Gary Player
| Gary Player | |
|---|---|
| — Golfer — | |
Player in 2008
|
|
| Personal information | |
| Full name | Gary Player |
| Nickname | The Black Knight, Mr. Fitness, International Ambassador of Golf |
| Born |
1 November 1935 Johannesburg, South Africa |
| Height | 5 ft 6 in (1.68 m) |
| Weight | 150 lb (68 kg; 11 st) |
| Nationality |
 South Africa
|
| Residence |
Jupiter Island, Florida, U.S. Colesberg, South Africa |
| Spouse | Vivienne Verwey (m. 1957–present) |
| Children | Jennifer, Marc, Wayne, Michele, Theresa, Amanda |
| Career | |
| Turned professional | 1953 |
| Current tour(s) |
PGA Tour (joined 1957) Champions Tour (joined 1985) |
| Professional wins | 164 |
| Number of wins by tour | |
| PGA Tour | 24 (25th all time) |
| Sunshine Tour | 73 (1st all time) |
| PGA Tour Champions | 19 |
| European Senior Tour | 3 |
| Other |
45 (regular) 9 (senior) |
| Best results in major championships (wins: 9) |
|
| Masters Tournament | Won: 1961, 1974, 1978 |
| U.S. Open | Won: 1965 |
| The Open Championship | Won: 1959, 1968, 1974 |
| PGA Championship | Won: 1962, 1972 |
| Achievements and awards | |
| World Golf Hall of Fame | 1974 (member page) |
| PGA Tour leading money winner |
1961 |
| Southern Africa Tour Order of Merit winner |
1976/77, 1979/80 |
| PGA Tour Lifetime Achievement Award |
2012 |
| (For a full list of awards, see here) | |
Gary Player DMS, OIG (born 1 November 1935) is a retired South African professional golfer. Over his career, Player accumulated nine major championships on the regular tour and six Champions Tour major championship victories, as well as three Senior British Open Championships on the European Senior Tour. At the age of 29, Player won the 1965 U.S. Open and became the only non-American to win all four majors, known as the career Grand Slam. Player became only the third golfer in history to win the Career Grand Slam, following Ben Hogan and Gene Sarazen, and only Jack Nicklaus and Tiger Woods have performed the feat since. Player has won 165 tournaments on six continents over six decades and was inducted into the World Golf Hall of Fame in 1974.
Born in Johannesburg, Player has logged more than 25 million kilometres (15 million miles) in travel, which is more than any other athlete. Nicknamed the Black Knight, Mr. Fitness, and the International Ambassador of Golf, Player is also a renowned golf course architect with more than 325 design projects on five continents throughout the world. He has also authored or co-written 36 golf books.
His business interests are represented by Black Knight International, which includes Gary Player Design, Player Real Estate, The Player Foundation, Gary Player Academies, and Black Knight Enterprises, aspects of which include licensing, events, publishing, wine, apparel and memorabilia.
The Gary Player Stud Farm breeds thoroughbred race horses, including 1994 Epsom Derby entry Broadway Flyer.
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Wikipedia