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Peter Oosterhuis

English golfer and broadcaster (1948–2024)

Field	Value
name	Peter Oosterhuis
imagesize
fullname	Peter Arthur Oosterhuis
nickname	Oosty
birth_date
birth_place	Lambeth, London, England
death_date
death_place	Charlotte, North Carolina, U.S.
height
weight	230 lb
nationality
spouse	Valerie, Ruth Ann
children	2
yearpro	1968
extour	PGA Tour
European Tour
Southern Africa Tour
prowins	28
pgawins	1
eurowins	7
sunwins	3
otherwins	17
majorwins
masters	T3: 1973
usopen	T7: 1975
open	2nd/T2: 1974, 1982
pga	T22: 1982
wghofid
wghofyear
award2	Harry Vardon Trophy/
European Tour
Order of Merit winner
year2	1971, 1972, 1973, 1974
award1	Sir Henry Cotton
Rookie of the Year
year1	1969
awardssection
module	{{Infobox person	embed=yes
signature	Peter_Oosterhuis_signature.jpg

European Tour Southern Africa Tour European Tour Order of Merit winner Rookie of the Year](sir-henry-cotton-rookie-of-the-year) Peter Arthur Oosterhuis (3 May 1948 – 2 May 2024) was an English professional golfer and broadcaster. He played on the European circuit from 1969 to 1974, winning 10 tournaments and taking the Harry Vardon Trophy for heading the Order of Merit for four consecutive seasons from 1971 to 1974. From 1975 he played on the PGA Tour, winning the Canadian Open in 1981. Oosterhuis was twice runner-up in the Open Championship, in 1974 and 1982. Later he became a golf analyst on TV, initially in Europe and then in the United States. In 2015, he announced that he had Alzheimer's disease.

Amateur career

Oosterhuis won the 1966 Berkshire Trophy by a stroke from Michael Bonallack, after a final round 67 which included nine 3s in 11 holes, with seven 3s in succession. Later in 1966 Oosterhuis won the British Youths Open Amateur Championship by four strokes. In 1968 he was a runner-up in the Golf Illustrated Gold Vase behind Michael Bonallack and tied with Ted Dexter.

Oosterhuis was a regular competitor for English and British teams at the boys (under-18) and youth (under-21) levels. He made his senior debut for England in the 1966 Home Internationals, He also played in the 1968 Eisenhower Trophy where Great Britain and Ireland won the silver medal. Great Britain and Ireland led the United States by 7 strokes after three rounds, but the Americans scored 73, 73 and 75 in the final round to Great Britain and Ireland's 76, 76, and 77 to win by a stroke.

Professional career

European and Southern African circuits

Oosterhuis played in South Africa in early 1969, finishing runner-up to Bobby Cole in the Natal Open. He seemed a likely winner but dropped a shot at the 17th and then took 7 at the final hole. Later in the year, he started the British season by winning the Sunningdale Foursomes, playing with the amateur Peter Benka.

In 1970, Oosterhuis won two age-restricted events, Lord Derby’s Under-23 Professional Tournament and the Coca-Cola Young Professionals' Championship. Oosterhuis had won the General Motors Open in South Africa in February, an event which served as the South African qualifier for the Alcan Golfer of the Year Championship.

In April 1971, Oosterhuis made his debut on the PGA Tour at the 1971 Greater Greensboro Open, the week before competing in his first Masters. The following month Oosterhuis won his first important British event, the Agfa-Gevaert Tournament, and followed this up by winning the Sunbeam Electric Tournament and the Piccadilly Medal later in the season. In September he represented Great Britain and Ireland for the first time in the Ryder Cup in St. Louis, having finished second in the points list. In his singles matches he defeated Gene Littler and Arnold Palmer. In November he made his only appearance in the World Cup. Playing with Tony Jacklin, the pair finished tied for 6th place.

The European Tour started in 1972. Oosterhuis won the Penfold-Bournemouth Tournament, after beating Christy O'Connor Jnr in a sudden-death playoff, and the Coca-Cola Young Professionals' Championship, a non-tour event.

