Craig Spence (golfer)
Encyclopedia
Craig A. Spence is an Australia
n professional golf
er.
Spence was born in Colac, Victoria
and first played golf at the age of 10. Around the age of 15 he began competing at an amateur level. He then went on to the Victorian Institute of Sport
, winning two Victorian Amateurs back to back. He turned professional in 1996 and joined the PGA Tour of Australasia
.
In 1999 Spence made his professional breakthrough with victory in the Ericsson Australian Masters. Having opened up with a 9 under par first round, he finished by hitting a 6 iron two two feet for a birdie on the final hole to win by a single stroke over Australia's most successful golfer, playing partner Greg Norman
. Following that win Spence received invites to tournaments around the world, on five of the major tours
. He managed to record top 5 finishes in events on all of those tours.
At the end of 1999, Spence earned his PGA Tour
card for the 2000 season with a top 10 finish at the tour's Qualifying School
. His rookie year on the PGA Tour was a struggle and he missed out on keeping a full card for 2001, finishing 129th on the money list. He made just two cuts the following season to lose all playing rights on the tour. He spent two more years in the United States competing mostly on mini-tours while receiving invites to a limited number of second tier Nationwide Tour
events. He also continued to play on the PGA Tour of Australasia with limited success.
Spence turned his attentions to Europe at the end of 2003, earning a spot on the European Tour for 2004 via the qualifying school. In his début season, he made just three cuts as he failed to keep his card for the 2005 season. He then returned to the United States, to play on the Gateway Tour
in preparation for another try at qualifying for the PGA Tour. Having missed out on reaching the final qualifying tournament by one shot in 2006, he and his family moved back to Australia.
Spence is married to Nicole, an American. They have two children.
DNP = Did not play
CUT = Missed the half-way cut
"T" = tied
Yellow background for top-10.
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
n professional 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....
er.
Spence was born in Colac, Victoria
Colac, Victoria
Colac is a small city located in the Western District of Victoria, Australia, situated approximately 150 kilometres south-west of Melbourne on the southern shore of Lake Colac and the surrounding volcanic plains, approximately 40 km inland from Bass Strait. Colac is the largest city in and...
and first played golf at the age of 10. Around the age of 15 he began competing at an amateur level. He then went on to the Victorian Institute of Sport
Victorian Institute of Sport
The Victorian Institute of Sport is the government-funded sporting institute of the Australian state of Victoria. It runs a number of programs for sports training. The headquarters are located in Melbourne. The inaugural executive director of the institute was Frank Pyke....
, winning two Victorian Amateurs back to back. He turned professional in 1996 and joined the PGA Tour of Australasia
PGA Tour of Australasia
The PGA Tour of Australasia is a professional golf tour for men. Official events on the tour count for World Golf Ranking points. The tour was formed in 1973 as the PGA Tour of Australia and adopted its current name in 1991....
.
In 1999 Spence made his professional breakthrough with victory in the Ericsson Australian Masters. Having opened up with a 9 under par first round, he finished by hitting a 6 iron two two feet for a birdie on the final hole to win by a single stroke over Australia's most successful golfer, playing partner Greg Norman
Greg Norman
Gregory John Norman AO is an Australian professional golfer and entrepreneur who spent 331 weeks as the world's Number 1 ranked golfer in the 1980s and 1990s...
. Following that win Spence received invites to tournaments around the world, on five of the major tours
Professional golf tours
Professional golf tours are the means by which otherwise unconnected professional golf tournaments are organised into a regular schedule. There are separate tours for men and women, with each tour being based in a specific geographical region, although some of their tournaments may be held in other...
. He managed to record top 5 finishes in events on all of those tours.
At the end of 1999, Spence earned his 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...
card for the 2000 season with a top 10 finish at the tour's Qualifying School
Qualifying school
In professional golf the term qualifying school is used for the annual qualifying tournaments for leading golf tours such as the U.S. based PGA and LPGA Tours and the European Tour. A fixed number of players in the event win membership of the tour for the following season, otherwise known as a...
. His rookie year on the PGA Tour was a struggle and he missed out on keeping a full card for 2001, finishing 129th on the money list. He made just two cuts the following season to lose all playing rights on the tour. He spent two more years in the United States competing mostly on mini-tours while receiving invites to a limited number of second tier Nationwide Tour
Nationwide Tour
The Nationwide Tour is the developmental tour for the U.S.-based PGA Tour, and features professional golfers who have either failed to score well enough at that level's Qualifying School to earn their PGA Tour card, or who have done so but then failed to win enough money to stay at that level...
events. He also continued to play on the PGA Tour of Australasia with limited success.
Spence turned his attentions to Europe at the end of 2003, earning a spot on the European Tour for 2004 via the qualifying school. In his début season, he made just three cuts as he failed to keep his card for the 2005 season. He then returned to the United States, to play on the Gateway Tour
Gateway Tour
The Gateway Tour is a third-level men's professional golf tour headquartered in Phoenix, Arizona that runs tournaments in Arizona, California, and Florida. The top level of men's professional golf in the United States is the PGA Tour. The second level is the Nationwide Tour, which is the official...
in preparation for another try at qualifying for the PGA Tour. Having missed out on reaching the final qualifying tournament by one shot in 2006, he and his family moved back to Australia.
Spence is married to Nicole, an American. They have two children.
Amateur wins
- 1994 Victoria State Amateur Championship
- 1995 Luxembourg Amateur Championship, Victoria State Amateur Championship
Results in major championships
| Tournament | 1999 | 2000 |
|---|---|---|
| The Masters | 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... |
DNP | CUT |
| 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... |
CUT | 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 = Did not play
CUT = Missed the half-way cut
"T" = tied
Yellow background for top-10.