Bobby Locke

For the baseball player, see Bobby Locke (baseball).

Bobby Locke
— Golfer —
Personal information
Full name	Arthur D'Arcy Locke
Nickname	Bobby Old Baggy Pants Old Muffin Face^[1]
Born	(1917-11-20)20 November 1917 Germiston, South Africa
Died	9 March 1987(1987-03-09) (aged 69) Johannesburg, South Africa
Nationality	South Africa
Spouse	Mary Fenton (m. 1958–87, his death)
Children	Caroline
Career
Turned professional	1938
Former tour(s)	PGA Tour
Professional wins	74
Number of wins by tour
PGA Tour	15
Sunshine Tour	30 (3rd all time)
Other	29
Best results in major championships (wins: 4)
Masters Tournament	T10: 1948
U.S. Open	3rd/T3: 1947, 1951
The Open Championship	Won: 1949, 1950, 1952, 1957
PGA Championship	T33: 1947
British Amateur	T33: 1937
Achievements and awards
World Golf Hall of Fame	1977 (member page)
Harry Vardon Trophy	1946, 1950, 1954

Arthur D'Arcy "Bobby" Locke (20 November 1917 – 9 March 1987) was a South African professional golfer. He won four Open Championships,^[2] nine South African Opens, seven South African PGA Championships and 15 PGA Tour events.

Biography

Early years

Locke was born in Germiston, South Africa. He won the South African Open for the first of nine times in 1935, playing as an amateur. He played in his first Open Championship in 1936, when he was eighteen, and finished as low amateur. He turned professional two years later and was a prolific tournament winner in his native country, eventually accumulating 38 wins on the Southern Africa Tour (now the Sunshine Tour). His golf career was interrupted by service in the South African Air Force during World War II.

Success in the United States

Following the end of World War II, Locke successfully resumed his career in South Africa in 1946. He hosted Sam Snead, one of the top American golfers of the day, for a series of exhibition matches in South Africa in 1946, winning 12 out of the 16 matches. So impressed was Snead that he suggested that Locke come to the United States and give the PGA Tour a try, advice that Locke quickly followed.^[3]

Locke arrived in the U.S. for the first time in April 1947, well after the American Tour season had begun. In two-and-a-half years on the PGA Tour, Locke played in 59 events; he won 11, and finished in the top three in 30, just over half. In 1947, despite a late start, Locke dominated the American tour, winning six tournaments (including four in a five-week period), and finishing second to Jimmy Demaret on the money list.

Controversy and PGA Tour ban

In 1948, he won the Chicago Victory National by 16 strokes, which remains a PGA Tour record for margin of victory (tied for margin of victory with J. Douglas Edgar's win in the 1919 Canadian Open).^[4]

The following year, Locke was banned from the tour, ostensibly because of a dispute over playing commitments. Locke had indeed given several advance commitments to appear at tournaments and exhibitions, then had not turned up nor given adequate notice nor explanations for his absences.^[3] However, it is most likely he was banned because of growing resentment towards him from many of the other PGA players. The 1948 Masters champion Claude Harmon stated, unsolicited, to another golf personality during that era: "Locke was simply too good. They had to ban him."^[5] The ban was lifted in 1951, but Locke chose not to return to play in the United States, except for a few isolated appearances.

Worldwide success

After leaving the PGA Tour, Locke continued his career in Europe and Africa, where he felt more comfortable. He won 23 times in Europe, most notably a quartet of successes in The Open Championship, which came in 1949, 1950, 1952 and 1957. He was the first of many South Africans who subsequently won major championships, including Gary Player, Ernie Els, Retief Goosen, Trevor Immelman, Louis Oosthuizen and Charl Schwartzel. His win in the 1957 Open Championship was with some controversy. Locke had failed to properly replace his ball after marking on the 72nd green, and proceeded to putt out. This had been confirmed through newsreel footage provided to the R&A after the trophy presentation. The rules at the time made no provision for a two shot penalty, thus Locke's win could have been overturned through disqualification. However, the Championship committee did not enforce the disqualification rule, citing "equity and spirit of the game" as overriding factors in sustaining the posted result.

During this time Locke also played many other parts of the world. In 1955 he won the Australian Open held at Gailes Golf Club in Queensland; he later rated this as one of the best courses he had ever played. In 1959, Locke was involved in a serious car accident, and subsequently he suffered from migraines and eye problems that put an end to his competitive career, although he continued competing occasionally after that, without much success.

Locke was elected to the World Golf Hall of Fame in 1977. He was only the second member (after Gary Player) who did not come from either the United States or the United Kingdom. He died in Johannesburg, South Africa in 1987.

