Loren Roberts

Last updated

Loren Roberts
Loren Roberts.jpg
Roberts in 2009
Personal information
Full nameLoren Lloyd Roberts
NicknameBoss of the Moss [1]
Born (1955-06-24) June 24, 1955 (age 70)
San Luis Obispo, California, U.S.
Height6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)
Weight215 lb (98 kg; 15.4 st)
Sporting nationalityFlag of the United States (23px).png  United States
Residence Germantown, Tennessee, U.S.
Career
College California Polytechnic State University
Turned professional1975
Current tour(s) PGA Tour Champions
Former tour(s) PGA Tour
Professional wins26
Highest ranking 11 (February 11, 1996) [2]
Number of wins by tour
PGA Tour8
PGA Tour Champions13
European Senior Tour2
Best results in major championships
Masters Tournament T3: 2000
PGA Championship T5: 1990
U.S. Open T2: 1994
The Open Championship T7: 2000
Achievements and awards
Champions Tour
Byron Nelson Award
2006, 2007
Champions Tour
Charles Schwab Cup winner
2007, 2009

Loren Lloyd Roberts (born June 24, 1955) is an American professional golfer, who has played on the PGA Tour and the PGA Tour Champions.

Contents

Early life

Roberts was born in San Luis Obispo, California. He competed for San Luis Obispo Senior High School and California Polytechnic State University. In 1975, he turned professional after his sophomore season due to the university's dropping its NCAA Division II golf team.

Professional career

In the late 1970s, Roberts worked for Dennis Pogue as an assistant pro at San Luis Obispo Golf and Country Club as well as Morro Bay Golf Course. He won the Foot-Joy PGA Assistant Professional Championship of 1979 and was second in 1980. The first professional tour where he briefly competed was the PGA Tour of Australasia, after his 1979 PGA victory.

On his fifth attempt, Roberts earned his PGA Tour card at the PGA Tour Qualification Tournament in 1980 for the 1981 season. He returned to the tournament in 1981, 1982, 1986 and 1987, earning his card every year except 1981. He did not get his first win on the PGA Tour until 1994 at age 38, yet it sparked a nine-season run of eight victories. His career earnings are over $15 million. He is known as "Boss of the Moss" for his putting skills. [1] He has featured in the top 20 of the Official World Golf Rankings.

Roberts' best finish in a major was tie for 2nd place at the 1994 U.S. Open. He contended in an 18-hole playoff with Ernie Els and Colin Montgomerie. Montgomerie was eliminated. An additional pair of sudden-death holes gave Els the title. [3]

Roberts played for the United States in the 1995 Ryder Cup, 1994 and 2000 Presidents Cups, and 2001 UBS Warburg Cup. He was 3–1 at the Ryder Cup, 4-2-1 at the Presidents Cups, and 1–2 at the UBS Warburg Cup. Of the four team events, only the Ryder Cup team lost. He was a co-assistant captain for the 2006 Ryder Cup which was also defeated by the European team.

After concentrating on the Champions Tour in 2006, Roberts went without a PGA Tour card for the 2007 and 2008 seasons, passing on using his exemption for being among the top 50 in career earnings. He used the exemption for the 2009 season.

In the middle of his regular career, in 1995, Roberts began hosting the annual Loren Roberts Celebrity Pro-Am in May at Spring Creek Ranch in Collierville, Tennessee. The benefitting charity is Le Bonheur Children's Medical Center of Memphis, Tennessee.

Roberts wrote Focus: The Name of the Game with fellow PGA Tour golfers Scott Simpson and Larry Mize. The 128-page book was published by J. Countryman in 1999.

Senior career

In 2005, Roberts joined the Champions Tour. His first senior win came in his third event at the JELD-WEN Tradition, one of five senior majors. He defeated Dana Quigley in a two-hole sudden-death playoff.

In 2006, Roberts became the first golfer to open a Champions Tour season with three wins. [4] Later that season he won his second senior major by beating Eduardo Romero in a playoff at the Senior British Open. He won the Byron Nelson Award for lowest average stroke total per round.

In 2009, he won his second Senior British Open title after beating Fred Funk and Mark McNulty in a playoff. He won a month later in August at the Boeing Classic, where he denied Mark O'Meara his first Champions Tour victory, defeating him by one stroke after making birdie on the final hole. The GWAA voted him Player of the Year.

He broke 54-hole tournament record for lowest score in relationship to par (25-under) and most birdies (26) as well as sharing lowest score (191). The marks were set largely due to scoring a career-best 61 in the final round of his 2006 MasterCard Championship at Hualalai win.

