Ross Fisher
Encyclopedia
Ross Daniel Fisher is an English
professional golf
er, who plays on the European Tour.
Fisher was born in Ascot, Berkshire
. His home course is the famous Wentworth Golf Club, Surrey
, England, location of the European Tour administrative headquarters. As a child, he attended Charters School
, a state comprehensive
close to Wentworth. He and his wife Joanne have a daughter Eve Rose. Fisher joined the European Tour
in 2006. He earned his card by finishing in 18th on the Challenge Tour
's money list in 2005. During Fisher's first season on the European Tour he won a Jaguar
for a nearest to the pin contest in the 2006 Quinn Direct British Masters. In 2007 he won the KLM Open
by one stroke over Joost Luiten
, and subsequently finished the year ranked 43rd on the Order of Merit.
Fisher started the 2008 season with a joint-second place in the HSBC Champions
tournament in Shanghai
, beaten by Phil Mickelson
in a three-way play-off that also featured Lee Westwood
. In July 2008, Fisher won the European Open
on the Heritage Course at The London Golf Club; the first staging of the event at the venue in Kent
, England
. Despite never having played the course either in competition or in practice, Fisher shot a first round 63—the lowest round thus far in his professional career—which featured a wind-assisted 413-yard drive on the 9th hole, his last of the day. Having established a first round lead, he was never subsequently headed at the top of the leaderboard, going on to win the tournament by a comfortable seven shots from Sergio García
. Fisher played steadily for the rest of the season and finished sixth on the Tour's Order of Merit
.
Fisher's progress continued in 2009 when he reached the semi-final of the WGC-Accenture Match Play Championship
in Arizona
, and finished second at the BMW PGA Championship at Wentworth. On both occasions Fisher was defeated by countryman Paul Casey
. He finished fifth in the U.S. Open
at Bethpage Black, New York
. At the 138th Open Championship at Turnberry, he held a two-stroke lead in the early stages of the final round, before taking a quadruple bogey eight on the par four 5th hole, eventually finishing in a tie for 13th place.
In 2009, Fisher had the lowest cumulative score for the four major championships for players who made the cut in all four events. Fisher's cumulative score of +2 was one stroke better than Henrik Stenson
of Sweden.
At the end of 2009 Fisher won the first Volvo World Match Play Championship that was held away from Wentworth, beating American Anthony Kim
4 & 3. He finished the season in fourth place in the Race to Dubai.
Fisher had an excellent chance to shoot a round of 59 and thus make European Tour golf history at the 3 Irish Open in Killarney on 30 July 2010, when he was 10-under-par with four holes to play, and only needed to birdie two of the remaining four holes, but he just parred the last four holes for a round of 61. He won the tournament with an 18-under-par score of 266. Fisher qualified for the 2010 European Ryder Cup
team, which regained the trophy from the United States at Celtic Manor, Wales, on October 4.
DNP = Did not play
CUT = missed the half-way cut
"T" = tied
Yellow background for top-10.
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
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, who plays on the European Tour.
Fisher was born in Ascot, Berkshire
Ascot, Berkshire
Ascot is a village within the civil parish of Sunninghill and Ascot, in the Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead, Berkshire, England. It is most notable as the location of Ascot Racecourse, home of the prestigious Royal Ascot meeting...
. His home course is the famous Wentworth Golf Club, Surrey
Surrey
Surrey is a county in the South East of England and is one of the Home Counties. The county borders Greater London, Kent, East Sussex, West Sussex, Hampshire and Berkshire. The historic county town is Guildford. Surrey County Council sits at Kingston upon Thames, although this has been part of...
, England, location of the European Tour administrative headquarters. As a child, he attended Charters School
Charters School
Charters School is a secondary school located in Sunningdale, Berkshire. In December 2006 and December 2009 it was graded 1 outstanding by OFSTED.The school first opened on 23 April 1958 and was visited by Queen Elizabeth II on 4 April 1962....
