Phony Benoni's signature project here at chessgames was the US Open:

Game Collection: US Open Tournament Index

Despite his massive efforts, he was unable to fully build out the full set of collections, partially due to lack of available information but also due to lack of available time. In memory of PB, I have tried to add what I could to one of his smaller collections:

Game Collection: US Open 1978, Phoenix

The 79th US Open was held 6-18 Aug 1978 in Phoenix, AZ at the Phoenix Civic Center. The event used the traditional 12-round schedule with one game per evening and a rest day between Rounds 6 and 7. The time control was 50 moves in 150 minutes and then 20 moves in 60 minutes. The prize fund was $10,000 USD.

Joseph Bradford won clear first while still untitled (he would be awarded the IM title in 2007).

After five rounds, Peters, Youngsworth, and Meyer were in the lead with five wins each. After six rounds, Peters, Shamkovich, Tarjan, Meyer, Bradford, and Davis were in the lead with 5.5 points. Davis won a $100 USD brilliancy prize for his Round 6 win over Bisguier. Lein lost games against promising California juniors Youngsworth (Round 5) and Root (Round 8). After eight rounds, Bradford, Root, Shamkovich, and two Arizona juniors (Brown and Lower) were tied for the lead. After nine rounds, Bradford, Root, and Shamkovich were alone in the lead. in Round 10, Shamkovich drew with Soltis, and Bradford won against Root to take sole possession of the lead. Bradford won against Tarjan in Round 11 to remain in the lead, but Shamkovich also won against Bisguier to keep within a half point of Bradford. In the final round Bradford cinched at least a tie for first with a draw against Soltis. Shamkovich drew with Lindsay, so Bradford was the first outright US Open winner since 1973.

In a "you had to be there" moment, the custodial staff could not imagine any event taking longer than a week, so they took down all the wall charts mid-tournament, assuming it was over.

event coverage <Chess Life> Nov 1978, p. 604-608

1 10.5/12 Joseph Bradford $2000 USD

2-3 10/12 Leonid Shamkovich, Perry Youngsworth $1125 USD each

4-8 9.5/12 Fred Lindsay ($500 USD as <1 Expert>), Andrew Soltis, Curtis Carlson, Steven Odendahl, John Fedorowicz $462.50 USD each

9-22 9/12 Douglas Root, James Tarjan, Richard Faber, Arthur Bisguier, Timothy Brown, Per-Inge Helmentz, Jeffrey Kastner, Anatoly Lein, Paul Whitehead, Jim Thinnsen, Robert Rowley, John Meyer, Ray Fasano, Fabio LaRota $54.55 USD each except Faber with $500 as <1 Class A> and Thinnsen and Fasano with $100 each as <2-3 Expert>

2-3 Class A 8.5/12 Eli Jaffe, Jose Ramirez $100 USD each

1-2 Class B 8/12 Robert Brooks, E. Schuyler Jackson $350 each

1 Class C 7.5/12 Stephen Bagalini $100 USD

2-4 Class C 7/12 John Spargo, Allen Derman, Victor Norton $66.67 USD each

1 Class D/under 7/12 Michael Gatlin $200 USD

2-7 Class D/under 5.5/12 Merton Sparks, Martin Holtzman, William Meachham, William Bernat, Jim Morris, Nick Stefaniak $16.67 USD each

1 Unrated 6/12 Jaime Fernandez $200 USD

2-5 Unrated 5.5/12 David Tweed, Darrell Pennell, Isais Mazo, Douglas May $25 USD each

Brilliancy prize Loel W. Davis for his Round 6 upset of Bisguier: L Davis vs A Bisguier, 1978 $100 USD

Best game by player rated 1400-1799 Sanders A. McDougall, T. A. Jenkins $50 USD each