In February 1973, Oosterhuis played on the Caribbean Tour, winning the Ford Maracaibo Open and finishing runner-up in the Caracas Open and the Panama Open, before playing a number of events on the PGA Tour. In April, Oosterhuis led the Masters by three strokes after three rounds, before finishing tied for third place, two strokes behind Tommy Aaron, after a final round 74. Later in the year, Oosterhuis won three European Tour events: the Piccadilly Medal, French Open and Viyella PGA Championship. He won £17,455 in official tour events, second behind Tony Jacklin. In September, he played in the Ryder Cup, having led the points list. As in 1971, he again played well in his singles matches, halving with Lee Trevino and beating Arnold Palmer.

In March and April 1974, Oosterhuis played three events on the PGA Tour, including the Masters. Oosterhuis won three more European Tour events in 1974: the French Open and the last two tournaments of the season, the Italian Open and El Paraiso Open. In November, Oosterhuis played in the 1974 PGA Tour Qualifying School in Palm Springs, California. Oosterhuis easily qualified, finishing in fourth place, three strokes behind the winner Fuzzy Zoeller.

PGA Tour

Oosterhuis made his debut on his PGA Tour rookie season at the opening event, the 1975 Phoenix Open. In the middle of the year, he recorded a second-place finish at First NBC New Orleans Open to Billy Casper. He was also in contention for the U.S. Open on the last day. He was in a tie for 4th place as he entered the final round. The leaders struggled early and Oosterhuis's even-par golf through the first 8 holes was nearly enough to catch them. However, he made four consecutive bogeys in the middle of the round to eliminate his chances. He would still finish only two back, in a tie for seventh. Oosterhuis also recorded one other top-10 in 1975. His overall record for the year was 28 starts with 24 made cuts along with 3 top-10s and 10 top-25s. Late in the year, Oosterhuis played the 1975 Ryder Cup. He again had much success at the event, defeating Johnny Miller and J. C. Snead.

Oosterhuis did not progress on this performance, however. Through the late 1970s, he would easily keep his Tour card but was not a regular contender to win events on the PGA Tour. His year-end statistics through the late 1970s are remarkably similar to his 1975 results. In 1976, he made the cut in 25 of 29 events with 3 top-10s and 11 top-25s. In 1977, he made 18 of 25 cuts with 3 top-10s and 9 top-25s, including a runner-up finish at the Canadian Open, his third and final runner-up finish on tour. In 1978, he recorded 20 made cuts in 24 events with, for the fourth straight year, 3 top-10s as well as 6 top-25s.

Oosterhuis's career in America reached its nadir in the summer of 1981. He had not recorded a top-10 in over a year. He had gotten some advice, however, from former pro and instructor Bert Yancey which, in this words, "helped immensely." This work eventually paid off as he won the Canadian Open in August 1981. It would be his only PGA Tour win. He defeated Andy North, Bruce Lietzke, and Jack Nicklaus by a shot. Nicklaus had a 20-foot eagle putt on the last hole to tie but missed. He would build on this success, recording 4 top-10s and 13 top-25s in 1982, both his best ever for the PGA Tour. He would also finish runner-up at the 1982 Open Championship.

The remainder of Oosterhuis's career was not quite as successful. He would record a handful of top-10s before quitting life as a touring professional after the 1986 season. From 1987 to 1993, he was Director of Golf at Forsgate Country Club in Jamesburg, New Jersey, and at the Riviera Country Club in Pacific Palisades, California.

In 1993, Oosterhuis made a comeback, entering 13 tournaments on the European Tour, but did not make the cut in any of them.

Broadcasting career

In 1994, Oosterhuis was hired to cover the PGA Tour by Britain's Sky Sports and covered the Open Championship for the BBC in 1996 and 1997. From 1995 to 1997, he was the lead analyst for the Golf Channel's coverage of the European Tour. From 1998, Oosterhuis joined the CBS Sports announcer team.

