| Colin Montgomerie |
 |
| Personal information |
| Full name |
Colin Stuart Montgomerie OBE |
| Nickname |
Monty |
| Born |
(1963-06-23) 23 June 1963 (age 49)
Glasgow, Scotland |
| Height |
6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) |
| Nationality |
 Scotland |
| Residence |
Dunning, Perthshire, Scotland |
| Spouse |
Eimear Wilson (1990–2006, divorced); 3 children
Gaynor Knowles (2008–present) |
| Children |
Olivia, Venetia, Cameron |
| Career |
| College |
Houston Baptist University |
| Turned professional |
1987 |
| Current tour(s) |
European Tour (joined 1988) |
| Professional wins |
40 |
| Number of wins by tour |
| European Tour |
31 (4th all time) |
Best results in Major Championships
|
| Masters Tournament |
T8: 1998 |
| U.S. Open |
2nd/T2: 1994, 1997, 2006 |
| The Open Championship |
2nd: 2005 |
| PGA Championship |
2nd: 1995 |
| Achievements and awards |
Order of the British Empire
(Officer) |
2005 |
European Tour
Order of Merit winner |
1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2005 |
Sir Henry Cotton
Rookie of the Year |
1988 |
European Tour
Player of the Year |
1995, 1996, 1997, 1999 |
Colin Stuart Montgomerie, OBE (born 23 June 1963) is a Scottish professional golfer. He has won a record eight European Tour Order of Merit titles, including a streak of seven consecutively from 1993 to 1999, and 31 European Tour events, placing him fourth on the all time list. He has not, to date, won a major championship, after finishing runner-up on five occasions, or an official tournament on PGA Tour. His career high world ranking is second.[1]
Although Scottish by birth and ethnicity, he was raised in Yorkshire, England, where his father, James Montgomerie, was Managing Director of Fox's Biscuits.[2] He spent a number of years with the Ilkley Golf Club, where he was tutored by the past professional Bill Ferguson. He was educated at both Leeds Grammar School and Strathallan School, Perthshire. During his time in Leeds, he became a supporter of Leeds United,[3] but still remains a loyal supporter of Glasgow Rangers. His father later became the secretary of Royal Troon Golf Club, one of Scotland's most famous clubs. Montgomerie became one of the first British golfers to go to a United States college, attending Houston Baptist University, where he played on the golf team and became its top player. He won three important Scottish amateur tournaments – the 1983 Scottish Youths Championship, the 1985 Scottish Stroke Play Championship, and the 1987 Scottish Amateur Championship. He also played for Scotland twice in the Eisenhower Trophy (1984 and 1986) and for Great Britain and Ireland in the Walker Cup twice (1985 and 1987). Between 1988–91, Montgomerie completed a degree in Accountancy at the University of Stirling.
Montgomerie turned professional in 1988, and was named the Rookie of the Year on the European Tour that season. He quickly developed into one of Europe's top pros, winning his first event at the 1989 Portuguese Open by eight shots, and making his Ryder Cup debut in 1991. He finished first on the European Tour Order of Merit every year from 1993 to 1999 (a record for most consecutive Orders of Merit), and has 31 victories on the tour, including the 1998, 1999, and 2000 European PGA Championships. He first reached the top-10 in the Official World Golf Rankings in 1994, and spent almost 400 weeks in the top-10.[4] His highest ranking was number two. In his prime Montgomerie was considered one of the best drivers of the golf ball in the world and became a very precise iron player, often able to judge the distance he hit the ball exactly from long range.
His form fell away gradually in the new millennium, partly due to marriage problems, and his ranking slumped to 82nd in the world, but he came back strongly in 2005, winning a record eighth European Tour Order of Merit and returning to the top ten in the World Rankings.[5] Late in 2005 he became the first man to win 20 million Euros on the European Tour—topping the European Tour's all-time highest earners list. He remained the leader in career earnings on the European Tour until 2010, when he was surpassed by Ernie Els.
