| Bob Goalby | |
|---|---|
| Personal information | |
| Full name | Robert George Goalby |
| Born | (1929-03-14)March 14, 1929 Belleville, Illinois, U.S. |
| Died | January 19, 2022(2022-01-19) (aged 92) Belleville, Illinois, U.S. |
| Height | 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) |
| Weight | 195 lb (88 kg; 13.9 st) |
| Sporting nationality |  United States |
| Career | |
| College | University of Illinois |
| Turned professional | 1957 |
| Former tours | PGA Tour Champions Tour |
| Professional wins | 14 |
| Number of wins by tour | |
| PGA Tour | 11 |
| PGA Tour Champions | 2 |
| Other | 1 |
| Best results in major championships (wins: 1) | |
| Masters Tournament | Won:1968 |
| PGA Championship | 2nd:1962 |
| U.S. Open | T2:1961 |
| The Open Championship | DNP |
Robert George Goalby (March 14, 1929 – January 19, 2022) was an Americanprofessional golfer. He won 11 PGA Tour events including the1968 Masters.[1]
In 1929, Goalby was born inBelleville, Illinois.[2] There he was raised, and lived for much of his life. He was the son of a coal miner, the family had little money and he would sneak over the fence of nearby St Clair Country Club to indulge his love for golf.[1] He also worked as a caddie at the course.[3] He excelled in athletics during his time at Belleville Township High School earning 11 varsity letters.[4] Notably, he was a catcher and pitcher on the Illinois High School Association(IHSA) championship Baseball Team his junior year and an All-Statequarterback during his senior year of High School.
Goalby attended theUniversity of Illinois on a football scholarship[5][6] only to lose his eligibility due to playing several baseball games forSouthern Illinois University, and quit college altogether.[7] He served in the United States military during theKorean War.[1]
In 1957, Goalby turned professional. In 1958, he won his first tour event. Goalby earned the PGA Tour Rookie of the Year Award in that season. He won and contended steadily until1971 when he was 42 years old.
At the1968 Masters Tournament, he tiedRoberto De Vicenzo at the end of 72 holes of regulation play and would have had to face an 18-hole playoff the next day had there not been a mistake on DeVicenzo's scorecard.[8] In the final round, DeVicenzo's playing partnerTommy Aaron marked a par-4 on the 17th hole when DeVicenzo had in fact made a birdie 3.[8] DeVicenzo failed to catch the mistake and signed the scorecard.[8] Therules of golf state that the higher written score signed by a golfer on his card must stand and as such, the error gave Goalby the championship.[8] Goalby, playing in the group behind DeVicenzo, was not personally at fault for anything in the incident.[9] The incident received extraordinary media attention at the time and has remained high in public consciousness since.[8] It was recounted in great detail in the 2005 bookThe Lost Masters: Grace and Disgrace in '68 byCurt Sampson.[10] The personal relationship between Goalby and DeVicenzo was unaffected by the difficult situation, and the two players formed a partnership years later, for a team event on theChampions Tour.[11]
Goalby played on theRyder Cup team in1963 and retired from the PGA Tour after winning 11 tournaments. He joined theSenior PGA Tour in 1979, winning twice, and contributed key ideas to the formation and structure of that new Tour,[6] before retiring to a home in his native Belleville, where he has designed several nearby golf courses. He also served as a golf commentator forNBC television for 14 years.[8][12]
Goalby had three sons: Kye, Kel and Kevin,[14] the former of whom is a golf course architect.[6] Goalby's nephewJay Haas is a 9-time PGA Tour winner,[1] and another nephew,Jerry Haas, coaches theWake Forest University golf team.[15] His great-nephew,Bill Haas, plays on the PGA Tour, and won the Tour Championship tournament and FedEx Cup in 2011.[16]
As of 2018[update], Goalby resided inPalm Desert, California.[8] Goalby died in Belleville on January 19, 2022, at the age of 92.[17][11][18]
| Legend |
|---|
| Major championships (1) |
| Other PGA Tour (10) |
| No. | Date | Tournament | Winning score | Margin of victory | Runner(s)-up |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Apr 13, 1958 | Greater Greensboro Open | −9 (71-69-69-66=275) | 2 strokes |  Dow Finsterwald,Don January,Tony Lema,Sam Snead,Art Wall Jr. |
