Simon Hobday facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Simon Hobday |
|
|---|---|
| Personal information | |
| Full name | Simon Forbes Newbold Hobday |
| Nickname | Scruffy |
| Born | 23 June 1940 Mafikeng, South Africa |
| Died | 2 March 2017 (aged 76) |
| Height | 5 ft 11 in (1.80 m) |
| Weight | 170 lb (77 kg; 12 st) |
| Nationality |  South Africa |
| Career | |
| Turned professional | 1969 |
| Former tour(s) | Sunshine Tour European Tour Champions Tour |
| Professional wins | 17 |
| Number of wins by tour | |
| European Tour | 2 |
| Sunshine Tour | 6 |
| Champions Tour | 5 |
| Other | 4 |
| Best results in Major Championships |
|
| The Masters Tournament | DNP |
| U.S. Open | CUT: 1995 |
| The Open Championship | T19: 1983 |
| PGA Championship | DNP |
Simon Forbes Newbold Hobday (born June 23, 1940 – died March 2, 2017) was a professional golfer from South Africa. He was known for winning golf tournaments on three different continents!
Contents
Simon Hobday's Early Golf Days
Simon Hobday was born in Mafikeng, South Africa. He spent some of his life in Zambia. In 1966, he even played golf for Zambia in a big competition called the 1966 Eisenhower Trophy.
In early 1969, Simon was still an amateur golfer, meaning he didn't play for money yet. He worked as a car salesman in Lusaka, the capital of Zambia.
Even as an amateur, Simon showed great skill. In April 1969, he played in the Kenya Open. In the last round, he shot a fantastic score of 66, which was a new record for the Muthaiga Golf Course! He finished second, just behind the champion. He even beat many famous professional golfers in that tournament.
Becoming a Professional Golfer
Simon Hobday became a professional golfer in 1969. This meant he could now earn money from playing golf. He spent most of his career playing on the Southern Africa Tour and the European Tour.
On the European Tour, he won two important tournaments:
- The 1976 German Open
- The 1979 Madrid Open
Simon also lived in Rhodesia (which is now called Zimbabwe).
Senior Golf Career
When Simon got older, he started playing on the Senior PGA Tour (now called the Champions Tour) in the United States. This tour is for golfers aged 50 and over. He won five titles on this tour between 1993 and 1995.
One of his biggest wins as a senior golfer was a "senior major" championship. In 1994, he won the U.S. Senior Open. This is a very important tournament for senior golfers.
Simon Hobday's Wins
Simon Hobday won a total of 17 professional golf tournaments in his career.
European Tour Wins (2)
- 1976 German Open
- 1979 Madrid Open
Sunshine Tour Wins (6)
- 1971 South African Open
- 1978 Rhodesian Dunlop Masters
- 1978 Victoria Falls Classic
- 1979 Rhodesian Open
- 1981 ICL International
- 1985 Trustbank Tournament of Champions
Senior PGA Tour Wins (5)
- 1993 Kroger Senior Classic
- 1993 Hyatt Senior Tour Championship
- 1994 U.S. Senior Open (This was a major championship!)
- 1994 GTE Northwest Classic
- 1995 Brickyard Crossing Championship
Other Senior Wins (4)
- 1997/98 Vodacom Senior Classic (South Africa)
- 2001 Nelson Mandela Invitational (with Martin Maritz)
- 2001 Liberty Mutual Legends of Golf - Legendary Division (with Jim Albus)
- 2003 Nelson Mandela Invitational (with Lee Westwood)
Major Championships
Simon Hobday played in some of golf's biggest tournaments, like the U.S. Open and The Open Championship. He never played in the Masters Tournament or the PGA Championship.
Team Golf
Simon also represented his country and region in team golf events.
Amateur Team
- Eisenhower Trophy (representing Zambia): 1966
Professional Team
- Double Diamond International (representing the Rest of the World): 1976, 1977
See also
- List of African golfers
