Robert Gamez

Last updated

Robert Gamez
Personal information
Full nameRobert Anthony Gamez
Born (1968-07-21) July 21, 1968 (age 56)
Las Vegas, Nevada, U.S.
Height5 ft 9 in (1.75 m)
Weight180 lb (82 kg; 13 st)
Sporting nationalityFlag of the United States.svg United States
Residence Orlando, Florida, U.S.
Career
College University of Arizona
Turned professional1989
Current tour(s) PGA Tour Champions
Former tour(s) PGA Tour
Web.com Tour
Professional wins5
Highest ranking 48 (March 25, 1990) [1]
Number of wins by tour
PGA Tour3
Japan Golf Tour1
Best results in major championships
Masters Tournament CUT: 1990, 1991
PGA Championship T14: 2003
U.S. Open T61: 1990
The Open Championship T12: 1990
Achievements and awards
Jack Nicklaus Award1989
Haskins Award 1989
PGA Tour
Rookie of the Year 		1990

Robert Anthony Gamez (born July 21, 1968) is an American professional golfer who currently plays on the PGA Tour.

Contents

Gamez was born in Las Vegas, and is of Mexican descent. [2] He attended the University of Arizona where he was a member of the golf team. He played on the 1989 Walker Cup Team and dropped out of university to turn professional later that same year. [3] [4]

Gamez has had what can be described as a hot and cold career as a professional golfer. He started out winning two tournaments in his rookie season on the Tour, including his first event, the Northern Telecom Tucson Open. [5] Only three others: Marty Fleckman in 1967, Ben Crenshaw in 1973, and Garrett Willis in 2001, have won their first PGA Tour event as a member of the PGA Tour. He is possibly best known for holing his second shot from the fairway on the tough 18th hole in the final round at the Nestle Invitational in March 1990, giving him a one stroke win over Greg Norman. [6] [7] A commemorative plaque has since been placed in the fairway on the 18th hole at Bay Hill to mark the spot from which Gamez holed his 7-iron from 176 yards (161 m). [8]

From 1991 to 1997, Gamez had six runner-up finishes and one third-place finish on the PGA Tour. In 1998, Gamez was injured in a car accident at the Kemper Open and his career started to decline. Between 1998 and 2001, he failed to finish in the top 125 on the PGA Tour money list. His career hit a low point in 2001, when he failed to qualify for the Tour. [9] Then he began to enjoy a resurgence in his career. He finished in the top-125 every year between 2002 and 2005 including a T-5 at the Bank of America Colonial in 2004 and a win at the 2005 Valero Texas Open. It was his first win in 15 years, 6 months (394 events), a PGA Tour record. [10] [11] After 2005, Gamez's form started to decline and he has only had a few top-10 finishes since his 2005 season. [12] [13] Gamez also had a health scare in 2014 when he underwent quadruple bypass heart surgery. [14] His best finish in a major is T-12 at the 1990 Open Championship. [15]

Gamez hosts an annual tournament in Orlando, Florida for the benefit of the Team Gamez Foundation. He lives in Orlando. His last full season on the PGA Tour was in 2008.

In 2022, Gamez was arrested while intoxicated on misdemeanor battery charges at a pool party in Orlando, Florida. [16]

Amateur wins (3)

Professional wins (5)

PGA Tour wins (3)

No.DateTournamentWinning scoreMargin of
victory		Runner(s)-up
1Jan 14, 1990 Northern Telecom Tucson Open −18 (65-66-69-70=270)4 strokes Flag of the United States.svg Mark Calcavecchia, Flag of the United States.svg Jay Haas
2Mar 25, 1990 Nestle Invitational −14 (71-69-68-66=274)1 stroke Flag of Australia (converted).svg Greg Norman
3Sep 30, 2005 Valero Texas Open −18 (62-68-68-64=262)3 strokes Flag of the United States.svg Olin Browne

PGA Tour playoff record (0–1)

No.YearTournamentOpponentResult
1 1993 Honda Classic Flag of the United States.svg Fred Couples Lost to par on second extra hole

PGA of Japan Tour wins (1)

No.DateTournamentWinning scoreMargin of
victory		Runner-up
1Nov 27, 1994 Casio World Open −17 (68-66-68-69=271)4 strokes Flag of the United States.svg Scott Hoch

