1947 Amateur Championship: Willie Turnesa wins at Carnoustie Golf Links (Championship)

Willie Turnesa won the 1947 Amateur Championship at Carnoustie Golf Links (Championship) in Carnoustie, Angus, beating Dick Chapman 3 & 2 in the final.

Updated 23 October 2026

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Edition: 52nd
Dates: 26 May 1947 to 31 May 1947
Course: Carnoustie Golf Links (Championship), Carnoustie, Angus
Format: match play
Champion: Willie Turnesa · age 33 · United States
Champion's title: 1st Amateur Championship title
Runner-up: Dick Chapman · age 36 · United States
Final: 3 & 2 (36-hole final)
Losing semifinalists: John Campbell and Sam McKinlay
Defending champion: Jimmy Bruen · did not play
Entries: 216

What happened at the 1947 Amateur Championship

Final: Turnesa was five down after nine holes, won the next five to be all square at lunch, went ahead for the first time at the 27th and closed Chapman out on the 34th green with a 10-foot putt for par, using a putter borrowed from his mother-in-law (18 one-putt greens in 34 holes).

First all-American final in the history of the championship.

The draw

Every match is recorded through the quarterfinal; earlier rounds are partial (round of 16 (3 of 8 matches); round of 32 (1 of 16 matches)).

The final, 1947 Amateur Championship

Winner		Beaten	Result
Willie Turnesa	def.	Dick Chapman	3 & 2

Semifinals, 1947 Amateur Championship

Winner		Beaten	Result
Willie Turnesa	def.	John Campbell	4 & 3
Dick Chapman	def.	Sam McKinlay	2 up

Quarterfinals, 1947 Amateur Championship

Winner		Beaten	Result
Willie Turnesa	def.	Bud Ward	2 & 1
Dick Chapman	def.	Robin Rutherford	3 & 2
John Campbell	def.	Bill Wise	2 & 1
Sam McKinlay	def.	James C. Wilson	4 & 2

Round of 16, 1947 Amateur Championship

Winner		Beaten	Result
Bud Ward	def.	Ted Bishop	won on 20th hole
Robin Rutherford	def.	Skee Riegel	1 up
Dick Chapman	def.	Alan Stevenson	8 & 6

Round of 32, 1947 Amateur Championship

Winner		Beaten	Result
Dick Chapman	def.	Vic Finlayson	6 & 5

How this was built

Every value is shown as recorded in GNN's Amateur Championship data set (research collected through 20 October 2026). "unknown" means no source confirmed it; nothing is estimated. Where sources disagree, the R&A's own record is used.

Values found only on Wikipedia, kept and flagged: champion_age, champion_birth_year, champion_birthplace, runner_up_age.

Data: the-amateur.json.