Johnny Bulla

Johnny Bulla
— Golfer —
Personal information
Full name John Guthrie Bulla
Born (1914-06-02)June 2, 1914
Newell, West Virginia
Died December 7, 2003(2003-12-07) (aged 89)
Phoenix, Arizona
Nationality  United States
Career
Status Professional
Former tour(s) PGA Tour
Professional wins 17
Number of wins by tour
PGA Tour 1
Other 16
Best results in major championships
Masters Tournament T2: 1949
U.S. Open T3: 1941
The Open Championship 2nd/T2: 1939, 1946
PGA Championship T5: 1948, 1951

John Guthrie Bulla (June 2, 1914 – December 7, 2003) was an American professional golfer.

Born in Newell, West Virginia, Bulla played on the PGA Tour, winning the 1941 Los Angeles Open, and finished runner-up three times in the majors, including twice to Sam Snead; at the British Open in 1946 and the Masters in 1949. Bulla's greatest moment might have been the British Open in 1939 at St Andrews. In miserable conditions, he drove flawlessly and never missed a fairway. The driver is on display in the Royal & Ancient Golf Club Museum, but his name is missing from the Claret Jug. Bulla finished early that day and was the leader in the clubhouse, which he held until Dick Burton, in the final group, caught him and won with a birdie on the last hole. Although Bulla never won a major, he finished in the top-10 12 times; twice each in the Masters and PGA Championship and four times each at the British Open and U.S. Open.

In January 2000, the Carolinas Golf Reporters Association inducted Bulla into the Carolinas Golf Hall of Fame. He co-founded Arizona Airways,[1] which became Frontier Airlines in 1950.

Bulla was a private pilot and before World War II, he flew himself to various tournaments.[2] He was later a commercial pilot with Eastern Airlines,[3][4] and shortly after the war, Bulla and several other touring pros bought a C-47 cargo plane from the U.S. Army Air Forces to fly themselves and their wives to golf tournaments, with Bulla at the controls.[5][6]

Bulla was the first to endorse merchandise sold outside the golf pro shop. He won the L.A. Open in 1941 with a discount golf ball, which sold for a quarter at Walgreens.[7][8]

Professional wins (16)

PGA Tour wins (1)

Other wins (16)

Results in major championships

Tournament 1935 1936 1937 1938 1939
Masters Tournament DNP DNP DNP DNP DNP
U.S. Open 63 T45 DNP DNP 6
The Open Championship DNP DNP DNP DNP 2
PGA Championship DNP DNP DNP DNP DNP
Tournament 1940 1941 1942 1943 1944 1945 1946 1947 1948 1949
Masters Tournament T21 39 DNP NT NT NT T16 13 T14 T2
U.S. Open DQ T3 NT NT NT NT T22 T35 T8 T14
The Open Championship NT NT NT NT NT NT T2 T6 T7 27
PGA Championship DNP DNP DNP NT DNP DNP DNP R32 QF R32
Tournament 1950 1951 1952 1953 1954 1955 1956 1957 1958 1959
Masters Tournament 31 T8 WD T53 DNP DNP DNP CUT DNP DNP
U.S. Open T12 52 4 T33 CUT DQ T24 DNP DNP DNP
The Open Championship T14 DNP DNP DNP DNP T37 DNP DNP DNP DNP
PGA Championship DNP QF DNP DNP DNP DNP DNP DNP DNP CUT
Tournament 1960 1961 1962 1963 1964 1965 1966 1967 1968 1969
Masters Tournament DNP DNP DNP DNP DNP DNP DNP DNP DNP DNP
U.S. Open CUT DNP DNP DNP DNP DNP T54 DNP DNP DNP
The Open Championship DNP DNP DNP DNP CUT DNP DNP DNP DNP DNP
PGA Championship DNP T57 CUT DNP CUT DNP CUT 63 CUT CUT

NT = No tournament
DNP = Did not play
WD = Withdrew
DQ = Disqualified
CUT = missed the half-way cut
R32, R16, QF, SF = Round in which player lost in PGA Championship match play
"T" indicates a tie for a place
Yellow background for top-10.

Summary

Tournament Wins 2nd 3rd Top-5 Top-10 Top-25 Events Cuts made
Masters Tournament 0 1 0 1 2 6 10 9
U.S. Open 0 0 1 2 4 8 18 14
The Open Championship 0 2 0 2 4 5 8 7
PGA Championship 0 0 0 2 2 4 11 6
Totals 0 3 1 7 12 23 47 36

References

  1. ↑ Johnny Bulla
  2. ↑ "Bulla to seek second win in Oakland event". Sarasota Herald-Tribune. Associated Press. January 8, 1941. p. 6.
  3. ↑ "Golf pros plan tourney air travel in own airplane". Eugene Register-Guard. October 17, 1945. p. 7.
  4. ↑ Drum, Bob (March 19, 1949). "Bulla's here to stay for a while". Pittsburgh Press. p. 6.
  5. ↑ "Bulla has solved travel problems for golfing pros". Milwaukee Journal. Associated Press. December 12, 1945. p. 2-final.
  6. ↑ "On this day in history - Johnny Bulla takes flight with his pals". In Golf We Trust. December 11, 2007. Retrieved July 16, 2013.
  7. ↑ Murray, Jim (November 30, 1993). "Athletes today owe Bulla a lot". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved July 16, 2013.
  8. ↑ Huffman, Bill (December 16, 2003). "Golf legend Bulla lived rich life". East Valley Tribune. Tempe, AZ. Retrieved July 16, 2013.
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