April 12
1939 — Stanley Cup Final, Chicago Stadium, Chicago, IL: Chicago Black Hawks beat Toronto Maple Leafs, 4-1 for a 3-1 series win; only team to win Cup with losing regular season record.
1941 — The Boston Bruins beat the Detroit Red Wings 3-1 to cap a four-game sweep in the Stanley Cup finals.
1942 — Byron Nelson wins his second Masters, edging Ben Hogan by one stroke.
1945 — Toronto rookie goalie Frank McCool set a playoff record with his third consecutive shutout, defeating the Detroit Red Wings 1-0 at Maple Leaf Gardens in Game 3 of the Stanley Cup Final.
1953 — Ben Hogan takes his second Masters with a five-stroke victory over Porky Oliver.
1954 — Sam Snead edges Ben Hogan by one stroke in a playoff round to win his third Masters.
1954 — 8th NBA Championship: Minneapolis Lakers beat Syracuse Nationals, 4 games to 3.
1958 — St. Louis’ Bob Pettit scores a record 50 points as the Hawks beat the Boston Celtics in six games for the NBA title. Pettit hit 19 shots from the field and 12 from the free-throw line in the Hawks 110-109 win.
1960 — Maurice Richard scored his NHL-record 82nd, and final, playoff goal in the Montreal Canadiens’ 5-2 victory against the Maple Leafs in Game 3 of the Stanley Cup Final. Richard retired before the 1960-61 season.
1964 — Arnold Palmer wins the Masters for the fourth time and comes within the course record by two strokes with a 274.
1980 — U.S. Olympic Committee endorses a boycott of the Moscow Olympic games.
1981 — Tom Watson wins his second Masters with a two-stroke victory over Jack Nicklaus.
1987 — Larry Mize hits a 48-foot chip shot to defeat Greg Norman on the second hole of sudden death at the Masters.
1987 — Ahmed Salah wins 2nd World Cup marathon (2:10:55).
1988 — Frank Robinson replaces Cal Ripkin as manager of Baltimore Orioles.
1992 — Fred Couples wins the Masters by two strokes to end a string of four consecutive British victories. Couples beats Ray Floyd, who was attempting to become the oldest player to win a major at age 49.
1993 — American Jeff Rouse swims world record 100m backstroke (51.43 sec).
1997 — Allen Iverson scores a career-high 50 points, for his fourth straight game with at least 40, as Philadelphia loses to Cleveland 125-118. Iverson breaks Wilt Chamberlain’s rookie record of three consecutive 40-point games, set during the 1959-60 season.
1998 — Mark O’Meara wins the Masters with a 20-foot birdie putt on the final hole. O’Meara becomes the first player since Arnold Palmer in 1960 to win by closing with two consecutive birdies.
2005 — Smithtown (N.Y.) High School’s co-ed badminton team defeats Miller Place (N.Y.) High School 10-5 to end Miller Place’s 504-match win streak, the longest sports winning streak in U.S. history. For Miller Place, it is the first loss in the program’s history, which began in 1973.
2009 — In Hameenlinna, Finland, the United States wins its second straight women’s World Hockey Championship title, beating Canada 4-1 behind defenseman Caitlin Cahow’s two goals.
2009 — 73rd US Masters Tournament, Augusta National GC: Ángel Cabrera wins his 2nd major title in a playoff with Chad Campbell and Kenny Perry; Cabrera, first Masters champion.
2015 — Jordan Spieth romps to his first major championship with a record-tying performance at the Masters, shooting an 18-under 270 to become the first wire-to-wire winner of the green jacket since 1976. Spieth is the first Masters champion to lead after every round since Raymond Floyd 39 years ago.
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