic Club (East Lake course) USA · USA won 23–9 · 3-0-2, 4 points
    3. 1965 Royal Birkdale Golf Club USA · USA won 19.5–12.5 · 2-2-2, 3 points
    4. 1967 Champions Golf Club USA · USA won 23.5–8.5 · 1-1-2, 2 points · automatic
    5. 1969 Royal Birkdale Golf Club USA · tied 16–16 · 3-0-0, 3 points
    6. 1971 Old Warson Country Club USA · USA won 18.5–13.5 · 2-1-0, 2 points
    7. 1975 Laurel Valley Golf Club USA · USA won 21–11 · 3-0-0, 3 points

    Partners, with matches played together: Billy Casper (4), Al Geiberger (3), Dow Finsterwald (2), Lee Trevino (2), Doug Ford (1), Julius Boros (1), Jack Nicklaus (1), J. C. Snead (1), Hale Irwin (1), Lou Graham (1).

    Other wins in championships we cover

    1. 1953 U.S. Amateur Oklahoma City Golf & Country Club · 1 up

    Sources

    Every fact on this page comes from Golf Network News data sets compiled in October 2026 (Masters, PGA Championship, The Open, U.S. Women's Open, Ryder Cup, PGA Tour 2024–2026, major host sites, Champions Dinner menus, and the U.S. Open and state rooms). These are the sources those rows cite.

    1. WP: List of American Ryder Cup golfers
    2. GNN U.S. Open room (champions data)
    3. GC: 1961 ryder cup
    4. WP 1961
    5. GC: 1963 ryder cup
    6. WP 1963
    7. GC: 1965 ryder cup
    8. WP 1965
    9. GC: 1967 ryder cup
    10. WP 1967
    11. GC: 1969 ryder cup
    12. WP 1969
    13. GC: 1971 ryder cup
    14. WP 1971
    15. GC: 1975 ryder cup
    16. WP 1975
    17. Wikipedia: U.S. Amateur
    18. championships-plt.usga.org: u s amateur champions
    19. Wikipedia: Oklahoma City Golf & Country Club