Bob Rosburg
Encyclopedia
Robert Reginald "Rossie" Rosburg (October 21, 1926 – May 14, 2009) was an American
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

 professional golfer
Professional golfer
In golf the distinction between amateurs and professionals is rigorously maintained. An amateur who breaches the rules of amateur status may lose his or her amateur status. A golfer who has lost his or her amateur status may not play in amateur competitions until amateur status has been reinstated;...

 who later became a sports color analyst for ABC television
American Broadcasting Company
The American Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network. Created in 1943 from the former NBC Blue radio network, ABC is owned by The Walt Disney Company and is part of Disney-ABC Television Group. Its first broadcast on television was in 1948...

.

Early years, college

Rosburg was born in San Francisco, California
San Francisco, California
San Francisco , officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the financial, cultural, and transportation center of the San Francisco Bay Area, a region of 7.15 million people which includes San Jose and Oakland...

. He played golf as a junior at the Olympic Club
Olympic Club
The Olympic Club is a San Francisco, California, athletic club and private social club with three golf courses located at San Francisco's border with Daly City, California. The club's main "City Clubhouse" is located in downtown San Francisco. The club's "Lakeside Clubhouse" is located just north...

, and at the age of 12, he faced the then-retired baseball Hall of Famer, Ty Cobb
Ty Cobb
Tyrus Raymond "Ty" Cobb , nicknamed "The Georgia Peach," was an American Major League Baseball outfielder. He was born in Narrows, Georgia...

, in the first flight of the club championship, and beat Cobb 7 and 6. Rosburg says Cobb was gracious in defeat and shook the young Rosburg's hand, but Cobb took so much kidding from the other Olympic Club members that for many years, Rosburg hardly ever saw Cobb back at the club. Rosburg was an outstanding baseball
Baseball
Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each. The aim is to score runs by hitting a thrown ball with a bat and touching a series of four bases arranged at the corners of a ninety-foot diamond...

 player at Stanford University
Stanford University
The Leland Stanford Junior University, commonly referred to as Stanford University or Stanford, is a private research university on an campus located near Palo Alto, California. It is situated in the northwestern Santa Clara Valley on the San Francisco Peninsula, approximately northwest of San...

 in Palo Alto, California
Palo Alto, California
Palo Alto is a California charter city located in the northwest corner of Santa Clara County, in the San Francisco Bay Area of California, United States. The city shares its borders with East Palo Alto, Mountain View, Los Altos, Los Altos Hills, Stanford, Portola Valley, and Menlo Park. It is...

 during the 1940s, and almost chose baseball as a career over golf
Golf
Golf is a precision club and ball sport, in which competing players use many types of clubs to hit balls into a series of holes on a golf course using the fewest number of strokes....

. He graduated from Stanford in 1949, and turned pro in 1953. He is a member of the Stanford Athletic Hall of Fame.

PGA Tour career

During his career, Rosburg was one of the most consistent top-10 finishers on the PGA Tour
PGA Tour
The PGA Tour is the organizer of the main men's professional golf tours in the United States and North America...

. Rosburg won the Vardon Trophy
Vardon Trophy
The Vardon Trophy is awarded annually by the PGA of America to the PGA Tour's leader in scoring average. When the award was first given in 1937, it was awarded on the basis of a points system. No award was given from 1942–1946 due to World War II. In 1947, the PGA began awarding it for low...

 in 1958 for the lowest average score (70.11) on tour that year. Rosburg's career year was 1959, when he finished seventh on the money list and was named to the Ryder Cup
Ryder Cup
The Ryder Cup is a biennial golf competition between teams from Europe and the United States. The competition is jointly administered by the PGA of America and the PGA European Tour, and is contested every two years, the venue alternating between courses in the United States and Europe...

 team, after winning the PGA Championship
PGA Championship
The PGA Championship is an annual golf tournament conducted by the PGA of America as part of the PGA Tour. It is one of the four major championships in men's professional golf, and is the golf season's final major, usually played in mid-August, customarily four weeks after The Open Championship...

 and finishing second in the U.S. Open
U.S. Open (golf)
The United States Open Championship, commonly known as the U.S. Open, is the annual open golf tournament of the United States. It is the second of the four major championships in golf, and is on the official schedule of both the PGA Tour and the European Tour...