Oosterhuis retired from broadcasting in 2015 following his announcement that he had early-onset Alzheimer's disease.

Personal life

Oosterhuis was born on 3 May 1948 in London, the son of a Dutch father and an English mother. He was educated at Dulwich College.

In May 2015, Oosterhuis announced that he was battling early-onset Alzheimer's disease. He died from complications of the disease at a Charlotte memory care facility on 2 May 2024 at the age of 75, a day before what would have been his 76th birthday.

Amateur wins

1966 Berkshire Trophy, British Youths Open Amateur Championship

Professional wins (28)

PGA Tour wins (1)

No.	Date	Tournament	Winning score	Margin of
victory	Runners-up
1	2 Aug 1981	Canadian Open	−4 (69-69-72-70=280)	1 stroke	USA Bruce Lietzke, USA Jack Nicklaus,
USA Andy North

PGA Tour playoff record (0–1)

No.	Year	Tournament	Opponent	Result
1	1974	Monsanto Open	USA Lee Elder	Lost to birdie on fourth extra hole

Sources:

European Tour wins (7)

No.	Date	Tournament	Winning score	Margin of
victory	Runner(s)-up
1	13 May 1972	Penfold-Bournemouth Tournament	+1 (72-70-72-71=285)	Playoff	IRL Christy O'Connor Jnr
2	28 Apr 1973	Piccadilly Medal	−6 (67)	6 strokes	ZAF Terry Westbrook
3	3 Jun 1973	French Open	−4 (75-69-68-68=280)	1 stroke	ENG Tony Jacklin
4	25 Aug 1973	Viyella PGA Championship	−4 (69-69-70-72=280)	3 strokes	ZAF Dale Hayes, BEL Donald Swaelens
5	5 May 1974	French Open (2)	+4 (71-72-68-73=284)	2 strokes	ENG Peter Townsend
6	20 Oct 1974	Italian Open	name=54weather	Shortened to 54/63 holes due to weather.}}	2 strokes	ZAF Dale Hayes
7	26 Oct 1974	El Paraiso Open	name=54weather}}	Playoff	ESP Manuel Ballesteros

Source:

European Tour playoff record (2–1)

No.	Year	Tournament	Opponent	Result
1	1972	Penfold-Bournemouth Tournament	IRL Christy O'Connor Jnr	Won with birdie on first extra hole
2	1974	German Open	NZL Simon Owen	Lost to birdie on first extra hole
3	1974	El Paraiso Open	ESP Manuel Ballesteros	Won with birdie on first extra hole

Sources:

Southern Africa Tour wins (3)

No.	Date	Tournament	Winning score	Margin of
victory	Runner-up
1	19 Dec 1971	Rhodesian Dunlop Masters	−16 (68-67-69-68=272)	3 strokes	ZAF Tienie Britz
2	4 Mar 1972	Glen Anil Classic	−15 (68-66-67-72=273)	Playoff	ZAF Hugh Baiocchi
3	27 Jan 1973	Rothmans International Matchplay	6 and 5	ZAF Gary Player

Sources:

Southern Africa Tour playoff record (1–1)

No.	Year	Tournament	Opponent(s)	Result
1	1971	Luyt Lager PGA Championship	ZAF Tienie Britz, Rhodesia Don Gammon	Britz won 18-hole playoff;
Britz: −5 (67),
Oosterhuis: −2 (70),
Gammon: −1 (71)
2	1972	Glen Anil Classic	ZAF Hugh Baiocchi	Won with birdie on second extra hole

Sources:

European circuit wins (3)