| 2 | Dec 11, 1960 | Coral Gables Open Invitational | −12 (67-67-71-67=272) | 1 stroke | Dow Finsterwald |
| 3 | Jan 9, 1961 | Los Angeles Open | −9 (67-70-71-67=275) | 3 strokes |  Eric Brown,Art Wall Jr. |
| 4 | Mar 19, 1961 | St. Petersburg Open Invitational | −23 (67-62-67-65=261) | 3 strokes | Ted Kroll |
| 5 | Aug 5, 1962 | Insurance City Open Invitational | −13 (69-69-66-67=271) | Playoff | Art Wall Jr. |
| 6 | Sep 9, 1962 | Denver Open Invitational | −3 (72-69-67-69=277) | 1 stroke | George Bayer,Bob Duden,Jack Fleck,Bill Johnston,Billy Maxwell,Art Wall Jr. |
| 7 | Jan 15, 1967 | San Diego Open Invitational | −15 (68-64-68-69=269) | 1 stroke | Gay Brewer |
| 8 | Apr 14, 1968 | Masters Tournament | −11 (70-70-71-66=277) | 1 stroke |  Roberto De Vicenzo |
| 9 | Sep 28, 1969 | Robinson Open Golf Classic | −15 (62-71-73-67=273) | Playoff | Jim Wiechers |
| 10 | Nov 29, 1970 | Heritage Golf Classic | −4 (74-70-70-66=280) | 4 strokes | Lanny Wadkins |
| 11 | Dec 12, 1971 | Bahamas National Open | −9 (69-70-66-70=275) | 1 stroke | George Archer |
PGA Tour playoff record (2–1)
| No. | Year | Tournament | Opponent | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1962 | Insurance City Open Invitational | Art Wall Jr. | Won with birdie on seventh extra hole |
| 2 | 1965 | Hawaiian Open | Gay Brewer | Lost to birdie on first extra hole |
| 3 | 1969 | Robinson Open Golf Classic | Jim Wiechers | Won with birdie on first extra hole |
Source:[19]
| No. | Date | Tournament | Winning score | Margin of victory | Runner-up |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Jun 28, 1981 | Marlboro Classic | −2 (70-68-70=208) | 2 strokes | Art Wall Jr. |
| 2 | Jun 27, 1982 | Peter Jackson Champions | −15 (68-68-64-73=273) | 1 stroke | Gene Littler |
Senior PGA Tour playoff record (0–1)
| No. | Year | Tournament | Opponents | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1985 | Bank One Senior Golf Classic | Miller Barber,Gene Littler | Littler won with par on third extra hole Goalby eliminated by par on first hole |
Source:[19]
| Year | Championship | 54 holes | Winning score | Margin | Runner-up |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1968 | Masters Tournament | 1 shot deficit | −11 (70-70-71-66=277) | 1 stroke | Roberto De Vicenzo |
| Tournament | 1957 | 1958 | 1959 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Masters Tournament | |||
| U.S. Open | CUT | T38 | |
| PGA Championship | T5 |
| Tournament | 1960 | 1961 | 1962 | 1963 | 1964 | 1965 | 1966 | 1967 | 1968 | 1969 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Masters Tournament | CUT | 36 | T25 | CUT | T37 | T39 | T59 | CUT | 1 | T40 |
| U.S. Open | T19 | T2 | T14 | CUT | CUT | T22 | T6 | T39 | ||
| PGA Championship | T32 | T15 | 2 | T17 | CUT | T68 | T49 | T7 | T8 | CUT |
| Tournament | 1970 | 1971 | 1972 | 1973 | 1974 | 1975 | 1976 | 1977 | 1978 | 1979 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Masters Tournament | CUT | T36 | T17 | T6 | T22 | CUT | CUT | CUT | 52 | CUT |
| U.S. Open | T36 | T19 | T58 | CUT | T63 | |||||
| PGA Championship | CUT | T46 | T62 | T18 |
| Tournament | 1980 | 1981 | 1982 | 1983 | 1984 | 1985 | 1986 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Masters Tournament | CUT | CUT | 46 | CUT | CUT | CUT | CUT |
| U.S. Open | |||||||
| PGA Championship |
Note: Goalby never played inThe Open Championship.
CUT = missed the halfway cut
"T" indicates a tie for a place.
Source:[21]
| Tournament | Wins | 2nd | 3rd | Top-5 | Top-10 | Top-25 | Events | Cuts made |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Masters Tournament | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 5 | 27 | 13 |
| U.S. Open | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 6 | 15 | 11 |
| The Open Championship | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| PGA Championship | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 4 | 7 | 15 | 12 |
| Totals | 1 | 2 | 0 | 4 | 8 | 18 | 57 | 36 |
Source:[19]
Professional
Born: March 14, 1929, Belleville, Illinois... Robert George 'Bob' Goalby, who was born in Belleville, Ill...
The 29th annual Maur Hill-Mount Academy/Bob Goalby Golf Open...
Jerry Haas, a former Wake Forest All-American, is in his 21st season as head coach of his alma mater... The nephew of former Masters champion Bob Goalby and the younger brother of current Champions Tour star Jay Haas...
