- Jan 1 21st Orange Bowl: #14 Duke beats Nebraska, 34-7
- Jan 1 21st Sugar Bowl: #5 Navy beats #6 Mississippi, 21-0
- Jan 1 41st Rose Bowl: #1 Ohio State beats #17 Southern California, 20-7
Patterson vs. Troy
Jan 7 20 year-old future world heavyweight boxing champion Floyd Patterson scores a 5th-round TKO of Willie Troy in a non-title super middleweight bout at New York’s Madison Square Garden
5th NBA All-Star Game
Jan 18 5th NBA All-Star Game, Madison Square Garden NYC: East beats West, 100-91; MVP: Bill Sharman, Boston Celtics, G
Rosewall Wins Australian Final
Jan 31 Australian Championships Men's Tennis: In an all-Australian final Ken Rosewall wins his 2nd Australian title; beats Lew Hoad 9-7, 6-4, 6-4
- Jan 31 Australian Championships Women's Tennis: Beryl Penrose wins her only Australian singles title; beats Thelma Coyne Long 6-4, 6-3
- Feb 1 Hap Day becomes the first man to serve as Toronto Maple Leafs' captain, coach and general manager when he is appointed to run the famous Canadian NHL club
- Feb 17 American golfer Mike Souchak sets PGA 72-hole record of 257 (not broken until 2001)
- Feb 17 Ice Dance Championship at Vienna Austria won by J Westwood/Demmy GRB
Sports History
Feb 17 Ladies Figure Skating Championship in Vienna won by Tenley Albright US
Golf Tournament
Mar 13 LPGA Titleholders Championship Women's Golf, Augusta CC: Patty Berg wins her 6th Titleholders title by 2 strokes from Mary Lena Faulk
Sports History
Mar 16 NHL President Clarence Campbell suspends Montreal Canadiens superstar Maurice "Rocket" Richard for the remainder of the season after he viciously attacked an opponent; Riots ensued in Montreal
- Mar 17 After Maurice Richard is suspended for the remainder of the season, riots break out in Montreal. 37 people are injured and over 100 are arrested. The following morning, Richard goes on the radio to ask citizens to stop vandalizing the city.
Sports History
Mar 19 17th NCAA Men's Basketball Championship: San Francisco beats La Salle, 77-63; Dons' future Hall of Fame center Bill Russell is named tournament Most Outstanding Player
- Mar 21 Brooklyn Bulletin ask Dodger fans not to call their team "Bums"
- Mar 26 109th Grand National: Pat Taaffe wins aboard Quare Times at 100/9; third consecutive GN victory for trainer Vincent O'Brien
- Mar 26 France misses out on a maiden Grand Slam after losing, 16-11 to Wales at Stade Colombes; share Five Nations Rugby Championship with Wales with 3-1 record
- Mar 28 NZ cricket all out for 26 v England at Eden Park
- Mar 31 West Indies cricket all-rounder Collie Smith scores 104 in his Test debut in a 9 wicket 1st Test defeat to Australia in Kingston, Jamaica
- Apr 3 Baltimore Orioles pull their 1st triple play (3-6-2 vs KC Athletics)
US Masters Golf
Apr 10 19th US Masters Tournament, Augusta National GC: Cary Middlecoff wins by a record 7 strokes ahead of Ben Hogan
- Apr 10 9th NBA Championship: Syrac Nats beat Ft Wayne Pistons, 4 games to 3
Sobers 1st WI Appearance
Apr 11 Garfield Sobers starts run of 85 uninterrupted Test Cricket appearances for West Indies
- Apr 12 1st game in KC, KC A's beat Detroit Tigers, 6-2
Sports History
Apr 14 26-year-old catcher/outfielder Elston Howard becomes first African-American to play for NY Yankees; hits single with 1 RBI in 8-4 loss to Boston Red Sox
- Apr 14 Stanley Cup Final, Olympia Stadium, Detroit, MI: Detroit Red Wings win back-to-back titles; beat Montreal Canadiens, 3-1 for a 4-3 series victory
- Apr 18 59th Boston Marathon won by Hideo Hamamura of Japan in 2:18:22
- Apr 21 Brooklyn Dodgers win, then record 10th straight game to begin a season
- Apr 22 KC Athletic's 1st game, beat Tigers 6-2
Golf Tournament
May 1 American golfer Babe Didrikson-Zaharias wins the Peach Blossom LPGA Tournament in Spartanburg, South Carolina, her final victory before her death the following year
Sports History
May 1 Future Baseball Hall of Fame pitcher Bob Feller tosses his record 12th 1-hitter in Indians' 2-0 win v Boston Red Sox at Cleveland Stadium
81st Kentucky Derby
May 7 81st Kentucky Derby: Bill Shoemaker aboard Swaps wins in 2:01.8