At the end of 2004, Montgomerie was named an Officer of the Order of the British Empire in the New Year's Honours. He represents the Turnberry resort in Scotland, where there is a Colin Montgomerie Golf Academy.
After re-forming his partnership with caddie Alastair McLean in 2004, the pair split again on 10 June, a week before the start of the U.S. Open. Montgomerie managed to win for the first time in nearly two years at the Smurfit Kappa European Open in July 2007, silencing the critics who have asserted he would not win again. In mid-2008 Montgomerie slipped out of the top 100 players in the world ranking system.[6]
A second place at the French Open in June boosted him back up the rankings, but his good play was short-lived, and as a result Montgomerie failed to qualify for Nick Faldo's 2008 Ryder Cup team. In March 2009, Montgomerie played in his milestone 500th European Tour event at the Open de Andalucia where he played well and made the cut, but was not a factor on the weekend. After nearly two years without a top-10 finish, Montgomerie produced something like his form of old to post a final round of 68 for a share of 7th place in the 2011 BMW PGA Championship at Wentworth. Montgomerie attributed his resurgence to improved driving accuracy and commented that he could contend more often if this were to continue.[citation needed]
Montgomerie is generally considered to be one of the best golfers never to have won a major championship, after finishing in second place on five separate occasions. During what most consider to be his best years in the 1990s Montgomerie had several close shaves. A third place at the 1992 U.S. Open at Pebble Beach Golf Links was the first of these. He was prematurely congratulated by Jack Nicklaus who said "Congratulations on your first U.S. Open victory" to Monty after he finished the 18th hole on Sunday.[7] Tom Kite, who was still on the golf course when Montgomerie finished, wound up winning the championship.
At the 1994 U.S. Open, played at Oakmont Country Club, Montgomerie lost in a three-man playoff to Ernie Els (a playoff which also included Loren Roberts). Famously, Montgomerie was left with only one shirt to play in during the Monday playoff, a dark tartan design, which did not help his cause in the very hot playing conditions. He shot 78 to trail the 74s shot by Els and Roberts, with Els winning at the 20th extra hole.
At the 1995 PGA Championship, Montgomerie birdied the final three holes of the Riviera Country Club course in the final round, to tie Steve Elkington at 17 under par, which was a record low score in a major championship. On the first sudden-death playoff hole, after being in better position after two shots, Montgomerie missed his putt, while Elkington holed from 35 feet to claim the title.
Els defeated Montgomerie at the 1997 U.S. Open, played at Congressional Country Club. Montgomerie opened the tournament with a 65 but shot a 76 in the second round. A bogey on the 71st hole dropped Montgomerie one shot behind Els, who parred the last to win.
At the 2006 U.S. Open, played on the West course of the Winged Foot Golf Club, Montgomerie had yet another chance to win his first major championship. He stood in the middle of the 18th fairway in the final round having sunk a 50-foot birdie putt on the 17th green, which put him in the lead. While waiting in position on the 18th fairway for the group in front to finish, Montgomerie switched his club from a 6-iron to a 7-iron, assuming adrenaline would kick in. Once the wait was over, he hit the approach shot poorly, ending up short and right of the green, in thick rough. He pitched onto the green, and then three-putted from 30 feet to lose the tournament by one stroke. After the loss, Montgomerie said, "At my age I've got to think positively. I'm 43 next week, and it's nice I can come back to this tournament and do well again, and I look forward to coming back here again next year and trying another U.S. Open disaster."[8] Geoff Ogilvy won the championship.
Montgomerie's best finish in the Masters Tournament came in 1998 when he finished tied for 8th.
At The Open Championship, it is only in recent years that Montgomerie has shown signs of challenging to win. He started brightly in 2001 at Royal Lytham & St Annes Golf Club, with an opening 65, and still remained ahead after 36 holes, but fell away over the weekend. He was also in contention with two rounds to play at Muirfield in 2002 and Royal Troon Golf Club in 2004, but failed to capitalise and finished midway down the field. His best finish in the Championship came in 2005 at St Andrews, where he finished second to Tiger Woods, who beat him by five shots.