Personal life

Since the 1980s, Roberts has been a resident of Germantown, Tennessee.

Awards and honors

Professional wins (25)

PGA Tour wins (8)

No.DateTournamentWinning scoreMargin of
victory
Runner(s)-up
1Mar 20, 1994 Nestle Invitational −13 (70-70-68-67=275)1 stroke Flag of Zimbabwe.svg Nick Price, Flag of Fiji.svg Vijay Singh,
Flag of the United States.svg Fuzzy Zoeller
2Mar 19, 1995 Nestle Invitational (2)−16 (68-65-68-71=272)2 strokes Flag of the United States.svg Brad Faxon
3Apr 21, 1996 MCI Classic −19 (66-69-63-67=265)3 strokes Flag of the United States.svg Mark O'Meara
4Sep 1, 1996 Greater Milwaukee Open −19 (66-65-66-68=265)Playoff Flag of the United States.svg Jerry Kelly
5Sep 14, 1997 CVS Charity Classic −18 (67-67-68-64=266)1 stroke Flag of the United States.svg Bill Glasson
6May 16, 1999 GTE Byron Nelson Classic −18 (66-66-62-68=262)Playoff Flag of the United States.svg Steve Pate
7Jul 16, 2000 Greater Milwaukee Open (2)−24 (65-66-63-66=260)8 strokes Flag of the United States.svg Franklin Langham
8Sep 29, 2002 Valero Texas Open −19 (67-63-67-64=261)3 strokes Flag of the United States.svg Fred Couples, Flag of the United States.svg Fred Funk,
Flag of the United States.svg Garrett Willis

PGA Tour playoff record (2–1)

No.YearTournamentOpponent(s)Result
1 1994 U.S. Open Flag of South Africa.svg Ernie Els, Flag of Scotland.svg Colin Montgomerie Els won with par on second extra hole after 18-hole playoff;
Els: +3 (74),
Roberts: +3 (74),
Montgomerie: +7 (78)
2 1996 Greater Milwaukee Open Flag of the United States.svg Jerry Kelly Won with birdie on first extra hole
3 1999 GTE Byron Nelson Classic Flag of the United States.svg Steve Pate Won with par on first extra hole

Other wins (5)

This list may be incomplete.

Champions Tour wins (13)

Legend
Champions Tour major championships (4)
Other Champions Tour (9)
No.DateTournamentWinning scoreMargin of
victory
Runner(s)-up
1Aug 28, 2005 JELD-WEN Tradition −15 (67-69-70-67=273)Playoff Flag of the United States.svg Dana Quigley
2Jan 22, 2006 MasterCard Championship −25 (63-67-61=191)1 stroke Flag of the United States.svg Don Pooley
3Jan 29, 2006 Turtle Bay Championship −12 (66-66-72=204)2 strokes Flag of the United States.svg Scott Simpson
4Feb 19, 2006 ACE Group Classic −14 (67-66-69=202)1 stroke Flag of the United States.svg R. W. Eaks, Flag of the United States.svg Brad Bryant
5Jul 30, 2006 The Senior British Open Championship −6 (65-65-69-75=274)Playoff Flag of Argentina.svg Eduardo Romero
6Jun 3, 2007 Boeing Championship at Sandestin −16 (65-67-65=197)3 strokes Flag of Argentina.svg Eduardo Romero
7Oct 7, 2007 Constellation Energy Senior Players Championship −13 (67-66-67-67=267)6 strokes Flag of the United States.svg Tom Watson
8Jun 29, 2008 Commerce Bank Championship −12 (65-68-68=201)1 stroke Flag of Zimbabwe.svg Nick Price, Flag of the United States.svg Lonnie Nielsen
9Feb 22, 2009 ACE Group Classic (2)−7 (70-71-68=209)1 stroke Flag of the United States.svg Gene Jones
10Jul 26, 2009 The Senior Open Championship (2)−12 (66-68-67-67=268)Playoff Flag of the United States.svg Fred Funk, Flag of Ireland.svg Mark McNulty
11Aug 31, 2009 Boeing Classic −18 (68-65-65=198)1 stroke Flag of the United States.svg Mark O'Meara
12Jun 27, 2010 Dick's Sporting Goods Open −15 (68-68-65=201)1 stroke Flag of the United States.svg Fred Funk
13Mar 18, 2012 Toshiba Classic −8 (66-70-69=205)2 strokes Flag of the United States.svg Mark Calcavecchia, Flag of the United States.svg Tom Kite,
Flag of Germany.svg Bernhard Langer

Champions Tour playoff record (3–2)

