| 1955 PGA Championship | |
| Location: | Northville Twp, Michigan |
| Course: | Meadowbrook Country Club |
| Dates: | July 20–26, 1955 |
| Par: | 71 |
| Yardage: | [1] |
| Org: | PGA of America |
| Tour: | PGA Tour |
| Field: | 135 players,[2] 64 to match play |
| Cut: | 147 (+5), playoff |
| Format: | Match play - 6 rounds |
| Purse: | $20,700[3] |
| Winners Share: | $5,000 |
| Champion: |  Doug Ford |
| Score: | def. Cary Middlecoff, 4 and 3 |
| Previous: | 1954 |
| Next: | 1956 |
The 1955 PGA Championship was the 37th PGA Championship, held July 20–26 in Michigan at Meadowbrook Country Club in Northville Township, northwest of nearby Detroit. Doug Ford won the match play championship, 4 and 3 over Cary Middlecoff in the Tuesday final; the winner's share was $5,000 and the runner-up earned $3,000.[4] [5] [6] This was the first of two major titles for Ford, who won the Masters in 1957.
Ford was also the medalist in the stroke-play qualifying with a 135 (−7), worth $250 and the Alex Smith trophy.[7] [8] He was the fourth to win the final match after winning the qualifier, joining Walter Hagen (1926), Olin Dutra (1932), and Byron Nelson (1945). Ford was the last medalist, as the format was changed in 1956 to seven rounds without a qualifier for two years, then to 72-hole stroke play in 1958.
Defending champion Chick Harbert, a local resident, was defeated in the second round by Johnny Palmer, 1 up. No former champion advanced past the second round.
This was second time in three years the PGA Championship was played near Detroit; the 1953 event was played at Birmingham Country Club in Birmingham, about 20miles northeast. The 1947 edition, in which Harbert was runner-up, was also held in the Detroit area.
The match play format at the PGA Championship in 1955 called for 12 rounds (216 holes) in seven days:[3]
Tuesday, July 26, 1955
| Place | Player | Money ($) | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Doug Ford | 5,000 | ||
| 2 | 3,000 | |||
| align=center rowspan=2 | T3 | align=center rowspan=2 | 750 | |
| Shelley Mayfield | ||||
| align=center rowspan=4 | T5 | align=center rowspan=4 | 500 | |
| Don Fairfield | ||||
| Fred Hawkins | ||||
| Lew Worsham |
w/o = won by walkover
Source:[9]
July 26, Morning
| Hole | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Par | 4 | 5 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 3 | 4 | 3 | 4 | 4 | 3 | 5 | 3 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 5 | 4 | |
| Ford | 4 | 5 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 2 | 4 | 3 | 4 | 4 | 3 | 4 | 2 | 4 | 5 | 4 | 4 | 4 | |
| Middlecoff | 3 | 5 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 4 | 3 | 5 | 3 | 3 | 4 | 4 | 5 | 4 | |
| Leader | M1 | M1 | M1 | M1 | M1 | – | M1 | M1 | M2 | M2 | M2 | M1 | – | M1 | M2 | M2 | M1 | M1 |
Afternoon
| Hole | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Par | 4 | 5 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 3 | 4 | 3 | 4 | 4 | 3 | 5 | 3 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 5 | 4 | |
| Ford | 4 | 5 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 3 | 4 | 2 | 4 | 4 | 2 | 4 | 4 | 3 | 4 | Ford wins 4 and 3 | |||
| Middlecoff | 5 | 4 | 4 | 5 | 4 | 3 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 5 | 3 | 4 | 5 | ||||
| Leader | – | M1 | M1 | – | – | – | – | F1 | F1 | F1 | F2 | F3 | F2 | F3 | F4 |