Gary Player

Gary Player
Player in 2008
Personal information
Full nameGary James Player
NicknameThe Black Knight,
Mr. Fitness
Born (1935-11-01) 1 November 1935 (age 89)
Johannesburg, Union of South Africa
Height5 ft 6 in (168 cm)
Weight150 lb (68 kg; 11 st)
Sporting nationality South Africa
ResidenceJupiter Island, Florida, U.S.
Plettenberg Bay, South Africa
Spouse
Vivienne Verwey
​
​
(m. 1957; died 2021)​
Children6
Career
Turned professional1953
Former tour(s)PGA Tour
Southern Africa Tour
Champions Tour
Professional wins159
Number of wins by tour
PGA Tour24
European Tour4
Sunshine Tour20
PGA Tour of Australasia2
PGA Tour Champions22 (Tied-7th all-time)
European Senior Tour3
Other63 (regular)
6 (senior)
Best results in major championships
(wins: 9)
Masters TournamentWon: 1961, 1974, 1978
PGA ChampionshipWon: 1962, 1972
U.S. OpenWon: 1965
The Open ChampionshipWon: 1959, 1968, 1974
Achievements and awards
World Golf Hall of Fame1974 (member page)
PGA Tour
money list winner		1961
Southern Africa Tour
Order of Merit winner		1976–77, 1979–80
PGA Tour Lifetime
Achievement Award		2012
GCSAA Old Tom Morris Award2020
(For a full list of awards, see here)

Gary James Player DMS OIG (born 1 November 1935) is a South African retired professional golfer who is widely considered to be one of the greatest golfers of all time.[1] During his career, Player won nine major championships on the regular tour and nine major championships on the Champions Tour.[2][3][4] At the age of 29, Player won the 1965 U.S. Open and became the only non-American to win all four majors in a career, known as the career Grand Slam. At the time, he was the youngest player to do this, though Jack Nicklaus (26) and Tiger Woods (24) subsequently broke this record. Player became only the third golfer in history to win the Career Grand Slam, following Ben Hogan and Gene Sarazen, and only Nicklaus and Woods have performed the feat since. He won over 160 professional tournaments on six continents over seven decades and was inducted into the World Golf Hall of Fame in 1974.[5]

Nicknamed the Black Knight, Mr. Fitness, and the International Ambassador of Golf,[6] he is also a renowned golf course architect with more than 400 design projects on five continents throughout the world. Player has also authored or co-written 36 books on golf instruction, design, philosophy, motivation and fitness. On 7 January 2021, Player was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom by United States President Donald Trump.

The Player Group was established by Marc Player and operates The Player Foundation, which has a primary objective of promoting underprivileged education around the world. In 1983, The Player Foundation established the Blair Atholl Schools in Johannesburg, South Africa, which has educational facilities for more than 500 students from kindergarten through eighth grade. In 2013 it celebrated its 30th anniversary with charity golf events in London, Palm Beach, Shanghai and Cape Town, bringing its total of funds raised to over US$60 million.[7][8]

  1. ^ Auclair, T.J. (12 August 2018). "15 Greatest Golfers of All Time". PGA of America. Retrieved 25 August 2018.
  2. ^ "Gary Player PGA Tour Profile". PGA Tour. Retrieved 18 January 2019.
  3. ^ "Player, Gary". World Golf Hall of Fame. Retrieved 18 January 2019.
  4. ^ "PGA Tour Champions recognizes Gary Player's Senior British Open wins as major titles". thegolfnewsnet.com. Retrieved 18 January 2019.
  5. ^ Kim, Jae-Ha (2 October 2013). "Go Away With Gary Player". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved 7 October 2013.
  6. ^ "PGA Tour Media Guide – Gary Player". PGA Tour. Retrieved 24 October 2013.
  7. ^ Sangani, Priyanka (27 September 2013). "Remain positive and confident to perform under pressure: Gary Player". The Economic Times. Retrieved 7 October 2013.
  8. ^ "Gary Player Invitational". garyplayerinvitational.com. Retrieved 23 October 2013.