Other wins (1)

No.DateTournamentWinning scoreMargin of
victory		Runner-up
1Nov 20, 1994 Pebble Beach Invitational −11 (65-71-70-71=277)6 strokes Flag of the United States.svg Kirk Triplett

Other playoff record (0–1)

No.YearTournamentOpponentsResult
11994 JCPenney Classic
(with Flag of Sweden.svg Helen Alfredsson)		 Flag of the United States.svg Brad Bryant and Flag of Spain.svg Marta Figueras-Dotti Lost to par on fourth extra hole

Results in major championships

Tournament1990199119921993199419951996199719981999
Masters Tournament CUTCUT
U.S. Open T61CUT88CUTCUT
The Open Championship T12T44
PGA Championship T49T79CUTCUTCUT
Tournament2000200120022003200420052006
Masters Tournament
U.S. Open CUTCUTCUT
The Open Championship
PGA Championship CUTT14T68CUT
  Did not play

CUT = missed the half-way cut
"T" = tied

Summary

TournamentWins2nd3rdTop-5Top-10Top-25EventsCuts made
Masters Tournament 00000020
U.S. Open 00000082
The Open Championship 00000122
PGA Championship 00000194
Totals000002218

Results in The Players Championship

Tournament19901991199219931994199519961997199819992000200120022003200420052006
The Players Championship T46CUTCUTCUT84T49T29T24T63T69CUTT56T53
  Did not play

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

Results in World Golf Championships

Tournament2006
Match Play
Championship
Invitational T18
  Did not play

"T" = Tied

U.S. national team appearances

Amateur

See also

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References

  1. ↑ "Week 12 1990 Ending 25 Mar 1990" (pdf). OWGR . Retrieved October 5, 2019.
  2. ↑ Jenkins, Sally (April 4, 1990). "The '90 Masters Is Fair Game For Gamez". The Washington Post. Of Mexican- American descent, he was born and raised amid games of chance in Las Vegas...
  3. ↑ "Caught In The Glare". Sports Illustrated . February 11, 1991. Archived from the original on December 3, 2012. Retrieved July 30, 2009.
  4. ↑ Diaz, Jaime (January 19, 1990). "Prodigy at 8, Winner at 21". The New York Times . Retrieved July 30, 2009.
  5. ↑ "Gamez Wins In Debut". The New York Times . Associated Press. January 15, 1990. Retrieved July 30, 2009.
  6. ↑ Anderson, Dave (March 26, 1990). "Spectacular Eagle Wins for Gamez". The New York Times . Retrieved July 30, 2009.
  7. ↑ "Gamez soars with an eagle". Eugene Register-Guard. (Oregon). Associated Press. March 26, 1990. p. 2B.
  8. ↑ DiMeglio, Steve (March 12, 2008). "Final stretch at Bay Hill can put players in a fix". USA Today . Retrieved July 30, 2009.
  9. ↑ Brown, Clifton (December 1, 2001). "Gamez Learns The Party Is Over". The New York Times . Retrieved July 30, 2009.
  10. ↑ "Gamez ends 15-year drought with win at Texas Open". USA Today . Associated Press. September 25, 2005. Retrieved July 30, 2009.
  11. ↑ "Gamez halts winless run in Texas". BBC Sport. September 26, 2005. Retrieved July 30, 2009.
  12. ↑ McDaniel, Pete (November 29, 2007). "Hits and Misses From Q School". Golf Digest. Retrieved October 27, 2023.
  13. ↑ Gamez, Robert; Arkush, Michael (March 10, 2021). "I shot 92 on the PGA Tour last week. Here's why it won't keep me down". Golf Magazine. Retrieved October 27, 2023.
  14. ↑ Lev, Michael (March 2, 2019). "Cologuard Classic: Ex-UA stars Gamez, Berganio seek second chance on familiar turf". Arizona Daily Star. Retrieved October 27, 2023.
  15. ↑ "Robert Gamez". Golf Major Championships. Retrieved April 15, 2010.
  16. ↑ Stutsman, Doug (July 26, 2022). "Details on arrest of Robert Gamez emerge; three-time PGA Tour winner said he 'does not remember anything,' per report". Golfweek. Retrieved October 27, 2023.
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