Bobby Cole (golfer)

For other people with the same name, see Bob Cole (disambiguation).
Bobby Cole
Personal information
Full name Robert Eric Cole
Born 11 May 1948
Springs, South Africa
Height 5 ft 10 in (1.78 m)
Weight 170 lb (77 kg; 12 st)
Sporting nationality South Africa
Residence Windermere, Florida, U.S.
Spouse Linda Parker
Children 7, including Eric
Career
Turned professional 1967
Former tour(s) South African Tour
PGA Tour
Champions Tour
Professional wins 14
Number of wins by tour
PGA Tour 1
Sunshine Tour 7
Other 6
Best results in major championships
Masters Tournament T15: 1975
PGA Championship T3: 1974
U.S. Open T13: 1971
The Open Championship T3: 1975

Robert Eric Cole (born 11 May 1948) is a South African professional golfer.

Early life

Cole was born in Springs, South Africa. As a child, he was influenced by the careers of Bobby Locke and Gary Player.

After suffering a bicycle accident related knee injury, Cole took up golf at the age of eleven. He won both the South Africa junior golf championship and the Vaal Amateur.

Amateur career

In 1966, Cole won the British Amateur at Carnoustie, Scotland, at age 18, the youngest winner to that stage. Cole held the record as youngest-ever winner of the tournament until Matteo Manassero won the event in 2009, at age 16. Cole also held the record as the youngest player to play in and make the cut at the Masters Tournament, in 1967, at just short of 19 of age, until Manassero, in 2010, again beat his record.

Professional career

In the fall of 1967, Cole tried out for the PGA Tour at 1967 PGA Tour Qualifying School. He earned medalist honors. In 1974, he claimed both the team and the individual wins in the World Cup. Cole is a two-time winner of the South African Open in 1974 and 1980. In 1986, he won the South African PGA Championship.

On the PGA Tour, Cole won the 1977 Buick Open. He has had nine top-25 finishes in the major championships including a tie for third in the 1975 Open Championship, one stroke out of a playoff. During the event, Cole shot back-to-back rounds of 66, setting and then matching the course record at Carnoustie.

Cole played on the Champions Tour from 1998 to 2001.

Personal life

Cole is married to author Linda Parker. He resides in Windermere, Florida where he teaches private lessons, corporate retreats, and plays ProAms and other golf events.

On 12 December 1980, Cole married American professional golfer Laura Baugh in Cape Town, South Africa. The couple divorced, re-married, and then divorced again. They had seven children together, including professional golfer Eric Cole.

Amateur wins

Professional wins (14)

PGA Tour wins (1)

No. Date Tournament Winning score Margin of
victory		 Runner-up
1 4 Sep 1977 Buick Open −17 (67-69-68-67=271) 1 stroke Fred Marti

Southern Africa Tour wins (7)

No. Date Tournament Winning score Margin of
victory		 Runner(s)-up
1 8 Jan 1972 ICL Transvaal Open −14 (65-67-68-70=270) Playoff Tienie Britz
2 10 Dec 1972 Natal Open −11 (71-68-72-66=277) 1 stroke Dale Hayes
3 17 Dec 1972 Rhodesian Dunlop Masters −20 (66-68-63-71=268) 4 strokes Cobie Legrange
4 19 Jan 1974 Vavasseur Natal Open (2) −4 (74-72-69-69=284) 1 stroke Tienie Britz
5 2 Feb 1974 South African Open −16 (70-65-73-64=272) 4 strokes Allan Henning
6 6 Dec 1980 Datsun South African Open (2) −9 (73-63-70-73=279) 4 strokes Nick Price
7 26 Jan 1986 Lexington PGA Championship −15 (66-65-66-68=265) 5 strokes David Frost, Teddy Webber

Southern Africa Tour playoff record (1–2)

No. Year Tournament Opponent Result
1 1972 ICL Transvaal Open Tienie Britz Won with birdie on first extra hole
2 1974 Dunlop South African Masters Gary Player Lost to par on second extra hole
3 1977 Rhodesian Dunlop Masters Allan Henning

Tournament Player Series wins (1)

No. Date Tournament Winning score Margin of
victory 		Runner-up
1 4 Aug 1985 Seattle-Everett Open −12 (70-65-66=201) 1 stroke Dave Stockton

Other South African wins (3)

Other wins (2)

No. Date Tournament Winning score Margin of
victory		 Runner(s)-up
1 24 Nov 1974 World Cup
(with Dale Hayes) 		−6 (137-138-139-140=554) 5 strokes Japan − Isao Aoki and Masashi Ozaki
2 24 Nov 1974 World Cup Individual Trophy −9 (66-70-67-68=271) 5 strokes Masashi Ozaki

Results in major championships

Tournament 1966 1967 1968 1969
Masters Tournament T44
U.S. Open CUT T31
The Open Championship T30 CUT T13 CUT
PGA Championship T21
Tournament 1970 1971 1972 1973 1974 1975 1976 1977 1978 1979
Masters Tournament CUT T15 47 28
U.S. Open T12 T13 T47 CUT
The Open Championship T28 T7 T3 T32 T15
PGA Championship T3 T40 T54
Tournament 1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987
Masters Tournament
U.S. Open CUT
The Open Championship
PGA Championship T43

  Top 10
  Did not play

CUT = missed the half-way cut
"T" indicates a tie for a place

Summary

Tournament Wins 2nd 3rd Top-5 Top-10 Top-25 Events Cuts made
Masters Tournament 0 0 0 0 0 1 5 4
U.S. Open 0 0 0 0 0 2 7 4
The Open Championship 0 0 1 1 2 4 9 7
PGA Championship 0 0 1 1 1 2 5 5
Totals 0 0 2 2 3 9 26 20
  • Most consecutive cuts made – 10 (1974 Open Championship – 1978 PGA)
  • Longest streak of top-10s – 2 (1974 Open Championship – 1974 PGA)

Team appearances

Amateur

Professional

See also