Despite his disappointments in the majors, Montgomerie is heralded as one of the greatest Ryder Cup players of all time. To date he has been a member of the European team on eight occasions, and has never lost in a singles match. He holds a win-lose-draw record of 20–9–7, thus giving him a total points scored tally of 23.5, only 1.5 points behind the all time record held by Nick Faldo. He has played pivotal roles in several of the matches. He halved the last hole with Scott Hoch to obtain the half point that won Europe the cup in 1997, and sank the winning putt,[9] in what is considered to be his finest hour in the 2004 staging of the event.
Montgomerie was not part of Nick Faldo's 2008 Ryder Cup team, with the wildcards going to Paul Casey and Ian Poulter. Montgomerie captained the Great Britain & Ireland team in the first four stagings of the Seve Trophy, losing in 2000 but winning in 2002, 2003, and 2005.
On 28 January 2009, it was announced that Montgomerie would be the captain the European team at the 2010 Ryder Cup at Celtic Manor.[10] On 4 October 2010, Montgomerie led the European team to victory, 14½ to 13½.[11] On the same day he also announced that he would be stepping down as captain of the European Team.[12] In December 2010, he accepted the BBC Sports Personality Coach of the Year award as captain of the victorious Ryder Cup team.[13]
Montgomerie has been the playing captain of the European team in the Royal Trophy, played against a team from Asia. Europe was successful on both those occasions. He has the distinction of being the only person to have been a victorious player and captain in the Ryder Cup, Seve Trophy and Royal Trophy – the three main team golf competitions open to players from Europe.[citation needed]
Montgomerie has often come under fire for his attitude on the golf course. He is noted for his lack of focus, and quite often becomes distracted by seemingly very minor incidents.[citation needed]
Montgomerie met his first wife Eimear Wilson, from Troon,[2] when he was a good amateur and she was a promotions assistant. She was a 17-year-old law student at Edinburgh University and a spectator at an amateur championship in Nairn, at which Montgomerie destroyed the field.[14] The couple had three children (Olivia, Venetia, and Cameron), and lived in Oxshott, Surrey. In 2002, Eimear gave Montgomerie an ultimatum to choose between golf and marriage, resulting in Montgomerie spending 10 weeks alone before they agreed to try again.
In 2006, the couple finally broke up, with Eimear suing for divorce on grounds of unreasonable behavior due to his obsession with golf,[15] claiming it left her suffering from anxiety and depression.[16] In 2006, the couple agreed to a clean break divorce settlement of £8 million, in return for Eimear giving up any claim on Colin's future earnings.[17][18][19]
Since the divorce, he has had various relationships, including Spanish model Ines Sastre,[20] and a divorced neighbour Jo Baldwin, whom he met on the school run.[21] Their split, he suggested, caused his worst run in his professional career.[22]
In 2007, Montgomerie announced his engagement to Scottish millionairess Gaynor Knowles. The couple wed on 19 April 2008 at Loch Lomond Golf Club.[23][24] On 8 July 2010, Montgomerie was granted a super injunction by Mr Justice Eady, which came to light when he attended a press conference at the 2010 PGA Championship in Wisconsin.[25]
