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Roberto De Vicenzo

Roberto De Vicenzo
De Vicenzo in 2013
Personal information
Born(1923-04-14)14 April 1923
Villa Ballester, Argentina
Died1 June 2017(2017-06-01) (aged 94)
Ranelagh, Argentina
Sporting nationality Argentina
Career
Turned professional1938
Former tour(s)PGA Tour
Senior PGA Tour
Professional wins229
Number of wins by tour
PGA Tour7
PGA Tour Champions2
Other220
Best results in major championships
(wins: 1)
Masters Tournament2nd: 1968
PGA ChampionshipT5: 1954
U.S. OpenT8: 1958
The Open ChampionshipWon: 1967
Achievements and awards
World Golf Hall of Fame1989 (member page)
Bob Jones Award1970
Olimpia Award1967, 1970

Roberto De Vicenzo (14 April 1923 – 1 June 2017) was a professional golfer from Argentina. He won a record 229 professional tournaments worldwide during his career, including seven on the PGA Tour[1] and most famously the 1967 Open Championship.[2][3] He is perhaps best remembered for signing an incorrect scorecard that kept him out of a playoff for the 1968 Masters Tournament.[4]

Early life

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De Vicenzo was born on 14 April 1923 in Villa Ballester, a northern suburb of Buenos Aires, Argentina. He was raised in the Villa Pueyrredón neighborhood of Buenos Aires, and acquired the game of golf as a caddie. He developed his skills at the Ranelagh Golf Club, and later relocated to the town of the same name.

Career

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De Vicenzo won his first Argentine tournament, the Abierto del Litoral, in 1942; his first World Cup in 1953; and a major tournament, The Open Championship, in 1967. De Vicenzo is best remembered for his misfortune in the 1968 Masters Tournament.[2] On the par-4 17th hole, Roberto De Vicenzo made a birdie, but playing partner Tommy Aaron inadvertently entered a 4 instead of 3 on the scorecard.[5] He did not check the scorecard for the error before signing it, and according to the Rules of Golf the higher score had to stand and be counted. If not for this mistake, De Vicenzo would have tied for first place with Bob Goalby, and the two would have met in an 18-hole playoff the next day. His quote afterwards became legendary for its poignancy: "What a stupid I am!"[6]

In 1970 he was voted the Bob Jones Award, the highest honor given by the United States Golf Association in recognition of distinguished sportsmanship in golf.

De Vicenzo subsequently found great success in the early days of the Senior PGA Tour, winning the Liberty Mutual Legends of Golf two times and the inaugural U.S. Senior Open in 1980. He also won the 1974 PGA Seniors' Championship, and represented Argentina 15 times in the Canada Cup/World Cup, leading Argentina to victory in 1953.

Retirement

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De Vicenzo was inducted into the World Golf Hall of Fame in 1989, and officially retired on 12 November 2006, at age 83 with over 200 international victories. The Museum of Golf in Argentina in Berazategui was founded because of his hard work. It was named in his honor upon its completion in 2006.[7]

De Vicenzo died 1 June 2017 at the age of 94.[8][9][10]

Books about his life

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There are two books on the life of Roberto De Vicenzo, with similar names. The first of them is called "Roberto De Vicenzo. Gentleman, Sportsman, Winner", made by Luis Melnik, and the second has the title "Roberto De Vicenzo. Gentleman, Sportsman, Winner. Premium Edition", which was written by journalist Daniel Mancini, work that includes the definitive statistics of De Vicenzo's career together with Roberto's vision of each of his sporting experiences, plus the description of the great players he faced, the details of his beginnings, the specific references to his triumph at the British Open and what happened at the Masters in Augusta, a significant event that identifies all the protagonists of that historic outcome.

Professional wins (229)

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PGA Tour wins (7)

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Legend
Major championships (1)
Other PGA Tour (6)
No. Date Tournament Winning score Margin of
victory 		Runner(s)-up
1 10 Jun 1951 Palm Beach Round Robin +40 points 12 points Australia Jim Ferrier
2 24 Jun 1951 Inverness Invitational Four-Ball
(with United States Henry Ransom) 		+9 points 3 points Australia Jim Ferrier and United States Sam Snead
3 25 May 1957 Colonial National Invitation +4 (72-74-68-70=284) 1 stroke United States Dick Mayer
4 5 Aug 1957 All American Open −15 (69-64-70-70=273) 4 strokes United States Gene Littler
5 26 Apr 1966 Dallas Open Invitational −8 (71-69-69-67=276) 1 stroke United States Joe Campbell, United States Raymond Floyd,
South Africa Harold Henning
6 15 Jul 1967 The Open Championship −10 (70-71-67-70=278) 2 strokes United States Jack Nicklaus
7 5 May 1968 Houston Champions International −10 (67-68-71-68=274) 1 stroke United States Lee Trevino

European circuit wins (9)

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Argentine Tour wins (132)

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this list is incomplete

Latin America/Caribbean wins (60)

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this list may be incomplete

Other wins (3)