No.YearTournamentOpponent(s)Result
1 2005 JELD-WEN Tradition Flag of the United States.svg Dana Quigley Won with bogey on second extra hole
2 2006 The Senior British Open Championship Flag of Argentina.svg Eduardo Romero Won with par on first extra hole
3 2007 AT&T Classic Flag of the United States.svg Tom Purtzer Lost to birdie on fourth extra hole
4 2008 AT&T Champions Classic Flag of the United States.svg Brad Bryant, Flag of Zimbabwe.svg Denis Watson Watson won with birdie on third extra hole
Bryant eliminated by birdie on second hole
5 2009 The Senior Open Championship Flag of the United States.svg Fred Funk, Flag of Ireland.svg Mark McNulty Won with par on third extra hole
Funk eliminated by birdie on first hole

Results in major championships

Tournament19851986198719881989
Masters Tournament
U.S. Open T34CUTCUT
The Open Championship
PGA Championship CUTT34
Tournament1990199119921993199419951996199719981999
Masters Tournament CUTT5T24T23CUTCUT
U.S. Open T49T11T2WDT40T13T18
The Open Championship T24CUTT18CUTT29
PGA Championship T5T27T28T9T58CUTT49T65CUT
Tournament20002001200220032004200520062007200820092010
Masters Tournament T3T37T33
U.S. Open T8T52T42
The Open Championship T7T13T28CUTCUT
PGA Championship T58CUTT43T7T17CUT
  Top 10
  Did not play

CUT = missed the halfway cut
WD = withdrew
"T" indicates a tie for a place

Summary

TournamentWins2nd3rdTop-5Top-10Top-25EventsCuts made
Masters Tournament 00122496
U.S. Open 0101251310
The Open Championship 000014106
PGA Championship 0001341712
Totals01148174934

Results in The Players Championship

Tournament1985198619871988198919901991199219931994199519961997199819992000200120022003200420052006
The Players Championship CUTT40CUTT14T46T27T21CUTT14T34T333CUTCUTCUTCUTT4971T66CUTCUT
  Top 10
  Did not play

CUT = missed the halfway cut
"T" indicates a tie for a place

Results in World Golf Championships

Tournament1999200020012002200320042005
Match Play R16R64R64R32R64
Championship T40NT1T16
Invitational 14T29T28

1Cancelled due to 9/11

  Top 10
  Did not play

QF, R16, R32, R64 = Round in which player lost in match play
"T" = Tied
NT = No tournament

Senior major championships

Wins (4)

YearChampionshipWinning scoreMarginRunner(s)-up
2005 JELD-WEN Tradition −15 (67-69-70-67=273)Playoff Flag of the United States.svg Dana Quigley
2006 The Senior Open Championship −6 (65-65-69-75=274)Playoff Flag of Argentina.svg Eduardo Romero
2007 Constellation Energy Senior Players Championship −13 (67-66-67-67=267)6 strokes Flag of the United States.svg Tom Watson
2009 The Senior Open Championship (2)−12 (66-68-67-67=268)Playoff Flag of the United States.svg Fred Funk, Flag of Ireland.svg Mark McNulty

Results timeline

Results not in chronological order before 2017.

Tournament20052006200720082009201020112012201320142014201520162017201820192020
The Tradition 1T14T4T7T5T153T25T22T31WDT34WDNT
Senior PGA Championship 5T12T49T28T15T8T12T47WDCUTT46NT
U.S. Senior Open T2T83T12T4T20T17T36T14T20CUTT9CUTCUTNT
Senior Players Championship T31T21T33T28T3856T22T29T20T26T46T62
Senior British Open Championship 51T41T14T27CUTT50NT
  Win
  Top 10
  Did not play

CUT = missed the halfway cut
WD = withdrew
"T" indicates a tie for a place
NT = No tournament due to COVID-19 pandemic

U.S. national team appearances

This list may be incomplete.

Professional

See also

References

  1. 1 2 3 "Cal Poly Hall of Fame". Cal Poly Mustangs. Archived from the original on September 29, 2011. Retrieved August 23, 2011.
  2. "Week 06 1996 Ending 11 Feb 1996" (pdf). OWGR . Retrieved September 25, 2019.
  3. "Golf Major Championships" . Retrieved August 23, 2011.
  4. "Roberts gets his hat trick at The ACE Group Classic". PGA Tour. February 19, 2006. Archived from the original on March 2, 2006. Retrieved August 23, 2011.
  5. "Tennessee Sports Hall of Fame". Archived from the original on September 29, 2011. Retrieved August 23, 2011.
  6. "Tennessee Golf Hall of Fame" . Retrieved August 23, 2011.