Montgomerie has been successfully defended twice by celebrity driving solicitor Nick Freeman for traffic infractions and speeding. Montgomerie was acquitted the first time when the policeman who was said to have caught him travelling at 96 mph on the A3 near Esher, Surrey (a 70 mph road) at 12:50 am failed to attend court. Montgomerie's second acquittal saved him from a 56 day ban in November 2008, after Montgomerie was caught driving his Bentley Continental Flying Spur and failing to pay the fine. Freeman revealed that Montgomerie hated flying, and drove 55,000 miles per annum in part to visit his children.[26]
| No. |
Date |
Tournament |
Winning Score |
Margin of
Victory |
Runner(s)-up |
| 1 |
22 Oct 1989 |
Portuguese Open - TPC |
-24 (67–65–69–63=264) |
11 strokes |
 Rodger Davis,  Manuel Moreno,
 Mike Smith |
| 2 |
4 Aug 1991 |
Scandinavian Masters |
-18 (68–65–70–67=270) |
1 stroke |
Seve Ballesteros |
| 3 |
25 Jul 1993 |
Heineken Dutch Open |
-7 (68–73–71–69=281) |
1 stroke |
 José Cóceres,  Jean van de Velde |
| 4 |
7 Nov 1993 |
Volvo Masters |
-10 (69–70–67–68=274) |
1 stroke |
 Darren Clarke |
| 5 |
15 May 1994 |
Peugeot Open de Espana |
-11 (70–71–66–70=277) |
1 stroke |
 Richard Boxall,  Mark McNulty,
Mark Roe |
| 6 |
21 Aug 1994 |
Murphy's English Open |
-14 (70–67–68–69=274) |
1 stroke |
Barry Lane |
| 7 |
28 Aug 1994 |
Volvo German Open |
-19 (65–68–66–70=269) |
1 stroke |
 Bernhard Langer |
| 8 |
27 Aug 1995 |
Volvo German Open |
-16 (69–64–68–67=268) |
1 stroke |
 Niclas Fasth, Sam Torrance |
| 9 |
10 Sep 1995 |
Trophée Lancôme |
-11 (64–69–65–71=269) |
1 stroke |
Sam Torrance |
| 10 |
17 Mar 1996 |
Dubai Desert Classic |
-18 (67–68–67–68=270) |
1 stroke |
Miguel Ángel Jiménez |
| 11 |
7 Jul 1996 |
Murphy's Irish Open |
-5 (69–69–73–68=279) |
1 stroke |
Andrew Oldcorn, Wayne Riley |
| 12 |
8 Sep 1996 |
Canon European Masters |
-24 (64–71–61–63=260) |
4 strokes |
Sam Torrance |
| 13 |
8 Jun 1997 |
Compaq European Grand Prix |
-18 (69–68–68–65=270) |
5 strokes |
 Retief Goosen |
| 14 |
6 Jul 1997 |
Murphy's Irish Open |
-15 (68–70–69–62=269) |
7 strokes |
Lee Westwood |
| 15 |
25 May 1998 |
Volvo PGA Championship |
-14 (70–70–65–69=274) |
1 stroke |
Ernie Els, Gary Orr,
Patrik Sjöland |
| 16 |
13 Sep 1998 |
One 2 One British Masters |
-7 (70–72–70–69=281) |
1 stroke |
Pierre Fulke, Eduardo Romero |
| 17 |
27 Sep 1998 |
Linde German Masters |
-22 (65–68–66–67=266) |
1 stroke |
Robert Karlsson,  Vijay Singh |
| 18 |
16 May 1999 |
Benson & Hedges International Open |
-15 (68–66–71–68=273) |
3 strokes |
Ángel Cabrera, Per-Ulrik Johansson |
| 19 |
31 May 1999 |
Volvo PGA Championship |
-18 (69–70–67–64=270) |
5 strokes |
Mark James |
| 20 |
10 Jul 1999 |
Standard Life Loch Lomond |
-16 (69–65–70–64=268) |
3 strokes |
Sergio García, Michael Jonzon,
Mats Lanner |
| 21 |
8 Aug 1999 |
Volvo Scandinavian Masters |
-20 (67–67–65–69=268) |
9 strokes |
Jesper Parnevik |
| 22 |
22 Aug 1999 |
BMW International Open |
-20 (69–65–64–70=268) |
3 strokes |
 Pádraig Harrington |
| 23 |
7 May 2000 |
Novotel Perrier Open de France |
-16 (71–68–65–68=272) |
2 strokes |
Jonathan Lomas |
| 24 |
29 May 2000 |
Volvo PGA Championship |
-17 (67–65–70–69=271) |
3 strokes |
Darren Clarke, Andrew Coltart,