. In 1969, he won the PGA Club Professional Championship. He won six tour events during the course of his career, before moving into semi-retirement after the 1972 season, his most successful financially. That year, he won the Bob Hope Desert Classic by one stroke over Lanny Wadkins
Lanny Wadkins
Jerry Lanston "Lanny" Wadkins, Jr. is an American professional golfer. He ranked in the top-10 of the Official World Golf Rankings for 86 weeks from their debut in 1986 to 1988....

.

The 1959 PGA Championship was played at the Minneapolis Golf Club in St. Louis Park, Minnesota
St. Louis Park, Minnesota
As of the census of 2000, there were 44,126 people, 20,782 households, and 10,557 families residing in the city. The population density was 4,122.5 persons per square mile . There were 21,140 housing units at an average density of 1,975.0 per square mile...

. Rosburg won with a 72-hole score of 277 by one stroke over Jerry Barber
Jerry Barber
Carl Jerome "Jerry" Barber was an American professional golfer who played on the PGA Tour.Barber was born in Woodson, Illinois, and was one of nine children raised on a Jacksonville, Illinois farm. He turned professional in 1942. Among his seven tour victories, was the 1961 PGA Championship at...

 and Doug Sanders
Doug Sanders
George Douglas Sanders is a former American professional golfer who won twenty PGA Tour events during his career.-Early years:Sanders was born in Cedartown, Georgia. He grew up in a poor family, and picked cotton as a teenager...

. Rosburg claimed that he won the 1959 PGA Championship without ever hitting a practice shot during that week, except for a few chips and puts. He came close to winning a second major
Men's major golf championships
The men's major golf championships, commonly known as the Major Championships, and often referred to simply as the majors, are the four most prestigious annual tournaments in professional golf...

 that year, finishing 2nd at the U.S. Open
U.S. Open (golf)
The United States Open Championship, commonly known as the U.S. Open, is the annual open golf tournament of the United States. It is the second of the four major championships in golf, and is on the official schedule of both the PGA Tour and the European Tour...

 to Billy Casper
Billy Casper
William Earl Casper, Jr. is an American professional golfer who was one of the most prolific tournament winners on the PGA Tour from the mid 1950s to the mid 1970s.-Early years:...

. He also finished in a three-way tie for 2nd at the 1969 U.S. Open, one stroke behind Orville Moody
Orville Moody
Orville James Moody was an American professional golfer who won numerous tournaments in his career. He won the 1969 U.S. Open, the last champion in the 20th century to win through local and sectional qualifying....

.

Broadcasting career

After his playing days on the PGA Tour finished in the mid-1970s, Rosburg became a commentator for ABC sports television
ABC Television
ABC Television is a service of the Australian Broadcasting Corporation launched in 1956. As a public broadcasting broadcaster, the ABC provides four non-commercial channels within Australia, and a partially advertising-funded satellite channel overseas....

. He pioneered the now-common practice of roving on the golf course and reporting from the fairways. At the time of his death, he was the longest serving active golf announcer on television, with more than 30 years behind the microphone. He is remembered for his catch phrase, "He's got no chance, Jim", which Rosburg would utter whenever he encountered a golfer who had hit his ball into a seemingly impossible position (usually behind a tree or in deep grass), upon which the player would then produce a miraculous recovery. The "Jim" is in reference to ABC commentator Jim McKay
Jim McKay
James Kenneth McManus , better known by his professional name of Jim McKay, was an American television sports journalist....

. Rosburg is also credited with helping ABC hire Judy Rankin
Judy Rankin
Judy Torluemke Rankin is an American professional golfer and golf broadcaster. She became a member of the LPGA Tour in 1962 and won 26 LPGA Tour events in all. She is a member of the World Golf Hall of Fame.-Amateur career:...

, who was the first full-time female golf commentator to cover men's events, including the major championships. Rosburg worked nearly three decades as a commentator with Dave Marr
Dave Marr
David Francis Marr, Jr. was an American professional golfer and sportscaster, best known for winning the 1965 PGA Championship.-Early years:...

, who like Rosburg won a single PGA Championship
PGA Championship
The PGA Championship is an annual golf tournament conducted by the PGA of America as part of the PGA Tour. It is one of the four major championships in men's professional golf, and is the golf season's final major, usually played in mid-August, customarily four weeks after The Open Championship...

.

