John Guthrie Bulla (June 2, 1914 – December 7, 2003) was an American professional golfer.
Early life Bulla was born in Newell, West Virginia.
Professional career Bulla played on what is now called the PGA Tour. His only win was at the 1941 Los Angeles Open. 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.
Bulla had extraordinary success at the major golf championships. He 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 twelve times; twice each in the Masters and PGA Championship and four times each at the British Open and U.S. Open.
Pilot career Bulla was a private pilot and before World War II, he flew himself to various tournaments. He was later a commercial pilot with Eastern Airlines, 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. He then co-founded Arizona Airways,Johnny Bulla which became Frontier Airlines in 1950.
Awards and honors In 2000, the Carolinas Golf Reporters Association inducted Bulla into the Carolinas Golf Hall of Fame
Professional wins (8) PGA Tour wins (1) 1941 Los Angeles Open
Source:
Other wins (7) 1947 Arizona Open 1950 Arizona Open 1951 Pennsylvania Open Championship, Arizona Open 1958 Southern California PGA Championship, Arizona Open 1959 Arizona Open
Results in major championships Tournament19351936193719381939Masters TournamentU.S. Open63T456The Open Championship2PGA Championship Tournament1940194119421943194419451946194719481949Masters TournamentT2139NTNTNTT1613T13T2U.S. OpenDQT3NTNTNTNTT22T35T8T14The Open ChampionshipNTNTNTNTNTNTT2T6T727PGA ChampionshipNTR32QFR32 Tournament1950195119521953195419551956195719581959Masters Tournament31T8DQT51CUTU.S. OpenT12524T33CUTDQT24The Open ChampionshipT14T37PGA ChampionshipQFCUT Tournament1960196119621963196419651966196719681969Masters TournamentU.S. OpenCUTT54The Open ChampionshipCUTPGA ChampionshipT57CUTCUTCUT63CUTCUT
NT = no tournament DQ = disqualified CUT = missed the half-way cut (3rd round cut in 1959 PGA Championship) R32, R16, QF, SF = round in which player lost in PGA Championship match play "T" indicates a tie for a place
Summary Tournament Wins 2nd 3rd Top-5 Top-10 Top-25 Events Cuts madeMasters Tournament 0 1 0 1 2 6 11 9U.S. Open 0 0 1 2 4 8 18 14The Open Championship 0 2 0 2 4 5 8 7PGA Championship 0 0 0 2 2 4 11 6Totals 0 3 1 7 12 23 48 36 Most consecutive cuts made – 23 (1941 Masters – 1951 PGA) Longest streak of top-10s – 4 (1948 U.S. Open – 1949 Masters)
References
External links Carolinas Golf Hall of Fame profile Arizona Gravestones – Johnny Bulla obituary