Lee Westwood |
| 25 |
1 Jun 2001 |
Murphy's Irish Open |
-18 (63–69–68–66=266) |
5 strokes |
Darren Clarke, Niclas Fasth,
Pádraig Harrington |
| 26 |
5 Aug 2001 |
Volvo Scandinavian Masters |
-14 (66–69–69–70=274) |
1 stroke |
Ian Poulter, Lee Westwood |
| 27 |
10 Nov 2002 |
Volvo Masters Andalucia |
-3 (70–69–72–70=281) |
Shared* |
Bernhard Langer |
| 28 |
21 Mar 2004 |
Caltex Masters |
-16 (71–69–67–65=272) |
3 strokes |
Gregory Hanrahan |
| 29 |
2 Oct 2005 |
Dunhill Links Championship |
-9 (70–65–73–71=279) |
1 stroke |
Kenneth Ferrie |
| 30 |
4 Dec 2005 |
UBS Hong Kong Open |
-9 (69–66–66–70=271) |
1 stroke |
 K.J. Choi, James Kingston,
 Lin Keng-chi, Edward Loar,
 Thammanoon Srirot |
| 31 |
8 Jul 2007 |
Smurfit Kappa European Open |
-11 (69–71–64–65=269) |
1 stroke |
Niclas Fasth |
*Montgomerie and Langer agreed to share the 2002 Volvo Masters Andalucia, after failing light caused play to halt after two holes of a playoff. *Montgomerie came first in the Volvo Bonus Pool every year from 1993 to 1998. The Volvo Bonus Pool was an extra tranche of prize money awarded at the end of each European Tour season from 1988 to 1998 to the regular members of the tour who had had the best performances over the season.
DNP = did not play
CUT = missed the half-way cut
WD = withdrew
DQ = disqualified
"T" = tied
Yellow background for top-10.
- Starts – 72
- Wins – 0
- 2nd place finishes – 5
- Top 3 finishes – 6
- Top 5 finishes – 6
- Top 10 finishes – 10
- Longest streak of top-10s in majors – 2
1Cancelled due to 9/11
DNP = Did not play
WD = Withdrew
QF, R16, R32, R64 = Round in which player lost in match play
"T" = tied
NT = No Tournament
Green background for wins. Yellow background for top-10.
Amateur
Professional
- Ryder Cup (representing Europe): 1991, 1993, 1995 (winners), 1997 (winners), 1999, 2002 (winners), 2004 (winners), 2006 (winners), 2010 (non-playing captain, winners)
- Alfred Dunhill Cup (representing Scotland): 1988, 1991, 1992, 1993, 1994, 1995 (winners), 1996, 1997, 1998, 2000
- World Cup (representing Scotland): 1988, 1991, 1992, 1993, 1997 (individual winner), 1998, 1999, 2006, 2007 (winners), 2008
- Four Tours World Championship: 1991 (winners)
- Seve Trophy (representing Great Britain & Ireland team): 2000 (playing captain), 2002 (playing captain, winners), 2003 (playing captain, winners), 2005 (playing captain, winners), 2007 (winners)
- UBS Cup (representing the rest of the world): 2003, 2004
- Royal Trophy (representing Europe): 2010 (playing captain, winners), 2011 (playing captain, winners)
- ^ Week 45 2008 news Official World Golf Ranking site.
- ^ a b The Scotsman article on Montgomerie
- ^ Monty's Backing, LeedsUnited.com, 8 April 2008, Accessed 8 April 2008
- ^ 69 Players Who Have Reached The Top-10 In World Ranking
- ^ "Montgomerie back in world top 10". BBC News. 5 December 2005. http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/golf/4498444.stm. Retrieved 30 April 2010.
- ^ Official World Golf Ranking 1 June 2008
- ^ Diaz, Jaime (22 June 1992). "GOLF; Kite Beats the Elements, but It Isn't a Breeze". The New York Times. http://www.nytimes.com/1992/06/22/sports/golf-kite-beats-the-elements-but-it-isn-t-a-breeze.html?scp=1&sq=Colin+Montgomerie+Jack+Nicklaus&st=nyt. Retrieved 30 April 2010.
- ^ The Gigantic Book of Golf Quotations, ed. Jim Apfelbaum. 2007.