Rosburg died in Palm Springs, California
Palm Springs, California
Palm Springs is a desert city in Riverside County, California, within the Coachella Valley. It is located approximately 37 miles east of San Bernardino, 111 miles east of Los Angeles and 136 miles northeast of San Diego...

 after sustaining a head injury in a fall
Falling (accident)
Falling is a major cause of personal injury, especially for the elderly. Builders, electricians, miners, and painters represent worker categories representing high rates of fall injuries. The WHO estimate that 392,000 people die in falls every year...

 at an Indio, California
Indio, California
Indio is a city in Riverside County, California, United States, located in the Coachella Valley of Southern California's Colorado Desert region. It lies east of Palm Springs, east of Riverside, and east of Los Angeles. It is about north of Mexicali, Baja California on the U.S.-Mexican border...

 restaurant. He is survived by his wife and their three children.

PGA Tour wins (6)

No.DateTournamentWinning ScoreMargin of VictoryRunner(s)-up
1 Dec 12, 1954 Miami Open
Miami Open
The Miami Open was a golf tournament on the PGA Tour from 1924 to 1955. It was played at what is now the Miami Springs Golf and Country Club in Miami, Florida. The event was played in December from 1924 to 1926 and from 1937 to 1955...

-7 (273) 1 stroke   Bo Wininger
Bo Wininger
Francis G. "Bo" Wininger was an American professional golfer who played on the PGA Tour in the 1950s and 1960s....

2 Sep 2, 1956 Motor City Open
Motor City Open
The Motor City Open was a PGA Tour event played at various clubs in and around Detroit for just under two decades. The PGA Tour record for the longest sudden-death playoff was established at the 1949 Motor City Open. Cary Middlecoff and Lloyd Mangrum played 11 holes at Meadowbrook Country Club in...

-4 (70-70-72-72-284) Playoff   Ed Furgol
Ed Furgol
Edward Joseph Furgol was an American professional golfer.When he was twelve years of age, Furgol injured his left elbow when he fell off a set of parallel bars. The elbow never healed correctly and Furgol was left with a crooked arm as a result...

3 Oct 7, 1956 Convair-San Diego Open (270) 2 strokes   Dick Mayer
Dick Mayer
Alvin Richard Mayer was an American professional golfer.Mayer was born in Stamford, Connecticut. He apprenticed with renowned player and teacher Claude Harmon at the Winged Foot Golf Club in suburban New York City....

4 Aug 2, 1959 PGA Championship
PGA Championship
The PGA Championship is an annual golf tournament conducted by the PGA of America as part of the PGA Tour. It is one of the four major championships in men's professional golf, and is the golf season's final major, usually played in mid-August, customarily four weeks after The Open Championship...

-3 (71-72-68-66=277) 1 stroke   Jerry Barber
Jerry Barber
Carl Jerome "Jerry" Barber was an American professional golfer who played on the PGA Tour.Barber was born in Woodson, Illinois, and was one of nine children raised on a Jacksonville, Illinois farm. He turned professional in 1942. Among his seven tour victories, was the 1961 PGA Championship at...

,   Doug Sanders
Doug Sanders
George Douglas Sanders is a former American professional golfer who won twenty PGA Tour events during his career.-Early years:Sanders was born in Cedartown, Georgia. He grew up in a poor family, and picked cotton as a teenager...

5 Jan 22, 1961 Bing Crosby National Pro-Am -17 (69-67-74-72=282) 1 stroke   Roberto De Vicenzo,   Dave Ragan
Dave Ragan
David William Ragan, Jr. is a former American professional golfer who played on the PGA Tour and the Senior PGA Tour.Ragan was born in Daytona Beach, Florida. He attended the University of Florida in Gainesville, Florida, where he played for the Florida Gators men's golf team in National...

6 Feb 13, 1972
1972 PGA Tour
The 1972 PGA Tour season was played from January 6 to December 3. The season consisted of 46 official money events. Jack Nicklaus won the most tournaments, seven, and there were five first-time winners. The tournament results and award winners are listed below....

Bob Hope Desert Classic -16 (68-69-72-70-67=344) 1 stroke   Lanny Wadkins
Lanny Wadkins
Jerry Lanston "Lanny" Wadkins, Jr. is an American professional golfer. He ranked in the top-10 of the Official World Golf Rankings for 86 weeks from their debut in 1986 to 1988....



PGA Tour playoff record (1-5)
No.YearTournamentOpponent(s)Result
1 1954 Motor City Open
Motor City Open
The Motor City Open was a PGA Tour event played at various clubs in and around Detroit for just under two decades. The PGA Tour record for the longest sudden-death playoff was established at the 1949 Motor City Open. Cary Middlecoff and Lloyd Mangrum played 11 holes at Meadowbrook Country Club in...

