Rubber City Open Invitational

Golf tournament formerly on the PGA Tour

Golf tournament

Firestone CC

Location in the United States

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Firestone CC

Location in Ohio

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The Rubber City Open Invitational, first played as the Rubber City Open in 1954, was the first PGA Tour golf event to be held at Firestone Country Club in Akron, Ohio, US. The tournament, last played in 1959, was discontinued as Firestone gained national prominence and attracted bigger events beginning with hosting the 1960 PGA Championship, the American Golf Classic in 1961, and in 1962 the World Series of Golf now known as the WGC-Bridgestone Invitational.^[2]

The first edition in September 1954 had a $15,000 purse with a winner's share of $2,400, won by Tommy Bolt.^[3] The sixth and final champion in August 1959 was Tom Nieporte, who won $2,800 from a $20,000 purse.^[4]

At the time, there were only 18 holes at Firestone, today's "South Course." The North Course was the second course, added in 1969.

Winners

Year	Winner	Score	To par	Margin of victory	Runner(s)-up	Winner's share ($)	Ref.
Rubber City Open Invitational
1959	Tom Nieporte	267	−13	3 strokes	Bob Goalby	2,800	^[1]
1958	Art Wall Jr.	269	−15	Playoff	Dow Finsterwald	2,800
1957	Arnold Palmer	272	−12	Playoff	Doug Ford	2,800
Rubber City Open
1956	Ed Furgol	271	−17	1 stroke	Arnold Palmer	3,000	^[5]
1955	Henry Ransom	272	−16	Playoff	Jackson Bradley Jack Burke Jr. Doug Ford	2,400	^[6]
1954	Tommy Bolt	265	−23	5 strokes	Fred Hawkins	2,400	^[3]

References

^ ^a ^b "Nieporte grabs Rubber City Open". Sarasota Herald-Tribune. Associated Press. August 24, 1959. p. 13.
^ "A Championship Legacy". Firestone Country Club. Archived from the original on January 3, 2008. Retrieved November 4, 2007.
^ ^a ^b Howell, Fritz (September 6, 1954). "Tommy Bolt wins Rubber City Open". Tuscaloosa News. Associated Press. p. 12.
^ "Nieporte captures Rubber City Open". Lakeland Ledger. Associated Press. August 24, 1959. p. 10.
^ "Furgol Wins With 271". Daytona Beach Morning Journal. September 10, 1956. p. 7.
^ "Ransom Wins In Playoff". Daytona Beach Morning Journal. August 1, 1955. p. 9.