Bob Goalby

Bob Goalby
Bob Goalby
Personal information
Full name	Robert George Goalby
Born	March 14, 1929; Belleville, Illinois, U.S.
Died	January 19, 2022 (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 tour(s)	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 American professional golfer. He won the Masters Tournament in 1968, after Roberto De Vicenzo notably made an error on his scorecard. It was Goalby's lone major championship among 11 Tour wins achieved between 1958 and 1971.^[1]

Early life

Goalby was born in Belleville, Illinois on March 14, 1929.^[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] and 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-State quarterback during his senior year of High School and attended the University of Illinois, on a football scholarship^[5]^[6] only to lose his eligibility due to playing several baseball games for Southern Illinois University, and quit college altogether.^[7] He served in the United States military during the Korean War.^[1]

Career

Goalby turned professional in 1957 with his first Tour win coming in 1958, he earned the PGA Tour Rookie of the Year Award in that season. He won and contended steadily until 1971, when he was 42 years old. At the 1968 Masters, Goalby tied Roberto 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 partner Tommy 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] The rules 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 story received overwhelming attention at the time, and has remained high in public consciousness since.^[8] It was recounted in great detail in the 2005 book The Lost Masters: Grace and Disgrace in '68 by Curt 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 the Champions Tour.^[11]

Goalby played on the Ryder Cup team in 1963 and retired from the PGA Tour after winning 11 tournaments. He joined the Senior PGA Tour (now the Champions 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 for NBC television for 14 years.^[8]^[12]

Legacy

Goalby lent his name each year since 1982 to a charity golf tournament, the Bob Goalby Golf Open, for the benefit of Maur Hill - Mount Academy, a Catholic, international, college preparatory school in Atchison, Kansas.^[13] The football stadium at Belleville High School-West was dedicated to him on October 13, 2017.^[5] As of 2018^[update], Goalby resided in Palm Desert, California^[8] and was inducted of the St. Louis Sports Hall Of Fame,^[2] the Belleville Walk of Fame,^[6] and Illinois Golf Hall of Fame.^[12]

Personal life

Goalby had three sons: Kye, Kel and Kevin,^[14] the former of whom is a golf course architect.^[6] Goalby's nephew Jay Haas is a 9-time PGA Tour winner,^[1] and another nephew, Jerry Haas, coaches the Wake 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] Goalby died in Belleville on January 19, 2022, at the age of 92.^[17]^[11]^[18]

Professional wins (14)

PGA Tour wins (11)

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]

Senior PGA Tour wins (2)

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]

Other senior wins (1)

1983 Shootout at Jeremy Ranch (with Mike Reid)^[20]

Major championships

Wins (1)

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

Results timeline

Tournament	1957	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 in The Open Championship.

Win

Top 10

Did not play

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

Source:^[21]

Summary

Tournament	Wins	2nd	Top-5	Top-10	Top-25	Events	Cuts made
Masters Tournament	1	0	1	2	5	27	13
U.S. Open	0	1	1	2	6	15	11
The Open Championship	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
PGA Championship	0	1	2	4	7	15	12
Totals	1	2	4	8	18	57	36

Source:^[19]

Most consecutive cuts made – 9 (1971 PGA – 1974 Masters)
Longest streak of top-10s – 3 (1967 U.S. Open – 1968 Masters)

U.S. national team appearances

Professional

Ryder Cup: 1963 (winners)

References

^ ^a ^b ^c ^d McCabe, Jim (April 3, 2018). "1968: Goalby's Superb Play Often Overlooked". Masters.com. Retrieved April 7, 2018.
^ ^a ^b "Bob Goalby - Golf". St. Louis Sports Hall Of Fame. Retrieved April 7, 2018. Born: March 14, 1929, Belleville, Illinois... Robert George 'Bob' Goalby, who was born in Belleville, Ill...
^ Ruppert, Jim (October 12, 2016). "100 Years of IHSA Boys Golf: State Finals Have Hosted Many Greats". Illinois High School Association. Retrieved April 7, 2018.
^ O'Neill, Dan (January 20, 2022). "Masters champion, Belleville native Bob Goalby dies at 92". St. Louis Post-Dispatch.
^ ^a ^b "Belleville West Naming Football Field After Bob Goalby". Belleville, Illinois. CBS St. Louis. August 22, 2017. Retrieved April 7, 2018.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d "Interview with Bob Goalby". The Missouri Golf Post. January 7, 2015. Retrieved April 7, 2018.
^ Dwyre, Bill (April 9, 2008). "Goalby played the big break just right at the '68 Masters". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved April 7, 2018.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g Bohannan, Larry (April 1, 2018). "Scorecard controversy at 1968 Masters still haunts its champion Bob Goalby". The Desert Sun. Gannett. Retrieved April 7, 2018.
^ Criddle, Dean (April 7, 2010). "The Master speaks: Bob Goalby talks about the tournament, his great-nephew and Tiger Woods". Belleville News-Democrat. Retrieved May 6, 2010. ^{[dead link‍]}
^ Sampson, Curt (June 15, 2010). The Lost Masters: Grace and Disgrace in '68. Simon and Schuster. ISBN 978-1-4516-0436-8.
^ ^a ^b Ferguson, Doug (January 21, 2022). "Bob Goalby, who won Masters after scorecard flub, dies at 92". Associated Press. Retrieved January 21, 2022.
^ ^a ^b "Bob Goalby: inducted 1991". Illinois Golf Hall Of Fame. Retrieved April 7, 2018.
^ "Alumni and Friends: Bob Goalby". Maur Hill-Mount Academy. Archived from the original on August 21, 2010. Retrieved May 6, 2010. The 29th annual Maur Hill-Mount Academy/Bob Goalby Golf Open...
^ Voellinger, Art (June 11, 2008). "Respect for Dad's role never ends". St. Louis Post-Dispatch. Retrieved April 7, 2018.
^ "Jerry Haas bio". Wake Forest Sports. Wake Forest University. Retrieved April 7, 2018. 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...
^ "FedEx Cup: Bill Haas beats Hunter Mahan to $10m prize". BBC Sport. BBC. September 25, 2011. Retrieved April 7, 2018.
^ "Bob Goalby passes away at 92". PGA Tour. Retrieved January 22, 2022.
^ Goldstein, Richard (January 21, 2022). "Bob Goalby, Masters Champion Thanks to a Gaffe, Dies at 92". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved January 22, 2022.
^ ^a ^b ^c "Bob Goalby – Profile". PGA Tour. Retrieved January 21, 2022.
^ Sorensen, Mike (August 13, 2001). "20 years of memories". Deseret News. Salt Lake City. Archived from the original on January 21, 2022. Retrieved January 21, 2022.
^ Brenner, Morgan G. (2009). The Majors of Golf: Complete Results of the Open, the U.S. Open, the PGA Championship and the Masters, 1860-2008. Vol. 1. McFarland. ISBN 978-0-7864-3360-5.