  Ed Furgol
Ed Furgol
Edward Joseph Furgol was an American professional golfer.When he was twelve years of age, Furgol injured his left elbow when he fell off a set of parallel bars. The elbow never healed correctly and Furgol was left with a crooked arm as a result...

Won with par on first extra hole
2 1957 Caracas Open   Al Besselink
Al Besselink
Albert Cornelius Besselink is an American professional golfer who played on the PGA Tour in the 1950s and 1960s.Besselink grew up in Merchantville, New Jersey. He attended the University of Miami and was the first UM golfer to win a national tournament. He won the Southern Invitational...

Lost on first extra hole
3 1958 Eastern Open Invitational
Eastern Open Invitational
The Eastern Open Invitational, first played as the Eastern Open, was a golf tournament on the PGA Tour that was played in Maryland in the 1950s and early 1960s. The first nine events were played at Mt. Pleasant Municipal Golf Club in Baltimore, an 18-hole par-71 public course designed by Gus Hook...

  Jack Burke, Jr.,   Art Wall, Jr.
Art Wall, Jr.
Arthur Jonathan Wall, Jr. was an American golfer.Wall was born in Honesdale, Pennsylvania. He attended Duke University, graduating in 1949 with a business degree....

Wall won with birdie on first extra hole
4 1961 Greater Seattle Open Invitational   Jacky Cupit
Jacky Cupit
Jacky D. Cupit is an American professional golfer who has played on both the PGA Tour and the Senior PGA Tour ....

,   Dave Marr
Dave Marr
David Francis Marr, Jr. was an American professional golfer and sportscaster, best known for winning the 1965 PGA Championship.-Early years:...

Marr won with birdie on first extra hole
5 1961 Bakersfield Open
Bakersfield Open
The Bakersfield Open was a golf tournament on the Nationwide Tour. It ran from 1990 to 1993, and was played in Bakersfield, California. Between 1990 and 1991, it was played at the Bakersfield Country Club...

  Jack Fleck
Jack Fleck
Jack Fleck is an American professional golfer best known for winning the 1955 U.S. Open. He is the oldest living U.S. Open champion....

Lost to birdie on first extra hole
6 1962 Orange County Open Invitational
Orange County Open Invitational
The Orange County Open Invitational was a PGA Tour event that was played for four years at Mesa Verde Country Club in Costa Mesa, California during the late 1950s and early 1960s....

  Tony Lema
Tony Lema
Anthony David "Tony" Lema was an American professional golfer, who rose to fame in the beginning of golf's modern era, but had his young life and career cut short in an aircraft accident. His most prestigious victory was the 1964 British Open.-Biography:Lema was born in Oakland, California, to...

Lost to birdie on third extra hole


Major championship
Men's major golf championships
The men's major golf championships, commonly known as the Major Championships, and often referred to simply as the majors, are the four most prestigious annual tournaments in professional golf...

 is shown in bold.

Other wins (3)

  • 1957 Mexican Open
    Mexican Open
    The Mexican Open or Abierto Mexicano de Golf is the national open golf tournament of Mexico. It was first played in 1944 at the Club de Golf Chapultepec. It was an event on the Tour de las Americas between 2003 and 2006, being co-sanctioned by the European Challenge Tour from 2004...

  • 1959 Utah Open
    Utah Open
    The Utah Open is the Utah state open golf tournament, open to both amateur and professional golfers. It is organized by the Utah section of the PGA of America. It was first played in 1926 and has been played at a variety of courses around the state...

  • 1969 PGA Club Professional Championship

Wins (1)

YearChampionship54 HolesWinning ScoreMarginRunners-up
1959
1959 PGA Championship
The 1959 PGA Championship was the 41st PGA Championship played from July 30 to August 2 at Minneapolis Golf Club in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Bob Rosburg won the championship.-Final leaderboard:-External links:* - at www.golfobserver.com...

 
PGA Championship
PGA Championship
The PGA Championship is an annual golf tournament conducted by the PGA of America as part of the PGA Tour. It is one of the four major championships in men's professional golf, and is the golf season's final major, usually played in mid-August, customarily four weeks after The Open Championship...

 
6 shot deficit
1 stroke   Jerry Barber
Jerry Barber
Carl Jerome "Jerry" Barber was an American professional golfer who played on the PGA Tour.Barber was born in Woodson, Illinois, and was one of nine children raised on a Jacksonville, Illinois farm. He turned professional in 1942. Among his seven tour victories, was the 1961 PGA Championship at...

