1965 U.S. Open

The 1965 U.S. Open was the 65th U.S. Open, held at Bellerive Country Club. Gary Player  defeated Kel Nagle of Australia in an 18-hole playoff to win his only U.S. Open title and complete the career Grand Slam joining Gene Sarazen and Ben Hogan. This win launched him into golf immortality as he was and remains the only foreign-born winner to win all four Majors at age 29. It was the fourth of his Major titles.

1968 British Open

After four top five finishes in Majors in 1966 and 1967, Gary Player won the second of his three Open titles nearly a decade after his first Major Championship. He finished two strokes ahead of runners-up Bob Charles and Jack Nicklaus at Carnoustie Golf Links. It was the fifth of Player’s nine major titles.

1978 Masters

The 1978 Masters Tournament saw 42-year-old Gary Player create one of golf’s most memorable comebacks. He overcame a seven-shot deficit going into the final round to win his third Masters and ninth Major Championship. Player shot a record-tying 64 (−8) in the final round to win by one stroke over runners-up Rod Funseth, Tom Watson and 54-hole leader Hubert Green. He had to wait nearly one hour for the final group to finish.

1986 Senior PGA Championship

Gary Player turned 50 in November 1985, which of course gave him a whole new professional career to look forward to as the Champions Tour was well up and running. Having won his first event, the Quadel Seniors at Boca Grove, Florida, Player was looking forward to 1986, his first full year on the Champions Tour (or Senior Tour as it was known as then).

The PGA Seniors Championship was the second event of the year and Player was feeling very good about his game.

An opening 68 on a brisk Thursday morning at Champions course at PGA National in Palm Beach Gardens got him an early lead in the tournament – a lead that he was able to hold onto throughout the event. He managed another 68, then a 77 and ended with a seven-shot lead over Lee Elder. Though Elder managed to pull within two shots, a 72 to his 71 in the final round was enough for Gary Player to clinch his first senior Major Championship!

1987 Senior TPC

By 1987 Gary Player was having so much fun on the Seniors Tour and was really enjoying competing again. For him, it really felt as though life begun at 50!

By the time the Senior Tournament Players Championship came around, Player was quite frustrated as it had been nearly 12 months since he’d won a tournament – despite numerous top five finishes.

Going into the week, once again, the man to beat was Chi Chi Rodriguez who was gunning for his fifth consecutive victory on tour that year. And in the first round, he was doing no different, opening with a tournament-record 65 making six birdies and an eagle to end the first round one shot ahead of Billy Maxwell. There were only six other players, including Player and Palmer who broke par that day. Player struggled with his putting during the second round, finishing with a 73, but bounced right back in the third round shooting a 69 – the best of the leading bunch. Sunday turned out to be a three-way battle between Gary Player, Chi Chi Rodriguez and Bruce Crampton. They were tied for the lead on the last hole where Player ran in a seven-foot birdie putt to win. “Beats a sudden-death play-off,” he said!

1987 US Senior Open

Gary Player says the US Senior Open at Brooklawn Country Club was one of his finest Major performances ever. He opened with a solid 69, but Gordon Jones, who posted seven birdies during an eight-hole stretch, and Peter Thomson shared the opening-round lead at 66 (five under par). Chi Chi Rodrigues, who fired a second-round 68 to match his opening round, held the halfway lead, just one shot ahead of Player and John Brodies, while Arnold Palmer was a further shot behind on 138.

Chi Chi was the star player on the Champions Tour that year and already won six events going into the Senior Open, so he was certainly the one to beat. On the 17th hole of the third round, Player made birdie at the 415-yard par four to catch Chi Chi for the first time and then take the lead for the first time in the tournament.

In the final round, Gary Player had a dream start, making four birdies in the first eight holes to go six ahead – a lead that he kept to the finish!