, a state comprehensive
Comprehensive school
A comprehensive school is a state school that does not select its intake on the basis of academic achievement or aptitude. This is in contrast to the selective school system, where admission is restricted on the basis of a selection criteria. The term is commonly used in relation to the United...
close to Wentworth. He and his wife Joanne have a daughter Eve Rose. Fisher joined the European Tour
PGA European Tour
The PGA European Tour is an organization which operates the three leading men's professional golf tours in Europe: the elite European Tour, the European Seniors Tour and the developmental Challenge Tour. Its headquarters are at Wentworth Club in Virginia Water, Surrey, England...
in 2006. He earned his card by finishing in 18th on the Challenge Tour
Challenge Tour
The Challenge Tour is the second tier men's professional golf tour in Europe. It is operated by the PGA European Tour and as with on the main European Tour and the European Seniors Tour, some of the events are played outside of Europe...
's money list in 2005. During Fisher's first season on the European Tour he won a Jaguar
Jaguar (car)
Jaguar Cars Ltd, known simply as Jaguar , is a British luxury car manufacturer, headquartered in Whitley, Coventry, England. It is part of the Jaguar Land Rover business, a subsidiary of the Indian company Tata Motors....
for a nearest to the pin contest in the 2006 Quinn Direct British Masters. In 2007 he won the KLM Open
KLM Open
The KLM Open is an annual golf tournament played in The Netherlands, and has been part of the European Tour's schedule since the Tour was inaugurated in 1972. Founded in 1912, the tournament was originally known as the Dutch Open, before a variety of sponsors resulted in numerous name changes over...
by one stroke over Joost Luiten
Joost Luiten
Willibrordus Adrianus Maria "Joost" Luiten is a Dutch professional golfer.- Biography :Luiten was born in Bleiswijk. He is currently a member of the European Tour. After a failed bid for a tour card on the Qualifying School he started his professional career on the EPD Tour where he claimed the...
, and subsequently finished the year ranked 43rd on the Order of Merit.
Fisher started the 2008 season with a joint-second place in the HSBC Champions
HSBC Champions
The WGC-HSBC Champions is a men's professional golf 72-hole tournament. It has been contested annually since 2005 in November at the Sheshan Golf Club in Shanghai, People's Republic of China. In April 2009 it was announced that the tournament had been awarded World Golf Championships status,...
tournament in Shanghai
Shanghai
Shanghai is the largest city by population in China and the largest city proper in the world. It is one of the four province-level municipalities in the People's Republic of China, with a total population of over 23 million as of 2010...
, beaten by Phil Mickelson
Phil Mickelson
Philip Alfred Mickelson is an American professional golfer. He has won four major championships and a total of 39 events on the PGA Tour. He has reached a career high world ranking of 2nd in multiple years. He is nicknamed "Lefty" for his left-handed swing, even though he is otherwise right-handed...
in a three-way play-off that also featured Lee Westwood
Lee Westwood
Lee John Westwood OBE is an English professional golfer. Noted for his consistency, Westwood is one of the few golfers who has won tournaments on every major continent, including victories on the European Tour and the PGA Tour. He was named player of the year for the 1998, 2000, and 2009 seasons...
. In July 2008, Fisher won the European Open
European Open (golf)
The European Open was a European Tour golf tournament. Founded in 1978, up to 1994 it was played at various courses in England, including Sunningdale and Walton Heath, except for the 1979 event, which was held at Turnberry in Scotland...
on the Heritage Course at The London Golf Club; the first staging of the event at the venue in Kent
Kent
Kent is a county in southeast England, and is one of the home counties. It borders East Sussex, Surrey and Greater London and has a defined boundary with Essex in the middle of the Thames Estuary. The ceremonial county boundaries of Kent include the shire county of Kent and the unitary borough of...
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
. Despite never having played the course either in competition or in practice, Fisher shot a first round 63—the lowest round thus far in his professional career—which featured a wind-assisted 413-yard drive on the 9th hole, his last of the day. Having established a first round lead, he was never subsequently headed at the top of the leaderboard, going on to win the tournament by a comfortable seven shots from Sergio García
Sergio García
Sergio García Fernández is a Spanish professional golfer who plays on both the United States PGA Tour and the European Tour. He has spent much of his career in the top 10 of the Official World Golf Rankings...
