Bob Duval
| Bob Duval | |
|---|---|
| Personal information | |
| Full name | Robert Duval |
| Born |
October 9, 1946 Schenectady, New York |
| Nationality |
 United States
|
| Residence | Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida |
| Spouse | Diane Poole (divorced) Shari |
| Children | Brent, David, Diedre |
| Career | |
| College | Florida State University |
| Turned professional | 1968 |
| Former tour(s) | Champions Tour |
| Professional wins | 1 |
| Number of wins by tour | |
| PGA Tour Champions | 1 |
Robert Duval (born October 9, 1946) is an American professional golfer and is best known for being the father of David Duval, formerly the top-ranked player in the world.
Duval was born in Schenectady, New York, the son of professional golfer Henry '"Hap" Duval, and grew up in upstate New York. His father worked full-time for the United States Post Office Department starting at 4 a.m., then taught or played golf until dark, weather permitting. In order to be around his father, Bob learned to play golf when he was six, but the game was also a fit with his competitive nature. He attended Florida State University on a golf scholarship, but Hubert Green was the star of the college team.
Duval did not consider playing on the pro tour; he married his first wife, Diane Poole, and was hired at Timuquana Country Club in Jacksonville as an assistant pro in 1968. The following year, he switched to the municipal course in Fernandina Beach for four years. His son Brent was born in 1969, followed by David in 1971 and Deirdre in 1976. Duval returned to Timuquana as head pro in 1973, and stayed there for thirteen years while raising his children.
Duval's oldest son, Brent, developed aplastic anemia. The family sought treatment at Rainbow Babies & Children's Hospital in Cleveland, Ohio, where younger brother David, who was 9, underwent surgery to donate bone marrow. Unfortunately, the transplant was not successful, and Brent died as a result of septicemia on May 17, 1981 at age 12.
Both Bob and Diane used alcohol to numb the emotional pain and their relationship deteriorated. Duval was unable to cope, and moved out of the family home for a year. Counseling enabled him to reunite with his wife and children, and in 1987, he accepted an offer to be golf pro at the Plantation, a new gated, golf community in Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida. Duval's father, "Hap" died in 1991, and Bob was unhappy in his marriage, so in 1993, he left his family permanently and the divorce was final in 1996. When Bob began seeing Sharon Blum, David stood by his mother, who was deeply depressed. He blamed his father and their relationship diminished. After some time had passed, they began talking again, and David realized that his father was happy.
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