Bobby Cole (golfer)

Last updated

Bobby Cole
Personal information
Full nameRobert Eric Cole
Born (1948-05-11) 11 May 1948 (age 75)
Springs, South Africa
Height5 ft 10 in (1.78 m)
Weight170 lb (77 kg; 12 st)
Sporting nationalityFlag of South Africa.svg  South Africa
ResidenceWindermere, Florida, U.S.
SpouseLinda Parker
Children7, including Eric
Career
Turned professional1967
Former tour(s) PGA Tour
Southern Africa Tour
Champions Tour
Professional wins14
Number of wins by tour
PGA Tour1
Sunshine Tour7
Other6
Best results in major championships
Masters Tournament T15: 1975
PGA Championship T3: 1974
U.S. Open T13: 1971
The Open Championship T3: 1975
Achievements and awards
Southern Africa Tour
Order of Merit winner
1973–74

Robert Eric Cole (born 11 May 1948) is a South African professional golfer.

Contents

Early life

Cole was born in Springs, South Africa. After suffering a bicycle accident related knee injury, Cole took up golf at the age of eleven. He grew up playing golf on the course maintained for employees of the gold mine where his father, James Cole, worked. [1] As a child, he was influenced by the careers of Bobby Locke and Gary Player.

He won both the South Africa junior golf championship and the Vaal Amateur. [2]

Amateur career

In 1966, Cole won the British Amateur at Carnoustie, Scotland, at age 18, the youngest winner to that stage. Cole held the record as youngest-ever winner of the tournament until Matteo Manassero won the event in 2009, at age 16. Cole also held the record as the youngest player to play in and make the cut at the Masters Tournament, in 1967, at just short of 19 of age, until Manassero, in 2010, again beat his record.[ citation needed ]

Professional career

In the fall of 1967, Cole tried out for the PGA Tour at 1967 PGA Tour Qualifying School. He earned medalist honors. [3] In 1974, he claimed both the team and the individual wins in the World Cup. Cole is a two-time winner of the South African Open in 1974 and 1980. In 1986, he won the South African PGA Championship.

On the PGA Tour, Cole won the 1977 Buick Open. He has had nine top-25 finishes in the major championships including a tie for third in the 1975 Open Championship, one stroke out of a playoff. During the event, Cole shot back-to-back rounds of 66, setting and then matching the course record at Carnoustie.[ citation needed ]

Cole played on the Champions Tour from 1998 to 2001.

Cole was inducted into the Southern Africa Golf Hall of Fame in 2012.

Personal life

Cole is married to author Linda Parker. He resides in Windermere, Florida where he teaches private lessons, corporate retreats, and plays ProAms and other golf events.

On 12 December 1980, Cole married American professional golfer Laura Baugh in Cape Town, South Africa. [4] The couple divorced, remarried, and then divorced again. They had seven children together, including professional golfer Eric Cole, who was awarded 2022–23 PGA Tour Rookie of the Year. [5] [6] [7]

Amateur wins

Professional wins (14)

PGA Tour wins (1)

No.DateTournamentWinning scoreMargin of
victory
Runner-up
14 Sep 1977 Buick Open −17 (67-69-68-67=271)1 stroke Flag of the United States.svg Fred Marti

Southern Africa Tour wins (7)

No.DateTournamentWinning scoreMargin of
victory
Runner(s)-up
18 Jan 1972 ICL Transvaal Open −14 (65-67-68-70=270)Playoff Flag of South Africa (1928-1982).svg Tienie Britz
29 Dec 1972 Natal Open −11 (71-68-72-66=277)1 stroke Flag of South Africa (1928-1982).svg Dale Hayes
317 Dec 1972 Rhodesian Dunlop Masters −20 (66-68-63-71=268)4 strokes Flag of South Africa (1928-1982).svg Cobie Legrange
420 Jan 1974 Vavasseur Natal Open (2)−4 (74-72-69-69=284)1 stroke Flag of South Africa (1928-1982).svg Tienie Britz
52 Feb 1974 South African Open −16 (70-65-73-64=272)4 strokes Flag of South Africa (1928-1982).svg Allan Henning
66 Dec 1980 Datsun South African Open (2)−9 (73-63-70-73=279)4 strokes Flag of Zimbabwe.svg Nick Price
726 Jan 1986 Lexington PGA Championship −15 (66-65-66-68=265)5 strokes Flag of South Africa (1982-1994).svg David Frost, Flag of Zimbabwe.svg Teddy Webber