Playing attributes

Locke built his success around his outstanding putting ability, coining the phrase "You drive for show, but putt for dough."^[6] Wearing his trademark knickerbockers, white shoes, and stockings, Locke played the game at a slow and deliberate pace, perhaps another reason that American pros were annoyed with him. On the greens, Locke was a bona fide genius, using a very unusual putting style (he would bring the putter back far to the inside on the backstroke, then virtually "trap" the ball with a hooded, closed clubface on the forward stroke, imparting a tremendous amount of overspin), and a great eye for reading breaks, to put on veritable putting clinics every time he played. Locke believed he could put spin on putts^[7] (similar to full-swing shots) and make them "hook" and "slice", and used his unorthodox technique to great success.

Locke was not particularly long from the tee, but placed great emphasis on accuracy in hitting fairways and greens; he employed an extreme right-to-left ball flight (one that bordered on a hook) on nearly every full shot.^[7]

Australian contemporary pro Jim Ferrier, who played the U.S. Tour during the late 1940s with Locke, described Locke's putting method as being designed to overcome the very heavy grain present on many Bermuda-grass greens of that era, particularly in warm-climate regions such as South Africa and the southern United States. In these regions, greens had to be constructed during that era using Bermuda-grass turf in order to survive the extreme summer heat; turfgrass research eventually developed a wider variety of strains which could be used. Locke's putting method allowed the ball to glide on top of the grass without being affected very much by the grain. Ferrier explained that Locke had apparently learned the technique from an Englishman in Egypt, while he was stationed there during World War II.^[8]

Amateur wins (9)

1931 South Africa Boys
1935 South Africa Amateur, Natal Amateur, Transvaal Amateur
1936 Natal Amateur, Lucifer Empire Trophy
1937 South Africa Amateur, Transvaal Amateur, Orange Free State Amateur

Professional wins (74)

PGA Tour wins (15)

1947 (6) Canadian Open, Houston Open, Philadelphia Inquirer Open, All American Open, Columbus Open, Goodall Round Robin
1948 (2) Phoenix Open, Chicago Victory Open
1949 (3) Cavalier Invitational, Goodall Round Robin, The Open Championship
1950 (2) All American Open, The Open Championship
1952 (1) The Open Championship
1957 (1) The Open Championship

Major championships are shown in bold.

Sunshine Tour wins (30)

1935 Natal Open, South African Open (both as an amateur)
1936 Natal Open (as an amateur)
1937 South African Open (as an amateur)
1938 South African Open, South Africa Professional, Transvaal Open
1939 South African Open, South Africa Professional, Transvaal Open
1940 South African Open, South Africa Professional, Transvaal Open
1941 Transvaal Open
1946 South African Open, South Africa Professional, Transvaal Open
1949 Transvaal Open
1950 South African Open, South Africa Professional, Transvaal Open
1951 South African Open, South Africa Professional, Transvaal Open
1953 Natal Open
1954 Transvaal Open
1955 South African Open, South Africa Professional, Transvaal Open
1958 Transvaal Open

Note: These wins pre-date the Sunshine Tour. However, in the List of golfers with most Sunshine Tour wins, Bobby Locke is credited with 30. These are the 30 tournaments.

Other wins (29)

1938 Irish Open, New Zealand Open
1939 Dutch Open
1946 Yorkshire Evening News Tournament, Brand-Lochryn Tournament, British Masters
1947 Carolinas Open, Carolinas PGA Championship
1948 Carolinas Open
1950 Dunlop Tournament, Spalding Tournament, North British-Harrogate Tournament
1952 French Open, Mexican Open, Lotus Tournament, Carolinas Open
1953 French Open
1954 Egyptian Open, German Open, Swiss Open, Dunlop Tournament, Dunlop British Masters (tie with Jimmy Adams), Egyptian Match Play, Swallow-Harrogate Tournament (Stroke play stage)
1955 Australian Open
1957 Daks Tournament, Bowmaker Tournament (tied with Frank Jowle)
1959 New Hampshire Open, Bowmaker Tournament

Major championships

Wins (4)

Year	Championship	54 holes	Winning score	Margin	Runner-up
1949	The Open Championship	Tied for lead	−5 (69-76-68-70=283)	Playoff ¹	Harry Bradshaw
1950	The Open Championship (2)	Tied for lead	−9 (69-72-70-68=279)	2 strokes	Roberto De Vicenzo
1952	The Open Championship (3)	1 shot deficit	−1 (69-71-74-73=287)	1 stroke	Peter Thomson
1957	The Open Championship (4)	3 shot lead	−9 (69-72-68-70=279)	3 strokes	Peter Thomson

