Jodie Mudd

Jodie Mudd, 20, of Louisville, Kentucky, won the Championship with a 9 and 8 victory over Richard Gordon, 24, of Santa Clara, California, at the Edgewood Tahoe Golf Course in Stateline, Nevada, the first time a USGA competition had been played in Nevada. Mudd, a junior at Georgia Southern College, is the brother of Eddie Mudd, the 1976 Champion.

Their father, Edward Mudd, Jr., serves on the USGA Public Links Committee. Billy Tuten, of Palatka, Florida and David Ogrin, of Waukegan, Illinois, tied for medalist with scores of 144, even par. Mudd was only pressed in his first round match against George Beebe, winning, 2 and 1.

He won his other matches by scores of 8 and 7, 6 and 5, 6 and 4, and 3 and 2. Gordon had closer matches, winning 1 up, 3 and 2, 2 and 1, 1 up, and 3 and 1. In the final match, Mudd shot a 69 in the morning, including four birdies on the second nine for a 9 up lead before lunch. Mudd maintained his lead in the afternoon and finished even par over 28 holes.

Mudd's margin of victory was the second largest in the 55-year history of the Championship. In 1965, Arne Dokka defeated Leo Zampedro 10 and 9 in the final. Winners of the Team Trophy were the Los Angeles team of Vic Wilk, Mickey Yokoi, and Lynn Stone with a 36-hole score of 464, three strokes ahead of a team from San Francisco. The USGA received 4,416 entries, second only to the record 4,601 set in 1975.