No.	Date	Tournament	Winning score	Margin of
victory	Runner(s)-up	Ref
1	22 May 1971	Agfa-Gevaert Tournament	68-67-69-72=276	2 strokes	SCO Brian Barnes, SCO David Huish	url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=Q889AAAAIBAJ&pg=3289%2C4910005	title=Oosterhuis close to Ryder Cup place	newspaper=The Glasgow Herald	date=24 May 1971	page=4}}
2	29 Jun 1971	Sunbeam Electric Tournament	67-65=132	4 strokes	AUS Peter Thomson	url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=huA9AAAAIBAJ&pg=5058%2C6332103	title=Runaway victory for Peter Oosterhuis	newspaper=The Glasgow Herald	page=6	date=30 June 1971}}
3	14 Aug 1971	Piccadilly Medal	Conceded	SCO Eric Brown	url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=GOk9AAAAIBAJ&pg=3303%2C2346146	title=Brown admires Oosterhuis's play	newspaper=The Glasgow Herald	date=16 August 1971	page=5}}

South African circuit wins (3)

No.	Date	Tournament	Winning score	Margin of
victory	Runner-up	Ref
1	14 Feb 1970	General Motors Open	70-65-75-75=285	2 strokes	RSA Gary Player	url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=nJxAAAAAIBAJ&pg=6529%2C2536684	title=Oosterhuis holds off challengers	newspaper=The Glasgow Herald	date=16 February 1970	page=4}}
2	20 Feb 1971	Transvaal Open	70-70-67-72=279	6 strokes	RSA Graham Henning	newspaper=The Times	date=22 February 1971	page=7	title=Johannesburg, Feb 21}}
3	6 Mar 1971	Schoeman Park Open	67-67-65-68=267	3 strokes	RSA John Bland	url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=pOA9AAAAIBAJ&pg=4458%2C1276803	title=Oosterhuis wins Schoeman Open	newspaper=The Glasgow Herald	date=8 March 1971	page=5}}

Caribbean Tour wins (1)

1973 Ford Maracaibo Open

Other wins (10)

This list may be incomplete.

1969 Sunningdale Foursomes (with Peter Benka), Whitbread Trophy (with Nigel Paul)
1970 Lord Derby’s Under-23 Professional Tournament, Coca-Cola Young Professionals' Championship
1971 Southern Professional Championship
1972 Coca-Cola Young Professionals' Championship
1974 Raleigh Cup (Guadalajara, Mexico)
1983 Spalding Invitational
1985 Spalding Invitational
1989 New Jersey PGA Championship Source:

Results in major championships

Tournament	1968	1969
Masters Tournament
U.S. Open
The Open Championship	CUT	CUT
PGA Championship

Tournament	1970	1971	1972	1973	1974	1975	1976	1977	1978	1979
Masters Tournament		CUT	T38	T3	T31	CUT	T23	T46	T14	T34
U.S. Open						T7	T55	T10	T27
The Open Championship	T6	T18	T28	T18	2	T7	T42		6	T41
PGA Championship						T40	T38		T26

Tournament	1980	1981	1982	1983	1984	1985	1986
Masters Tournament			T24	T20	CUT
U.S. Open			T30	T50	T25	56	69
The Open Championship	T23	CUT	T2	CUT
PGA Championship	CUT	CUT	T22	T47	CUT

CUT = missed the half-way cut (3rd round cut in 1981 Open Championship)

"T" indicates a tie for a place

Tournament	2nd	3rd	Top-5	Top-10	Top-25	Events	Cuts made
Masters Tournament	0	1	1	1	5	12	9
U.S. Open	0	0	0	2	3	9	9
The Open Championship	2	0	2	5	8	15	11
PGA Championship	0	0	0	0	1	8	5

Most consecutive cuts made – 16 (1975 U.S. Open – 1980 Open Championship)
Longest streak of top-10s – 2 (1975 U.S. Open – 1975 Open Championship)

Source:

Team appearances

Amateur

Boys' match v Continent of Europe (representing combined England & Scotland): 1964 (winners), 1965 (winners)
England–Scotland boys match (representing England): 1964 (winners), 1965 (winners)
England–Scotland youths match (representing England): 1966 (winners), 1967 (tied), 1968
Men's Home Internationals (representing England): 1966 (winners), 1967, 1968 (winners)
EGA Trophy (representing Great Britain & Ireland): 1967 (winners), 1968 (winners)
Walker Cup (representing Great Britain & Ireland): 1967
St Andrews Trophy (representing Great Britain & Ireland): 1968 (winners)
Eisenhower Trophy (representing Great Britain & Ireland): 1968