- ^ Montgomerie is widely credited as having holed the winning putt, although Ian Poulter birdied on the 15th hole of his match to guarantee a half point and so mathematically win the Ryder Cup seconds before Montgomerie. This was commentated on by course commentators and Radio Five, whose Golf correspondent Ian Coulter recalled in the News of the World: "My editor said Poulter was three up seconds before Monty hit his putt. Then Colin's putt went in – you can imagine the situation. To have over-ruled his achievement would have been like trying to deny Alan Shearer a goal that went in off a defender." "This man won us Ryder Cup – not Monty" News of the World (London); 26 September 2004; Geoff Sweet; p. 75. Frank Keating of The Guardian also noted this chain of events, writing "radio logged the fact that it was not Montgomerie's putt which actually clinched the cup but Poulter's, a matter of seconds before and a few holes behind." "Golf, Cricket: Notes from the touchline" The Guardian; 24 September 2004; Frank Keating; p. 34
- ^ Monty to lead Europe at Ryder Cup
- ^ MacAskill, Sandy (4 October 2010). "Ryder Cup 2010 reaction: Graeme McDowell says pressure was 'bananas'". The Telegraph (London). http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/golf/rydercup/8041887/Ryder-Cup-2010-reaction-Graeme-McDowell-says-pressure-was-bananas.html. Retrieved 4 October 2010.
- ^ Colin Montgomerie to step down as European captain
- ^ "Colin Montgomerie wins Sports Personality coach award". BBC Sport. 19 December 2010. http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/tv_and_radio/sports_personality_of_the_year/9287667.stm. Retrieved 21 December 2010.
- ^ "The cruellest cut: Monty's marriage collapses in the final round". The Sydney Morning Herald. 1 May 2004. http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2004/04/30/1083224590022.html?from=storyrhs.
- ^ Colin Montgomerie Divorce Settlement
- ^ Moore, Charles. The Daily Telegraph (London). http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2004/09/11/nmonty11.xml. Retrieved 30 April 2010.
- ^ Monty settles divorce row with £8m|This is Money
- ^ "Monty in £15m divorce settlement". BBC News. 2 February 2006. http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/golf/4672782.stm. Retrieved 30 April 2010.
- ^ Colin Montgomerie's divorce costs him £15m
- ^ The Sports Network
- ^ Kelso, Paul (18 July 2005). "Montgomerie happy to be back on track". The Guardian (London). http://sport.guardian.co.uk/open2005/story/0,,1530773,00.html. Retrieved 30 April 2010.
- ^ "Monty's poor run blamed on split with girlfriend"
- ^ Mair, Lewine (29 August 2007). "Colin Montgomerie's dinner engagement". Daily Telegraph (London). http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/main.jhtml?view=DETAILS&grid=&xml=/sport/2007/08/29/sgmont129.xml. Retrieved 9 April 2008.
- ^ Mair, Lewine (31 October 2007). "Ernie Els can still be king of Europe". Daily Telegraph (London). http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/main.jhtml?xml=/sport/2007/10/31/sgmair131.xml. Retrieved 9 April 2008.
- ^ Seamark, Michael (12 August 2010). "Golfer Colin Montgomerie wins gagging order over claims about his private life". Daily Mail (UK). http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1302528/Colin-Montgomerie-wins-gagging-order-tabloid-story.html. Retrieved 12 August 2010.
- ^ Clench, James (2 December 2008). "Monty zoomer beats drive ban". London: The Sun. http://www.thesun.co.uk/sol/homepage/news/article1993858.ece. Retrieved 2 December 2008.
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Great Britain & Ireland
Europe
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Won: 14.5 – 13.5
Miguel Ángel Martín qualified for the team, but was forced to withdraw though injury, with his place being taken by José María Olazábal.
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| Persondata |
| Name |
Montgomerie, Colin |
| Alternative names |
Montgomerie, Colin Stuart |
| Short description |
Professional golfer |
| Date of birth |
23 June 1963 |
| Place of birth |
Glasgow, Scotland |
| Date of death |
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| Place of death |
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