Craig Perks

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Craig Perks
Personal information
Full nameCraig William Perks
Born (1967-01-06) 6 January 1967 (age 57)
Palmerston North,
New Zealand
Height6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)
Weight200 lb (91 kg; 14 st)
Sporting nationalityFlag of New Zealand.svg  New Zealand
Career
College Southwestern Louisiana,
Oklahoma
Turned professional1993
Former tour(s) PGA Tour
PGA Tour of Australasia
Nike Tour
Hooters Tour
Professional wins5
Highest ranking 61 (12 May 2002) [1]
Number of wins by tour
PGA Tour1
Other4
Best results in major championships
Masters Tournament CUT: 2002, 2003, 2004
PGA Championship T29: 2002
U.S. Open CUT: 2002
The Open Championship T50: 2002

Craig William Perks (born 6 January 1967) is a professional golfer from New Zealand who won the 2002 Players Championship.

Contents

Early life and amateur career

Born and raised in Palmerston North, New Zealand, Perks played college golf in the United States at the University of Oklahoma in Norman and the University of Southwestern Louisiana in Lafayette, Louisiana.

Professional career

Perks turned professional in 1993 and played on the second tier Nike Tour for several seasons. He became a member of the PGA Tour after a tie for 35th in the 1999 Qualifying School earned him his tour card for the 2000 season.

At age 35 in 2002, Perks unexpectedly won The Players Championship, one of the most prestigious tournaments on the PGA Tour. In the final pairing, he played the final three holes in only nine shots, three under par, with only one putt. Perks chipped in for eagle, sank a 25-foot (7.5 m) birdie putt on the Island Green, then chipped in for par to win by two strokes. He was even par 72 for the final round, but only had two pars in the last fourteen holes. [2] [3] [4] Starting the year at 256 in the world rankings, Perks climbed from 203 to 64 with the win, [5] [6] and was named the New Zealand Sportsman of the Year for 2002. It granted a five-year exemption on tour, but was his only win in 202 starts.

After making only one cut on the PGA Tour during 2006 and 2007, he announced his retirement in November 2007, [7] and became a commentator on the Golf Channel.

Professional wins (5)

PGA Tour wins (1)

Legend
Players Championships (1)
Other PGA Tour (0)
No.DateTournamentWinning scoreTo parMargin of
victory
Runner-up
124 Mar 2002 The Players Championship 71-68-69-72=280−82 strokes Flag of Trinidad and Tobago.svg Stephen Ames

Hooters Tour wins (4)

No.DateTournamentWinning scoreTo parMargin of
victory
Runner-up
14 Jul 1993Croatan National Classic66-67-71-71=275−132 strokes Flag of the United States.svg Mike Brisky
28 Aug 1993Collins Pro Classic73-68-67-71=279−91 stroke Flag of the United States.svg Jeff Barlow
318 Sep 1994Boast Classic66-69-68=203*−133 strokes Flag of the United States.svg Andy Morse
430 Apr 1995Coca-Cola Classic64-65-69-62=260−242 strokes Flag of the United States.svg Dennis Zinkon

*Note: The 1994 Boast Classic was shortened to 54 holes due to rain.

Playoff record

PGA Tour of Australasia playoff record (0–1)

No.YearTournamentOpponentResult
1 2000 Crown Lager New Zealand Open Flag of New Zealand.svg Michael Campbell Lost to eagle on second extra hole

Nike Tour playoff record (0–1)

No.YearTournamentOpponentResult
1 1996 Nike Carolina Classic Flag of Canada (Pantone).svg Glen Hnatiuk Lost to birdie on first extra hole

Results in major championships

Tournament200220032004
Masters Tournament CUTCUTCUT
U.S. Open CUT
The Open Championship T50CUTCUT
PGA Championship T29
  Did not play

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

The Players Championship

Wins (1)

YearChampionship54 holesWinning scoreMarginRunner-up
2002 The Players Championship 1 shot deficit−8 (71-68-69-72=280)2 strokes Flag of Trinidad and Tobago.svg Stephen Ames

Results timeline

Tournament200220032004200520062007
The Players Championship 1T17CUTCUTCUTCUT
  Win

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

Results in World Golf Championships

Tournament2002
Match Play
Championship 61
Invitational T42
  Did not play

"T" = Tied

Team appearances

See also

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References

  1. "Week 19 2002 Ending 12 May 2002" (pdf). OWGR . Retrieved 29 October 2019.
  2. Van Sickle, Gary (1 April 2002). "Pitched battle". Sports Illustrated. Retrieved 28 April 2017.
  3. "Drama marks Perks' first title run". Eugene Register-Guard. (Oregon). Associated Press. 25 March 2002. p. 2E.
  4. "Players Championship top finishers' scorecards". ESPN. 24 March 2002. Retrieved 30 April 2012.
  5. "A million Perks for TPC champ". Sarasota Herald-Tribune. (Florida). Associated Press. 25 March 2002. p. 1C.
  6. "2002: Week 12" (PDF). Official World Golf Rankings. 24 March 2002. Retrieved 30 April 2002.[ permanent dead link ]
  7. "Former Players Championship winner Perks retires". PGA Tour. 25 November 2007. Archived from the original on 27 November 2007.
Awards
Preceded by New Zealand's Sportsman of the Year
2002
Succeeded by