¹ Defeated Harry Bradshaw in 36-hole playoff: Locke (135), Bradshaw (147)

Results timeline

Tournament	1936	1937	1938	1939
Masters Tournament	DNP	DNP	DNP	DNP
U.S. Open	DNP	DNP	DNP	DNP
The Open Championship	T8 LA	T17 LA	T10	T9
PGA Championship	DNP	DNP	DNP	DNP
The Amateur Championship	R256	R64	–	–

Tournament	1940	1941	1942	1943	1944	1945	1946	1947	1948	1949
Masters Tournament	DNP	DNP	DNP	NT	NT	NT	DNP	T14	T10	T13
U.S. Open	DNP	DNP	NT	NT	NT	NT	DNP	T3	4	T4
The Open Championship	NT	NT	NT	NT	NT	NT	T2	DNP	DNP	1
PGA Championship	DNP	DNP	DNP	NT	DNP	DNP	DNP	T33	DNP	DNP

Tournament	1950	1951	1952	1953	1954	1955	1956	1957	1958	1959
Masters Tournament	DNP	DNP	T21	DNP	DNP	DNP	DNP	DNP	DNP	DNP
U.S. Open	DNP	3	WD	T14	5	DNP	DNP	DNP	DNP	DNP
The Open Championship	1	T6	1	8	T2	4	DNP	1	T16	T29
PGA Championship	DNP	DNP	DNP	DNP	DNP	DNP	DNP	DNP	DNP	DNP

Tournament	1960	1961	1962	1963	1964	1965	1966	1967	1968	1969
Masters Tournament	DNP	DNP	DNP	DNP	DNP	DNP	DNP	DNP	DNP	DNP
U.S. Open	DNP	DNP	DNP	DNP	DNP	DNP	DNP	DNP	DNP	DNP
The Open Championship	DNP	CUT	CUT	CUT	CUT	DNP	DNP	CUT	DNP	DNP
PGA Championship	DNP	DNP	DNP	DNP	DNP	DNP	DNP	DNP	DNP	DNP

Tournament	1970	1971	1972	1973	1974	1975	1976	1977	1978
Masters Tournament	DNP	DNP	DNP	DNP	DNP	DNP	DNP	DNP	DNP
U.S. Open	DNP	DNP	DNP	DNP	DNP	DNP	DNP	DNP	DNP
The Open Championship	CUT	T49	CUT	DNP	CUT	CUT	CUT	WD	CUT
PGA Championship	DNP	DNP	DNP	DNP	DNP	DNP	DNP	DNP	DNP

NT = No tournament
LA = Low amateur
DNP = Did not play
WD = Withdrew
CUT = missed the half-way cut
"T" indicates a tie for a place
Green background for wins. Yellow background for top-10

Sources: 1936 Amateur Championship,^[9] 1937 Amateur Championship^[10]

Summary

Tournament	Wins	2nd	3rd	Top-5	Top-10	Top-25	Events	Cuts made
Masters Tournament	0	0	0	0	1	4	4	4
U.S. Open	0	0	2	5	5	6	7	6
The Open Championship	4	2	0	7	12	14	28	16
PGA Championship	0	0	0	0	0	0	3	3
Totals	4	2	2	12	18	24	42	29

Most consecutive cuts made – 19 (1936 Open Championship – 1952 Masters)
Longest streak of top-10s – 5 (1949 U.S. Open – 1951 Open Championship)

Team appearances

Canada Cup (representing South Africa): 1954, 1956, 1960
Slazenger Trophy (representing British Commonwealth and Empire): 1956

References

↑ Kelley, Brent. "Bobby Locke". About.com. Retrieved 28 February 2009.
↑ "1949 Bobby Locke". The Open. Retrieved 17 October 2013.
1 2 Barkow, Al (1974). Golf's Golden Grind: The History of the PGA Tour. Harcourt Brace Jovanovich. ISBN 978-0151908851.
↑ Kelley, Brent. "Largest Margin of Victory on the PGA Tour". About.com. Retrieved 16 January 2015.
↑ South African Open television broadcast, 19 December 2010, Golf Channel
↑ DeNunzio, David. "10 Greatest Putters of All Time". http://www.golf.com. Retrieved 22 May 2015. External link in |website= (help)
1 2 Sommers, Robert. "Golf Anecdotes From the Links of Scotland to Tiger Woods". books.Google.com. Retrieved 22 May 2015.
↑ Barkow, Al (1986). Gettin' To The Dance Floor: An Oral History of American Golf. Atheneum. ISBN 978-0689115172.
↑ "Amateur Championship". The Glasgow Herald. 27 May 1936. p. 6.
↑ "Scot Wins "Classic" Match". The Glasgow Herald. 27 May 1937. p. 12.