Professional

Ryder Cup (representing Great Britain & Ireland/Europe): 1971, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1979, 1981
World Cup (representing England): 1971
Double Diamond International (representing England): 1973, 1974 (winners, captain)
Sotogrande Match: (representing Great Britain and Ireland): 1974 (winners)

Notes

References

Murphy, Brian. (4 May 2024). "Peter Oosterhuis, British golfer who blazed path in America, dies at 75". The Washington Post.
(30 May 1966). "Berkshire Trophy for Oosterhuis". [[The Glasgow Herald]].
(6 August 1966). "Oosterhuis British Youths' Champion". The Glasgow Herald.
(13 May 1968). "Campbell finishes fourth". The Glasgow Herald.
(22 November 2017). "1967 – Royal St. George's". walkercup.co.uk.
(26 November 1968). "Oosterhuis will play on South African professional circuit". The Glasgow Herald.
(20 January 1969). "Oosterhuis just fails to win". The Glasgow Herald.
(14 November 2017). "Rookie of the Year award for Rahm". European Tour.
Jacobs, Raymond. (14 September 1970). "Huggett "scrambles" to record 65 and Masters title". The Glasgow Herald.
(21 September 1970). "Devlin ways away unchallenged with £23,060 first prize". The Glasgow Herald.
(11 April 1971). "Problem for Oosterhuis". The Times.
(6 November 1971). "Player tops British earnings list". The Glasgow Herald.
Jacobs, Raymond. (23 August 1971). "Bannerman in Ryder Cup team by being fourth in points table". The Glasgow Herald.
Ryde, Peter. (11 November 1972). "A man of supreme merit". The Times.
(13 February 1973). "Oosterhuis Joint Second". The Glasgow Herald.
(20 February 1973). "Oosterhuis second". The Glasgow Herald.
"Peter Oosterhuis". PGA Tour.
(9 April 1973). "Oosterhuis (68) leads Masters by three strokes". The Glasgow Herald.
(10 April 1973). "Oosterhuis tied for third place as Aaron wins". The Glasgow Herald.
(13 October 1973). "Oosterhuis tops order". The Glasgow Herald.
(December 1973). "Brittiska Cirkusen {{!}} Order of Merit".
(21 August 1973). "Selectors stick to Ryder Cup table". The Glasgow Herald.
(14 November 1973). "Oosterhuis out of England's World Cup team". The Glasgow Herald.
(22 April 1974). "Elder finally wins tourney". The Calgary Herald.
"The Naples Daily News 24 Nov 1974, page 38".
(25 November 1974). "Oosterhuis is set for U.S. circuit". The Glasgow Herald.
(11 January 1975). "Miller - now a 61". The Glasgow Herald.
"The Tour Book 1976".
"Peter Oosterhuis – Profile". PGA Tour.
"Official Money – 1980". PGA Tour.
Radosta, John. (3 August 1981). "Oosterhuis Wins Canadian Open". The New York Times.
"Players, Peter Oosterhuis, Tournament results, 1993". European Tour.
(2 May 2024). "Peter Oosterhuis obituary". [[The Guardian]].
(29 March 2024). "More than just a golf guy - Rob Oosterhuis". South Florida PGA of America.
Menta, Nick. (29 June 2015). "Oosterhuis announces he has Alzheimer's disease". Golf Channel.
(5 May 2024). "Peter Oosterhuis, British Golfer Turned Broadcaster, Dies at 75". The New York Times.
Alter, Tom. "PGA Tour winner, beloved Masters analyst Peter Oosterhuis dies at age 75". PGA Tour.
"The Tour Book 1982".
"Peter Oosterhuis". European Tour.
(15 May 1972). "Sudden death triumph for Oosterhuis". The Glasgow Herald.
(5 August 1974). "Peter loses play-off". The Glasgow Herald.