Southern Africa Tour playoff record (1–2)

No.YearTournamentOpponentResult
1 1972 ICL Transvaal Open Flag of South Africa (1928-1982).svg Tienie Britz Won with birdie on first extra hole
2 1974 Dunlop South African Masters Flag of South Africa (1928-1982).svg Gary Player Lost to par on second extra hole
3 1977 Rhodesian Dunlop Masters Flag of South Africa (1928-1982).svg Allan Henning

Tournament Player Series wins (1)

No.DateTournamentWinning scoreMargin of
victory
Runner-up
14 Aug 1985 Seattle-Everett Open −12 (70-65-66=201)1 stroke Flag of the United States.svg Dave Stockton

Other South African wins (3)

Other wins (2)

No.DateTournamentWinning scoreMargin of
victory
Runner(s)-up
124 Nov 1974 World Cup
(with Flag of South Africa (1928-1982).svg Dale Hayes)
−6 (137-138-139-140=554)5 strokesFlag of Japan (1870-1999).svg  Japan Isao Aoki and Masashi Ozaki
224 Nov 1974 World Cup Individual Trophy −9 (66-70-67-68=271)5 strokes Flag of Japan (1870-1999).svg Masashi Ozaki

Results in major championships

Tournament1966196719681969
Masters Tournament T44
U.S. Open CUTT31
The Open Championship T30CUTT13CUT
PGA Championship T21
Tournament1970197119721973197419751976197719781979
Masters Tournament CUTT154728
U.S. Open T12T13T47CUT
The Open Championship T28T7T3T32T15
PGA Championship T3T40T54
Tournament19801981198219831984198519861987
Masters Tournament
U.S. Open CUT
The Open Championship
PGA Championship T43

[10] [11]

  Top 10
  Did not play

CUT = missed the half-way cut
"T" indicates a tie for a place

Summary

TournamentWins2nd3rdTop-5Top-10Top-25EventsCuts made
Masters Tournament 00000154
U.S. Open 00000274
The Open Championship 00112497
PGA Championship 00111255
Totals0022392620

Team appearances

Amateur

Professional

See also

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References

  1. "Bobby Cole: Lifetime Member PGA Tour". bobbycolegolf.com. Retrieved 5 February 2024.
  2. Levine, Al (19 December 1965). "Cole Falls Off Bicycle, Ends Up ON Golf Course". The Miami News. p. 2C.
  3. Booe, Billy (23 August 1968). "School Screens Pro Hopefuls; Must Pass Tough 144-Hole Test". The Hartford Courant. p. 44. Retrieved 22 June 2021 via newspapers.com.
  4. "Newsmakers". The Lima News. Ohio. 14 December 1980. p. E13. Retrieved 14 September 2023 via Newspapers.com.
  5. "Storylines: Exuma welcomes Tour to kick off 2017 season". PGA Tour. 6 January 2017. Archived from the original on 10 January 2017.
  6. Steptoe, Sonja (20 May 1991). "All Smiles Again". Sports Illustrated . Retrieved 11 November 2017.
  7. Heil, Jarrod (8 February 2017). "Storylines: Cole follows in parents' footsteps as pro golfer". PGA Tour. Archived from the original on 11 March 2022. Retrieved 1 April 2020.
  8. 1 2 "Cole wins Masters Tourney". The Canberra Times. 28 January 1969. p. 15.
  9. "Hitchcock sixth in Natal Open". The Glasgow Herald . 2 February 1970. p. 5.
  10. "Bobby Cole". Golf Major Championships. Retrieved 8 January 2020.
  11. Loomis, Tom (10 April 1978). "Champ Player Fired 64, Then 'Choked'". The Blade. Toledo, Ohio. pp. 14, 16. Retrieved 9 December 2019 via Google News Archive Search.