- May 12 Chicago Cub Sam "Toothpick" Jones is 1st African-American to pitch a no-hitter, winning 4-0 over Pittsburgh Pirates, at Wrigley Field, Chicago
Baseball Record
May 13 Mickey Mantle hits 3 consecutive HRs of at least 463'
- May 16 Ray Lindwall scores his 2nd Test Cricket century 118 at Bridgetown
Marciano TKOs Cockell
May 16 Rocky Marciano beats Don Cockell by TKO in the 9th round at Kezar Stadium, San Francisco to retain his world heavyweight boxing title
Preakness Stakes
May 28 80th Preakness: Eddie Arcaro aboard Nashua wins in 1:54.6
- May 28 Indianapolis 500: Bob Sweikert wins; defending champion Bill Vukovich killed in a crash while seemingly on his way to an unprecedented third consecutive Indy 500
Sports History
Jun 3 Stan Musial hits his 300th HR
French Open Men's Tennis
Jun 4 French Championships Men's Tennis: Defending champion Tony Trabert beats Sven Davidson of Sweden 2-6, 6-1, 6-4, 6-2
French Open Women's Tennis
Jun 4 French Championships Women's Tennis: Angela Mortimer of England beats American Dorothy Knode 2-6, 7-5, 10-8 for her first Grand Slam singles title
- Jun 5 NY Yankee Mickey Mantle hits 550' HR off Chicago Billy Pierce
Baseball History
Jun 8 MLB Brooklyn Dodgers option pitcher (and future Baseball Hall of Fame manager) Tommy Lasorda to make room on roster for future Hall of Famer, pitcher Sandy Koufax
- Jun 9 Test Cricket debut of Ken Barrington, v South Africa at Trent Bridge
- Jun 11 87th Belmont: Eddie Arcaro aboard Nashua wins in 2:29
- Jun 11 Le Mans race car accident kills 83 spectators (race continues)
- Jun 13 Mercedes racing car kills 77 at Le Mans, France
- Jun 15 The International Olympic Committee votes to award Rome the rights to host the 1960 Summer Olympic Games
- Jun 19 Mickey Mantle hits career HR # 100
- Jun 19 Philadelphia Phillies beat the Chicago Cubs, 1-0 in 15 innings; ties longest shutout in club history
- Jun 19 US Open Men's Golf, Olympic CC: Jack Fleck wins an 18-hole playoff by 3 strokes to claim his only major title and deny Ben Hogan a record fifth US Open title
Baseball History
Jun 24 Harmon Killebrew hits his 1st HR (off Billy Hoeff)
LPGA Western Open
Jun 26 LPGA Western Open Women's Golf, Maple Bluff CC: Patty Berg wins her 5th WO title by 2 strokes from Louise Suggs and Fay Croker; first WO played at stroke play
- Jul 1 Wimbledon Men's Tennis: American Tony Trabert beats Kurt Nielsen of Denmark 6-3, 7-5, 6-1 for his only Wimbledon success
- Jul 2 US Open Women's Golf, Wichita GC: Uruguayan Fay Crocker beats Louise Suggs & Mary Lena Faulk by 4 to become the tournament's first overseas winner
Wimbledon Women's Tennis
Jul 2 Wimbledon Women's Tennis: Louise Brough beats fellow American Beverly Fleitz 7-5, 8-6 for her 4th Wimbledon singles title
British Golf Open
Jul 8 British Open Men's Golf, St Andrews: Peter Thomson of Australia wins the 2nd of 3 consecutive Open titles, 2 strokes clear of runner-up John Fallon
- Jul 12 22nd All Star Baseball Game: NL wins 6-5 in 12 at County Stad, Milw
F1 World Champion
Jul 16 Juan Manuel Fangio of Argentina clinches his third Formula 1 World Drivers Championship by finishing 2nd to fellow Mercedes driver Sterling Moss in the British Grand Prix at Aintree
- Jul 17 1st LPGA Championship Women's Golf, Orchard Ridge CC: Beverly Hanson wins by 3 shots from Louise Suggs
- Jul 22 Philadelphia Phillies beat the St. Louis Cardinals, 5-3 to complete a team record 11-game winning streak; longest win-streak since 1892
- Jul 23 NY Yankees Bob Cerv and E Howard are 1st to hit consecutive pinch HRs
- Jul 26 Last day as Test Cricket umpire for Frank Chester
PGA Championship
Jul 26 PGA Championship Men's Golf, Meadowbrook CC: Doug Ford scores a 4 & 3 win over Cary Middlecoff in the Tuesday final; first of 2 majors (Masters 1957)
- Jul 30 42nd Tour de France: French cyclist Louison Bobet claims last of his 3 straight general classification victories
- Aug 3 Automobile Association of America ends support of auto racing, Le Mans disaster and Bill Vukovich death at Indianapolis contributing factors
- Aug 3 Belgian middle distance runner Roger Moens breaks Rudolph Harbig's long standing 800m world record (1:45.7) in Oslo, Norway