. Fisher played steadily for the rest of the season and finished sixth on the Tour's Order of Merit
Order of Merit
The Order of Merit is a British dynastic order recognising distinguished service in the armed forces, science, art, literature, or for the promotion of culture...
.
Fisher's progress continued in 2009 when he reached the semi-final of the WGC-Accenture Match Play Championship
WGC-Accenture Match Play Championship
The WGC-Accenture Match Play Championship is one of the annual World Golf Championships. It is a knockout event and is staged in January or February each year...
in Arizona
Arizona
Arizona ; is a state located in the southwestern region of the United States. It is also part of the western United States and the mountain west. The capital and largest city is Phoenix...
, and finished second at the BMW PGA Championship at Wentworth. On both occasions Fisher was defeated by countryman Paul Casey
Paul Casey
Paul Alexander Casey is an English golfer who is a member of the world's top two professional golf tours, the U.S.-based PGA Tour and the European Tour. In 2009 he achieved his highest position, third, in the Official World Golf Rankings....
. He finished fifth 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...
at Bethpage Black, New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
. At the 138th Open Championship at Turnberry, he held a two-stroke lead in the early stages of the final round, before taking a quadruple bogey eight on the par four 5th hole, eventually finishing in a tie for 13th place.
In 2009, Fisher had the lowest cumulative score for the four major championships for players who made the cut in all four events. Fisher's cumulative score of +2 was one stroke better than Henrik Stenson
Henrik Stenson
Henrik Stenson is a Swedish professional golfer who plays both on the US and European tours. He has spent over 100 weeks ranked in the World top ten and his career high ranking of fourth is the best by any Swedish golfer.-Career:...
of Sweden.
At the end of 2009 Fisher won the first Volvo World Match Play Championship that was held away from Wentworth, beating American Anthony Kim
Anthony Kim
Anthony Ha-Jin Kim is an American professional golfer.-Amateur career:A Korean American, Kim was born in Los Angeles, California and resides in Dallas, Texas. He attended La Quinta High School in La Quinta, California. After high school, he attended the University of Oklahoma for three years; this...
4 & 3. He finished the season in fourth place in the Race to Dubai.
Fisher had an excellent chance to shoot a round of 59 and thus make European Tour golf history at the 3 Irish Open in Killarney on 30 July 2010, when he was 10-under-par with four holes to play, and only needed to birdie two of the remaining four holes, but he just parred the last four holes for a round of 61. He won the tournament with an 18-under-par score of 266. Fisher qualified for the 2010 European Ryder Cup
2010 Ryder Cup
The 38th Ryder Cup matches were held 2010 at the Celtic Manor Resort in the city of Newport, Wales. It was the first time the competition was staged in Wales. With the USA as the defending Cup holder the event was played on the newly-constructed Twenty 10 course, specifically designed for the...
team, which regained the trophy from the United States at Celtic Manor, Wales, on October 4.