,   Doug Sanders
Doug Sanders
George Douglas Sanders is a former American professional golfer who won twenty PGA Tour events during his career.-Early years:Sanders was born in Cedartown, Georgia. He grew up in a poor family, and picked cotton as a teenager...


Results timeline

Tournament 1948 1949
The Masters 52 DNP
U.S. Open
U.S. Open (golf)
The United States Open Championship, commonly known as the U.S. Open, is the annual open golf tournament of the United States. It is the second of the four major championships in golf, and is on the official schedule of both the PGA Tour and the European Tour...

CUT DNP
The Open Championship
The Open Championship
The Open Championship, or simply The Open , is the oldest of the four major championships in professional golf. It is the only "major" held outside the USA and is administered by The R&A, which is the governing body of golf outside the USA and Mexico...

DNP DNP
PGA Championship
PGA Championship
The PGA Championship is an annual golf tournament conducted by the PGA of America as part of the PGA Tour. It is one of the four major championships in men's professional golf, and is the golf season's final major, usually played in mid-August, customarily four weeks after The Open Championship...

DNP DNP

Tournament 1950 1951 1952 1953 1954 1955 1956 1957 1958 1959
The Masters DNP DNP DNP DNP T6 T4 16 CUT DNP T30
U.S. Open
U.S. Open (golf)
The United States Open Championship, commonly known as the U.S. Open, is the annual open golf tournament of the United States. It is the second of the four major championships in golf, and is on the official schedule of both the PGA Tour and the European Tour...

DNP DNP DNP T21 T29 T5 T45 DNP T5 2
The Open Championship
The Open Championship
The Open Championship, or simply The Open , is the oldest of the four major championships in professional golf. It is the only "major" held outside the USA and is administered by The R&A, which is the governing body of golf outside the USA and Mexico...

DNP DNP DNP DNP DNP DNP DNP DNP DNP DNP
PGA Championship
PGA Championship
The PGA Championship is an annual golf tournament conducted by the PGA of America as part of the PGA Tour. It is one of the four major championships in men's professional golf, and is the golf season's final major, usually played in mid-August, customarily four weeks after The Open Championship...

DNP DNP DNP DNP DNP DNP DNP DNP T11 1

Tournament 1960 1961 1962 1963 1964 1965 1966 1967 1968 1969
The Masters T20 T15 DQ CUT CUT CUT T10 T21 T30 DNP
U.S. Open
U.S. Open (golf)
The United States Open Championship, commonly known as the U.S. Open, is the annual open golf tournament of the United States. It is the second of the four major championships in golf, and is on the official schedule of both the PGA Tour and the European Tour...

T23 21 13 CUT T9 T38 T44 DNP DNP T2
The Open Championship
The Open Championship
The Open Championship, or simply The Open , is the oldest of the four major championships in professional golf. It is the only "major" held outside the USA and is administered by The R&A, which is the governing body of golf outside the USA and Mexico...

DNP DNP DNP DNP DNP DNP DNP DNP DNP DNP
PGA Championship
PGA Championship
The PGA Championship is an annual golf tournament conducted by the PGA of America as part of the PGA Tour. It is one of the four major championships in men's professional golf, and is the golf season's final major, usually played in mid-August, customarily four weeks after The Open Championship...

CUT T19 DNP T40 T56 CUT T43 CUT CUT CUT

Tournament 1970 1971 1972 1973 1974
The Masters 44 DNP T45 DNP DNP
U.S. Open
U.S. Open (golf)
The United States Open Championship, commonly known as the U.S. Open, is the annual open golf tournament of the United States. It is the second of the four major championships in golf, and is on the official schedule of both the PGA Tour and the European Tour...

T64 T3 CUT DNP DNP
The Open Championship
The Open Championship
The Open Championship, or simply The Open , is the oldest of the four major championships in professional golf. It is the only "major" held outside the USA and is administered by The R&A, which is the governing body of golf outside the USA and Mexico...

DNP DNP DNP DNP DNP
PGA Championship
PGA Championship
The PGA Championship is an annual golf tournament conducted by the PGA of America as part of the PGA Tour. It is one of the four major championships in men's professional golf, and is the golf season's final major, usually played in mid-August, customarily four weeks after The Open Championship...

63 T9 T53 T66 76


DNP = Did not play

DQ = Disqualified

CUT = missed the half-way cut

"T" indicates a tie for a place

Green background for wins. Yellow background for top-10

External links

The source of this article is wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.  The text of this article is licensed under the GFDL.
 
x
OK