Baseball Record
Aug 13 Larry Doby's ends AL record of 167 errorless games in outfield
Baseball Record
Aug 27 Sandy Koufax fans 14 Reds, both teams combine for record 23 strikeouts
- Sep 5 Dodger Don Newcombe hits NL pitcher record 7th HR of season
Baseball History
Sep 7 New York Yankee Whitey Ford becomes 5th MLB pitcher to hurl consecutive 1 hitters
- Sep 8 Earliest clinching of an NL pennant (Brooklyn Dodgers)
- Sep 9 Don Zimmer, hits 4,000th Dodger home run
- Sep 11 75th US National Championships Men's Tennis: American Tony Trabert wins his second home title; beats Ken Rosewall of Australia 9-7, 6-3, 6-3
F1 World Champion
Sep 11 Juan Manuel Fango in a Mercedes wins season ending Italian Grand Prix at Monza to take his third Formula 1 World Drivers Championship by 17 points from Englishman Stirling Moss
US Open Women's Tennis
Sep 11 US National Championship Women's Tennis: Defending champion Doris Hart beats Patricia Ward Hales of England 6-4, 6-2
- Sep 14 Herb Score sets rookie record of 235 strikeouts (en route 245)
- Sep 16 Bauer & Berra homer in 9th beating Red Sox 5-4 taking over 1st
- Sep 16 Yankee Mickey Mantle pulls a hamstring muscle running out a bunt
Sports History
Sep 17 Future MLB Hall of Famer Baltimore Oriole Brooks Robinson goes 2-4 in his 1st game
Baseball Record
Sep 18 Willie Mays hits record tying 9th HR at Ebbets Field (ties Joe Adcock)
Baseball Record
Sep 19 Cubs slugger Ernie Banks hits record 5th grand slam of season
- Sep 20 Willie Mays (Giants) homers off Vern Law (Pirates) in both ends of DH
- Sep 20 Willie Mays is 7th player to reach 50 HRs in a season
- Sep 21 In his last fight, undefeated world heavyweight boxing champion Rocky Marciano KOs light heavyweight Archie Moore in the 9th round at Yankee Stadium, NYC
- Sep 23 Yanks clinch pennant by beating Red Sox, 3-2
- Sep 28 1st World Series color TV broadcast on NBC-TV (Yanks beat Dodgers)
- Oct 1 Baltimore Colts fullback Alan Ameche becomes the first rookie in NFL history to top 100 yards rushing in his first 2 games; totals 153 against Detroit Lions after 194 yards in debut v Chicago Bears
- Oct 2 9th NHL All-Star Game, Detroit Olympia, Detroit, MI: Detroit Red Wings beat All-Stars, 3-1
- Oct 4 Baseball World Series: Brooklyn Dodgers win their first WS with a 2-0 victory against arch-rival NY Yankees at Yankee Stadium in Game 7; MVP: Brooklyn pitcher Johnny Podres
Sports History
Oct 18 "Track & Field" magazine names Jesse Owens all-time track athlete
Sports History
Oct 25 Branch Rickey steps down as GM of the Pirates
- Oct 30 7th NASCAR Sprint Cup: Tim Flock wins
- Nov 6 Ryder Cup Golf, Thunderbird Ranch & CC: US wins 8-4; Chick Harbert captains Americans to 7th consecutive event victory
- Nov 12 Eddie Arcaro, Earl Sande and George Woolf inaugural inductees in (Horse) Racing Hall of Fame
- Nov 20 Kripal Singh scores 100 on Test Cricket debut, India v NZ
- Nov 20 Polly Umrigar scores India's 1st Test Cricket double century, 223 v NZ
- Nov 26 20th Iron Bowl: Auburn beats Alabama 26-0 in Birmingham
- Nov 26 CFL Grey Cup, Empire Stadium, Vancouver: Edmonton Eskimos retain Championship with 34-19 win over Montreal Alouettes
- Nov 28 1956 NFL Draft: Gary Glick from University of Colorado A&M first pick by Pittsburgh Steelers
- Dec 6 New York psychologist Joyce Brothers wins "$64,000 Question" with topic of boxing
- Dec 8 21st Heisman Trophy Award: Howard Cassady, Ohio State (HB)
Campanella's 3rd MVP
Dec 8 Brooklyn catcher Roy Campanella wins his 3rd MVP Award
- Dec 26 National Football League Championship, LA Memorial Coliseum: Cleveland Browns beat Los Angeles Rams, 38-14; Browns defend title and win their 3rd NFL Championship of the 1950s in a second straight rout
- Dec 28 44th Davis Cup: Australia beats USA in New York (5-0)
- Dec 29 NHL officials wear new vertically striped black-and-white sweaters for the first time in Montreal Canadiens' 5-2 win over Toronto Maple Leafs
Baseball Players
Basketball Stars
Boxers
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NFL Stars
Tennis Champions