Personal life
Fisher is married to Joanne with whom he has a daughter, Eve. Joanne gave birth to the couple's second child in 2011.European Tour wins (4)
| No. | Date | Tournament | Winning Score | Margin of Victory | Runner-up |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 26 Aug 2007 2007 European Tour The 2007 European Tour was the 36th golf season since the European Tour officially began in 1972. The 2007 season consisted of 52 official money events, breaking the record of the previous year. This included seven major championships and World Golf Championships, which are also sanctioned by the... |
The KLM Open | 1 stroke |  Joost LuitenJoost Luiten Willibrordus Adrianus Maria "Joost" Luiten is a Dutch professional golfer.- Biography :Luiten was born in Bleiswijk. He is currently a member of the European Tour. After a failed bid for a tour card on the Qualifying School he started his professional career on the EPD Tour where he claimed the... |
|
| 2 | 6 Jul 2008 2008 European Tour The 2008 European Tour was the 37th golf season since the European Tour officially began in 1972. The 2008 season consisted of 50 official money events, a drop of two from the previous year. This included seven major championships and World Golf Championships, which are also sanctioned by the PGA... |
The European Open European Open (golf) The European Open was a European Tour golf tournament. Founded in 1978, up to 1994 it was played at various courses in England, including Sunningdale and Walton Heath, except for the 1979 event, which was held at Turnberry in Scotland... |
7 strokes |  Sergio GarcíaSergio García Sergio García Fernández is a Spanish professional golfer who plays on both the United States PGA Tour and the European Tour. He has spent much of his career in the top 10 of the Official World Golf Rankings... |
|
| 3 | 1 Nov 2009 2009 European Tour The 2009 European Tour was the 38th series of golf tournaments since the European Tour officially began in 1972. There were major changes for the 2009 season as the tour entered a partnership agreement with Dubai based Leisurecorp... |
Volvo World Match Play Championship | 4 & 3 |  Anthony KimAnthony Kim Anthony Ha-Jin Kim is an American professional golfer.-Amateur career:A Korean American, Kim was born in Los Angeles, California and resides in Dallas, Texas. He attended La Quinta High School in La Quinta, California. After high school, he attended the University of Oklahoma for three years; this... |
|
| 4 | 1 Aug 2010 2010 European Tour The 2010 European Tour is the second edition of the Race to Dubai and the 39th season of golf tournaments since the European Tour officially began in 1972.... |
3 Irish Open | 2 strokes |  Pádraig HarringtonPadraig Harrington Pádraig P. Harrington is an Irish professional golfer who plays on The European Tour and The PGA Tour. He has won three major championships: The Open Championship in 2007 and 2008 and the PGA Championship, also in 2008.-Background:... |
|
Results in major championships
| Tournament | 2007 | 2008 | 2009 | 2010 | 2011 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| The Masters | DNP | DNP | T30 | CUT | T15 |
| 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 | 5 | 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... |
CUT | T39 | T13 | T37 | CUT |
| 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 | CUT | T19 | CUT | T45 |
DNP = Did not play
CUT = missed the half-way cut
"T" = tied
Yellow background for top-10.
Team appearances
- World Cup (representing England): 20082008 Omega Mission Hills World CupThe 2008 Omega Mission Hills World Cup took place from November 27 to November 30 at Mission Hills Golf Club in Shenzhen, China. It was the 54th World Cup. 28 countries competed and each country sent two players. The team purse was $5,000,000 with $1,600,000 going to the winner. The Swedish team of...
, 20092009 Omega Mission Hills World CupThe 2009 Omega Mission Hills World Cup took place from November 26 to November 29 at Mission Hills Golf Club in Shenzhen, China. It was the 55th World Cup. 28 countries competed as two player teams... - Seve TrophySeve TrophyThe Seve Trophy is a biennial golf tournament between teams of professional male golfers representing Great Britain & Ireland and Continental Europe. It is named after five times major winner Seve Ballesteros, the most successful golfer ever from Continental Europe who was one of the key...
(representing Great Britain & Ireland): 20092009 Vivendi Trophy with Seve BallesterosThe 2009 Vivendi Trophy with Seve Ballesteros, formally known as the Seve Trophy, was played 24-27 September at Golf de Saint-Nom-la-Bretèche in France. The team captain for Great Britain and Ireland was Paul McGinley, with the captain for Continental Europe being Thomas Bjørn...
(winners), 20112011 Vivendi Seve TrophyThe 2011 Vivendi Seve Trophy, formerly known as the Seve Trophy, was played 15-18 September at Golf de Saint-Nom-la-Bretèche in France. The team captain for Great Britain and Ireland was Paul McGinley, with the captain for Continental Europe being Jean van de Velde...
(winners) - Ryder CupRyder CupThe 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...
(representing Europe): 20102010 Ryder CupThe 38th Ryder Cup matches were held 2010 at the Celtic Manor Resort in the city of Newport, Wales. It was the first time the competition was staged in Wales. With the USA as the defending Cup holder the event was played on the newly-constructed Twenty 10 course, specifically designed for the...
(winners)