This Day in Sports History: July 12
There are a lot of sports events to look forward to during the month of July. From Major League Baseball games and NBA Summer League games to the British Grand…
There are a lot of sports events to look forward to during the month of July. From Major League Baseball games and NBA Summer League games to the British Grand Prix and Tour de France, just to name a few. It's no surprise, then, that July 12 holds some pretty memorable moments in sports history. Let's take a closer look.
Unforgettable Games & Remarkable Records
Great moments in sport that occurred on July 12th include:
- 1901: Cy Young gets his 300th career win.
- 1926: Paavo Nurmi gets a world record in the 4x1500 meter. He walked that distance in a time of 16:26.2.
- 1927: Babe Ruth gets home run #30 on the season. This was the halfway mark to his record of 60 home runs that season.
- 1930: Bobby Jones wins the US Men's Golf Open for the fourth time.
- 1934: Willy de Supervise gets a swimming world record time of 5:16.0 in the 400 meters.
- 1951: Allie Reynolds pitches a no-hitter against his former team, the Cleveland Indians.
- 1964: Mickey Wright wins the US Women's Golf Open for the fourth time.
- 1966: The National League beat the American League 2-1 in 10 innings. The All-Star Game MVP was Brooks Robinson.
- 1969: Tony Jacklin wins the first of two major titles at the British Golf Open.
- 1970: Jack Nicklaus wins the British Golf Open by one stroke,
- 1975: Tom Watson wins the British Golf Open by one stroke. It was the first of eight major titles.
- 1981: Arnold Palmer wins the US Senior Golf Open.
- 1987: Jody Rosenthal wins the Canadian Open.
- 1987: Gary Player wins the US Senior Golf Open by a record of six strokes.
- 1989: Yankee legend Ron Guidry retires from baseball.
- 1990: Melido Perez pitches a no-hitter against the Yankees. It was a six-inning game because of rain.
- 1996: Twins legend Kirby Puckett retires from baseball.
- 1997: Francisco Cordova & Ricardo Rincon pitch a no-hitter against the Astros.
- 1998: France beats Brazil, 3-0, and wins their first FIFA World Cup title.
- 1998: Gil Morgan wins his third Senior Players Championship title.
- 2009: Eun-Hee Ji wins the US Open for Women's Golf.
- 2015: Chun In-gee wins the US Open for Women's Golf.
- 2015: Novak Djokovic defends his title against Roger Federer and wins his third Wimbledon title.
Looking back on these July 12th statistics, the athletes that stand out are Cy Young, Mickey Wright, and Tom Watson.
Young holds numerous MLB records, including most career wins, and is the namesake of the Cy Young Award, given annually to the best pitchers in the American and National Leagues. Wright was known for her powerful and elegant swing and her dominance in the LPGA Tour during the 1950s and 1960s. Watson has eight major championships, including five Open Championships, two Masters titles, and one U.S. Open title. Watson's eight majors ranks sixth on the list of major championship victories.
