Stephen Gallacher

Last updated

Stephen Gallacher
MBE
Stephen Gallacher.JPG
Personal information
Full nameStephen James Gallacher
Born (1974-11-01) 1 November 1974 (age 51)
Height6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)
Weight87 kg (192 lb; 13.7 st)
Sporting nationalityFlag of Scotland.svg  Scotland
Residence Bathgate, Scotland
Spouse
Helen
(m. 1999)
Children2
Career
Turned professional1995
Former tour European Tour
Professional wins5
Highest ranking 31 (20 July 2014) [1]
Number of wins by tour
European Tour4
Asian Tour1
Challenge Tour1
Best results in major championships
Masters Tournament T34: 2014
PGA Championship T18: 2010
U.S. Open CUT: 2005, 2011, 2014, 2015
The Open Championship T15: 2014

Stephen James Gallacher MBE (born 1 November 1974) is a Scottish professional golfer who plays on the European Tour.

Contents

Early life and amateur career

In 1974, Gallacher was born in Dechmont, West Lothian. He is the nephew of former European Ryder Cup captain Bernard Gallacher and cousin of Sky Sports news presenter Kirsty Gallacher.

Gallacher won the 1994 European Amateur and a couple of important amateur tournaments in Britain. He played in a victorious Walker Cup side in 1995 and turned professional later that year.

Professional career

In 1995, Gallacher turned professional. He first played on the European Tour in 1996 but struggled to begin with. In 2000, however, he reached the top hundred on the Order of Merit for the first time, placing 56th. In 2004, he recorded his first win on the tour at the Dunhill Links Championship, which is one of the richest golf tournaments in Europe, and finished the year ranked 15th on the Order of Merit.

In February 2013, Gallacher ended a 201-tournament wait for his second victory on the European Tour, when he won the Omega Dubai Desert Classic by three strokes. He held the lead going into the final round after he shot his best career round of 62 on the European Tour in the third round. Despite two bogeys in his first two holes, Gallacher clinched victory with an eagle on the 16th hole. [2] The win moved Gallacher back into the world's top 100.

The following year, Gallacher defended his title with a one stroke victory at the 2014 Omega Dubai Desert Classic for his third European Tour victory. [3] He is the first golfer to ever successfully defend the title. Five years after his title defense in Dubai, he won again on the European Tour by claiming the 2019 Hero Indian Open, India's premier event, with a birdie on the 18th at the Gary Player course at the DLF Golf and Country Club near Delhi, India, despite a quadruple-bogey on the 7th. His son Jack caddied for him during his win in India. [4] [5]

Gallacher was one of the three captain's picks by Paul McGinley for the 2014 Ryder Cup. [6]

In December 2022 Gallacher was announced by Ryder Cup Europe as captain of the 2023 European Junior Ryder Cup team, for the match against United States in Rome, Italy ahead of the 2023 Ryder Cup match. [7]

Amateur wins

Professional wins (5)

European Tour wins (4)

No.DateTournamentWinning scoreMargin of
victory
Runner-up
110 Oct 2004 Dunhill Links Championship −19 (70-66-66-67=269)Playoff Ulster Banner.svg Graeme McDowell
23 Feb 2013 Omega Dubai Desert Classic −22 (63-70-62-71=266)3 strokes Flag of South Africa.svg Richard Sterne
32 Feb 2014 Omega Dubai Desert Classic (2)−16 (66-71-63-72=272)1 stroke Flag of Argentina.svg Emiliano Grillo
431 Mar 2019 Hero Indian Open 1−9 (67-74-67-71=279)1 stroke Flag of Japan.svg Masahiro Kawamura

1Co-sanctioned by the Asian Tour

European Tour playoff record (1–2)

No.YearTournamentOpponent(s)Result
1 2004 Dunhill Links Championship Ulster Banner.svg Graeme McDowell Won with birdie on first extra hole
2 2013 Johnnie Walker Championship at Gleneagles Flag of England.svg Tommy Fleetwood, Flag of Argentina.svg Ricardo González Fleetwood won with birdie on first extra hole
3 2014 Nordea Masters Flag of France.svg Victor Dubuisson, Flag of Thailand.svg Thongchai Jaidee Jaidee won with birdie on first extra hole

Challenge Tour wins (1)

No.DateTournamentWinning scoreMargin of
victory
Runner-up
17 Jun 1998 KB Golf Challenge −14 (63-71-69-67=270)2 strokes Flag of Germany.svg Erol Şimşek

Challenge Tour playoff record (0–1)

No.YearTournamentOpponentResult
1 1998 Audi Quattro Trophy Flag of Italy.svg Marcello Santi Lost to birdie on fourth extra hole

Results in major championships

Stephen Gallacher Stephen Gallacher (swing).jpg
Stephen Gallacher
Tournament19951996199719981999
Masters Tournament
U.S. Open
The Open Championship CUTCUT
PGA Championship
Tournament2000200120022003200420052006200720082009
Masters Tournament
U.S. Open CUT
The Open Championship CUT
PGA Championship CUT
Tournament201020112012201320142015
Masters Tournament T34CUT
U.S. Open CUTCUTCUT
The Open Championship T23T57T21T15CUT
PGA Championship T18CUTT61CUTCUT
  Did not play

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

Summary

TournamentWins2nd3rdTop-5Top-10Top-25EventsCuts made
Masters Tournament 00000021
U.S. Open 00000040
The Open Championship 00000384
PGA Championship 00000162
Totals000004207

Results in The Players Championship

Tournament20142015
The Players Championship CUTT38

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

Results in World Golf Championships

Results not in chronological order before 2015.

Tournament20052006200720082009201020112012201320142015
Championship T53T6T66
Match Play R64R64T52
Invitational T58T44T4756
Champions T63T24
  Top 10
  Did not play

QF, R16, R32, R64 = Round in which player lost in match play
"T" = Tied
Note that the HSBC Champions did not become a WGC event until 2009.

Team appearances

Amateur

Professional

See also

References

  1. "Week 29 2014 Ending 20 Jul 2014" (pdf). OWGR . Retrieved 3 October 2019.
  2. "Gallacher seals victory in Dubai". BBC Sport.
  3. "Stephen Gallacher defends Dubai title". ESPN. Associated Press. 2 February 2014.
  4. "Indian Open: Stephen Gallacher wins despite final-round quadruple bogey". BBC News. 31 March 2019. Retrieved 31 March 2019.
  5. "Scot earns first tour win in five years at Hero Indian Open". The Herald. Glasgow. 31 March 2019. Retrieved 31 March 2019.
  6. Murray, Ewan (2 September 2014). "Ryder Cup 2014: Poulter, Gallacher and Westwood are wild-card picks". The Guardian.
  7. "Gallacher announced as captain and qualification process for 2023 Junior Ryder Cup confirmed". rydercup.com. Ryder Cup Europe. 12 December 2022. Retrieved 20 January 2023.
  8. "European Boys' Team Championship – European Golf Association" . Retrieved 22 January 2023.