(28 October 1974). "Oosterhuis wins play-off". The Glasgow Herald.
(20 December 1971). "Oosterhuis wins by three strokes". The Glasgow Herald.
(6 March 1972). "Oosterhuis wins play-off". The Glasgow Herald.
(29 January 1973). "Matchplay to Oosterhuis". The Age.
(30 November 1971). "Play-off won by Britz". [[The Guardian]].
(24 May 1971). "Oosterhuis close to Ryder Cup place". The Glasgow Herald.
(30 June 1971). "Runaway victory for Peter Oosterhuis". The Glasgow Herald.
(16 August 1971). "Brown admires Oosterhuis's play". The Glasgow Herald.
(16 February 1970). "Oosterhuis holds off challengers". The Glasgow Herald.
(22 February 1971). "Johannesburg, Feb 21". The Times.
(8 March 1971). "Oosterhuis wins Schoeman Open". The Glasgow Herald.
(6 February 1973). "Oosterhuis shows Jacklin the way home". [[The Daily Telegraph]].
(29 March 1969). "Oosterhuis wins first prize". The Glasgow Herald.
Campbell, John. (30 June 1969). "Giant pair's runaway win". [[The Daily Telegraph]].
(17 July 1970). "Oosterhuis under-23 champion". The Glasgow Herald.
(17 August 1970). "Bold Oosterhuis storms to victory". The Glasgow Herald.
(29 May 1971). "Uniroyal title goes to Peter". [[The Birmingham Post]].
Malone, Roger. (5 June 1972). "Oosterhuis just home". [[The Daily Telegraph]].
(22 January 1974). "Raleigh win for Oosterhuis". The Glasgow Herald.
(1973). "The Golfer's Handbook 1973, Who is who in golf, Peter Oosterhuis". Munro-Barr Publications Ltd, Glasgow.
Brenner, Morgan G.. (2009). "The Majors of Golf: Complete Results of the Open, the U.S. Open, the PGA Championship and the Masters, 1860-2008". McFarland.
Jacobs, Raymond. (16 August 1964). "Easy British victory over Continentals". The Glasgow Herald.
Jacobs, Raymond. (15 August 1965). "Scotland-England thrash Continentals". The Glasgow Herald.
Jacobs, Raymond. (17 August 1964). "Heavy defeat for Scottish boys". The Glasgow Herald.
(16 August 1965). "Scottish boys' title hopes dimmed". The Glasgow Herald.
Jacobs, Raymond. (3 August 1966). "England win youth international". The Glasgow Herald.
Jacobs, Raymond. (9 August 1967). "Scottish Youths' fight bck for halved match". The Glasgow Herald.
Robertson, Jack. (6 August 1968). "Last green win saves Scots". [[The Evening Times]].
(17 September 1966). "England Champions for Third Year". The Glasgow Herald.
(16 September 1967). "Scots win golf's triple crown". The Glasgow Herald.
(16 September 1968). "England win Raymond Trophy for fourth time in five years". The Glasgow Herald.
Jacobs, Raymond. (10 August 1967). "Britain and Ireland Pushed to Limit to Beat Continentals". The Glasgow Herald.
Robertson, Jack. (7 August 1968). "Britain off to a great start". The Evening Times.
(5 August 1968). "Selectors given no help". The Times.
(14 October 1968). "Nerves cost Britain victory in world amateur team contest". The Glasgow Herald.
"39th Ryder Cup - PGA Media Guide 2012".
(15 November 1971). "Americans cruise to World Cup golf triumph". The Glasgow Herald.
(3 September 1973). "Scotland's £5000 team triumph". The Glasgow Herald.
(26 August 1974). "'Imported' team kept interest alive to end". The Glasgow Herald.
(4 November 1974). "Gallacher undefeated in British victory". The Glasgow Herald.

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