In the final round, Couples led by a stroke after a birdie at the 12th hole, but then had four consecutive bogeys, while Grady shot par for the rest of the round. Defending championPayne Stewart was in the final pairing with Grady, but was two-over par on the front nine. On the par-5 11th hole, he put his third shot into the water and fell from contention with a triple bogey.[2][4]
Concerns about racial discrimination in the club's membership caused many sponsors to pull their network television advertising, including IBM. This was the final year that ABC carried the broadcast, replaced by CBS in 1991.[5]
Controversy
Leading up to the tournament, Shoal Creek founder Hall Thompson doubled down on the club's policy of excluding African-Americans from membership. Various groups threatened to protest the event and sponsors pulled out, and the PGA considered moving the tournament away from Shoal Creek. In the end, a local African-American executive accepted an invitation to become an honorary member and the tournament was held as planned.[6]