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No. Date Tournament Winning score Margin of
victory 		Runner(s)-up
1 3 Jun 1953 Canada Cup
(with Argentina Antonio Cerdá) 		−1 (145-142=287) 10 strokes  Canada − Bill Kerr and Stan Leonard
2 11 Nov 1962 Canada Cup International Trophy −4 (71-68-69-68=276) 2 strokes England Peter Alliss, United States Arnold Palmer
3 15 Nov 1970 World Cup International Trophy (2) −19 (64-67-68-70=269) 1 stroke Australia David Graham

Senior PGA Tour wins (2)

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Legend
Senior major championships (1)
Other Senior PGA Tour (1)
No. Date Tournament Winning score Margin of
victory 		Runner-up
1 29 Jun 1980 U.S. Senior Open −3 (74-73-68-70=285) 4 strokes United States William C. Campbell (a)
2 15 Jul 1984 Merrill Lynch/Golf Digest Commemorative Pro-Am −8 (70-70-65=205) 2 strokes United States Gardner Dickinson

Senior PGA Tour playoff record (0–1)

No. Year Tournament Opponent Result
1 1986 Denver Post Champions of Golf South Africa Gary Player Lost to par on fourth extra hole

Other senior wins (16)

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this list may be incomplete

Major championships

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Wins (1)

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Year Championship 54 holes Winning score Margin Runner-up
1967 The Open Championship 2 shot lead −10 (70-71-67-70=278) 2 strokes United States Jack Nicklaus

Results timeline

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Tournament 1948 1949
Masters Tournament
U.S. Open
The Open Championship T3 3
PGA Championship
Tournament 1950 1951 1952 1953 1954 1955 1956 1957 1958 1959
Masters Tournament T12 T20 T17 CUT
U.S. Open T29 T27 T8 CUT
The Open Championship 2 6 3 T35
PGA Championship R16 QF
Tournament 1960 1961 1962 1963 1964 1965 1966 1967 1968 1969
Masters Tournament T22 T33 T22 T10 2 CUT
U.S. Open T24
The Open Championship T3 3 4 T20 1 T10 T3
PGA Championship
Tournament 1970 1971 1972 1973 1974 1975 1976 1977 1978 1979
Masters Tournament CUT T9 T22 T51 CUT
U.S. Open
The Open Championship T17 T11 T28 T51 T28 T32 T48 CUT CUT
PGA Championship
  Win
  Top 10
  Did not play

CUT = missed the half-way cut
R16, QF, SF = Round in which player lost in PGA Championship match play
"T" = tied

Summary

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Tournament Wins 2nd 3rd Top-5 Top-10 Top-25 Events Cuts made
Masters Tournament 0 1 0 1 3 9 15 11
U.S. Open 0 0 0 0 1 2 5 4
The Open Championship 1 1 6 9 11 14 22 20
PGA Championship 0 0 0 1 2 2 2 2
Totals 1 2 6 11 17 27 44 37

Champions Tour major championships

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Wins (1)

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Year Championship Winning score Margin Runner-up
1980 U.S. Senior Open −3 (74-73-68-70=285) 4 strokes United States William C. Campbell (a)

Team appearances

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References

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  1. ^ Barkow, Al (November 1989). The History of the PGA TOUR. Copyright PGA Tour. Doubleday. pp. 250–1, 254. ISBN 0-385-26145-4.
  2. ^ a b Evans, Farrell (14 July 2008). "Roberto De Vicenzo". Sports Illustrated. Archived from the original on 7 October 2008. Retrieved 5 March 2009.
  3. ^ "1967 Roberto De Vicenzo". The Open. Archived from the original on 26 November 2011. Retrieved 23 October 2013.
  4. ^ Tarde, Jerry (1 June 2017). "Roberto De Vicenzo and the 1968 Masters: When the game held its head in its hands". Golf Digest.
  5. ^ Pelanda, Brian. "What's a 'Bunker'?: The Curious Case of How Dustin Johnson Lost the 2010 PGA Championship and Why the PGA Must Revise the Now Infamous Local Rule at Whistling Straits". Entertainment, Arts and Sports Law Journal. 22 (Fall/Winter 2011): 69. SSRN 1909575.
  6. ^ "Loser Said He Was Stupid". Sarasota Herald-Tribune. Sarasota, Florida. Associated Press. 15 April 1968. p. 20. Retrieved 10 April 2011.
  7. ^ "Museo del Golf Roberto de Vicenzo". Municipalidad de Berazategui. Archived from the original on 2 September 2011.
  8. ^ "Murió Roberto De Vicenzo, el golfista que conquistó al mundo con sus títulos y sus valores". La Nación (in Spanish). 1 June 2017.
  9. ^ Harig, Bob (1 June 2017). "Argentine golfing legend Roberto De Vicenzo dies at age 94". ESPN.
  10. ^ Mason, Peter (2 June 2017). "Roberto De Vicenzo obituary". The Guardian.
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Awards and achievements
Preceded by Olimpia de Oro
1967 		Succeeded by
Preceded by Olimpia de Oro
1970 		Succeeded by