External links

World Golf Hall of Fame profile

The Open Championship champions

1860 Willie Park Sr. 1861 Tom Morris Sr. 1862 Tom Morris Sr. 1863 Willie Park Sr. 1864 Tom Morris Sr. 1865 Andrew Strath 1866 Willie Park Sr. 1867 Tom Morris Sr. 1868 Tom Morris Jr. 1869 Tom Morris Jr. 1870 Tom Morris Jr. 1871 No championship 1872 Tom Morris Jr. 1873 Tom Kidd 1874 Mungo Park 1875 Willie Park Sr. 1876 Bob Martin† 1877 Jamie Anderson 1878 Jamie Anderson 1879 Jamie Anderson 1880 Bob Ferguson 1881 Bob Ferguson 1882 Bob Ferguson 1883 Willie Fernie† 1884 Jack Simpson 1885 Bob Martin 1886 David Brown 1887 Willie Park Jr. 1888 Jack Burns 1889 Willie Park Jr.† 1890 John Ball# 1891 Hugh Kirkaldy 1892 Harold Hilton# 1893 William Auchterlonie 1894 John Henry Taylor 1895 John Henry Taylor 1896 Harry Vardon† 1897 Harold Hilton# 1898 Harry Vardon 1899 Harry Vardon 1900 John Henry Taylor 1901 James Braid 1902 Sandy Herd 1903 Harry Vardon 1904 Jack White 1905 James Braid 1906 James Braid 1907 Arnaud Massy 1908 James Braid 1909 John Henry Taylor 1910 James Braid 1911 Harry Vardon† 1912‡ Edward Ray 1913 John Henry Taylor 1914 Harry Vardon 1915-19 No Championships due to World War I 1920 George Duncan 1921 Jock Hutchison† 1922 Walter Hagen 1923 Arthur Havers 1924 Walter Hagen 1925 Jim Barnes 1926 Bobby Jones# 1927‡ Bobby Jones# 1928 Walter Hagen 1929 Walter Hagen 1930 Bobby Jones# 1931 Tommy Armour 1932‡ Gene Sarazen 1933 Denny Shute† 1934‡ Henry Cotton 1935 Alf Perry 1936 Alf Padgham 1937 Henry Cotton 1938 Reg Whitcombe 1939 Dick Burton 1940-45 No Championships due to World War II 1946 Sam Snead 1947 Fred Daly 1948 Henry Cotton 1949 Bobby Locke† 1950 Bobby Locke 1951 Max Faulkner 1952 Bobby Locke 1953 Ben Hogan 1954 Peter Thomson 1955 Peter Thomson 1956 Peter Thomson 1957 Bobby Locke 1958 Peter Thomson† 1959 Gary Player 1960 Kel Nagle 1961 Arnold Palmer 1962 Arnold Palmer 1963 Bob Charles† 1964 Tony Lema 1965 Peter Thomson 1966 Jack Nicklaus 1967 Roberto De Vicenzo 1968 Gary Player 1969 Tony Jacklin 1970 Jack Nicklaus† 1971 Lee Trevino 1972 Lee Trevino 1973‡ Tom Weiskopf 1974 Gary Player 1975 Tom Watson† 1976 Johnny Miller 1977 Tom Watson 1978 Jack Nicklaus 1979 Seve Ballesteros 1980 Tom Watson 1981 Bill Rogers 1982 Tom Watson 1983 Tom Watson 1984 Seve Ballesteros 1985 Sandy Lyle 1986 Greg Norman 1987 Nick Faldo 1988 Seve Ballesteros 1989 Mark Calcavecchia† 1990 Nick Faldo 1991 Ian Baker-Finch 1992 Nick Faldo 1993 Greg Norman 1994 Nick Price 1995 John Daly† 1996 Tom Lehman 1997 Justin Leonard 1998 Mark O'Meara† 1999 Paul Lawrie† 2000 Tiger Woods 2001 David Duval 2002 Ernie Els† 2003 Ben Curtis 2004 Todd Hamilton† 2005‡ Tiger Woods 2006 Tiger Woods 2007 Pádraig Harrington† 2008 Pádraig Harrington 2009 Stewart Cink† 2010 Louis Oosthuizen 2011 Darren Clarke 2012 Ernie Els 2013 Phil Mickelson 2014‡ Rory McIlroy 2015 Zach Johnson†

† indicates the event was won in a playoff; ‡ indicates the event was won wire-to-wire in 72-holes; # indicates the event was won by an amateur

This article is issued from Wikipedia - version of the Monday, April 18, 2016. The text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share Alike but additional terms may apply for the media files.