| Tournament information | |
|---|---|
| Dates | August 6–9, 1981 |
| Location | Duluth, Georgia 34°00′14″N 84°11′35″W / 34.004°N 84.193°W |
| Course(s) | Atlanta Athletic Club, Highlands Course |
| Organized by | PGA of America |
| Tour(s) | PGA Tour |
| Statistics | |
| Par | 70 |
| Length | 7,070 yards (6,465 m) |
| Field | 147 players, 78 after cut[1] |
| Cut | 147 (+7)[2] |
| Prize fund | $401,050 |
| Winner's share | $60,000 |
| Champion | |
 Larry Nelson | |
| 273 (−7) | |
| Location map | |
  Atlanta Athletic Club Location in the United States  Atlanta Athletic Club Location in Georgia | |
The 1981 PGA Championship was the 63rd PGA Championship, held August 6–9 at Atlanta Athletic Club in Duluth, Georgia, a suburb northeast of Atlanta. Larry Nelson won the first of his three major titles, four strokes ahead of runner-up Fuzzy Zoeller.[3][4]
Lee Trevino, 1974 champion, did not sign his scorecard after an opening round 74 and was disqualified after turning himself in.[5][6] Bob Murphy led after each of the first two rounds,[7][8] but was 8-over on the weekend and finished ten strokes back in 18th place.[3] After a second consecutive 66 on Saturday, Nelson held the 54-hole lead, four strokes ahead of Zoeller[9]
Tom Watson was the PGA Tour money list leader in August 1981, but missed the cut by a stroke.[8]
It was the second major held at the Highlands Course, which hosted the U.S. Open in 1976. The PGA Championship returned in 2001 and 2011.
- ^ "1981 PGA Championship". databasegolf.com. Retrieved August 21, 2013.
- ^ "Tournament Info for: 1981 PGA Championship". PGA.com. Archived from the original on August 1, 2012. Retrieved July 25, 2012.
- ^ a b Kindred, Dave (August 9, 1981). "Nelson tears up 'choke' label and PGA". Eugene Register-Guard. Oregon. (Washington Post). p. 1C.
- ^ Jenkins, Dan (August 17, 1981). "A drive down easy street". Sports Illustrated. p. 48.
- ^ "Golf's honest men". Eugene Register-Guard. Oregon. wire services. August 7, 1981. p. 2D.
- ^ Parascenzo, Marino (August 7, 1981). "Trevino disqualified, Murphy leads PGA". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. p. 11.
- ^ Parascenzo, Marino (August 8, 1981). "Murphy grabs slim PGA lead". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. p. 9.
- ^ a b "Murphy's fat, happy, and leading". Eugene Register-Guard. Oregon. Associated Press. August 8, 1981. p. 1B.
- ^ "Nelson's 66 captures PGA lead". Eugene Register-Guard. Oregon. UPI. August 9, 1981. p. 1B.