Louis Oosthuizen

Lodewicus Theodorus "Louis" Oosthuizen (Afrikaans: [ˈlu.i ˈuəstɦœizən]; born 19 October 1982) is a South African professional golfer who won the 2010 Open Championship. He also holds the distinction of finishing runner-up in all four major championships: the 2012 Masters Tournament losing in a sudden death playoff, the 2015 U.S. Open, the 2015 Open Championship where he was defeated in a four-hole aggregate playoff, and the 2017 PGA Championship. He is the eighth golfer to accomplish this feat, joining Craig Wood, Jack Nicklaus, Arnold Palmer, Tom Watson, Greg Norman, Dustin Johnson and Phil Mickelson. His highest placing on the Official World Golf Ranking is fourth which he reached in January 2013.[3]

Louis Oosthuizen
Oosthuizen after winning the 2010 Open Championship at St Andrews.
Personal information
Full nameLodewicus Theodorus Oosthuizen
Born (1982-10-19) 19 October 1982
Mossel Bay, South Africa
Height5 ft 10 in (1.78 m)
Weight170 lb (77 kg; 12 st)
Nationality South Africa
ResidenceMossel Bay, South Africa
Jupiter, Florida, U.S.
SpouseNel-Mare Oosthuizen (m. 2007)[1]
ChildrenJana, Sophia, Emma[1]
Career
Turned professional2002
Current tour(s)PGA Tour
Sunshine Tour
European Tour
Professional wins14
Highest ranking4 (13 January 2013)[2]
Number of wins by tour
PGA Tour1
European Tour9
Asian Tour3
Sunshine Tour8
PGA Tour of Australasia1
Best results in major championships
(wins: 1)
Masters Tournament2nd: 2012
PGA ChampionshipT2: 2017
U.S. OpenT2: 2015
The Open ChampionshipWon: 2010

Early life and career

Oosthuizen was born in Mossel Bay, South Africa. His early career was supported financially for three years by the foundation of fellow South African golfer Ernie Els.[4] He won numerous amateur titles before turning professional in 2002 at the age of 19.

Oosthuizen at the 2008 Telkom PGA Championship

He has won five professional tournaments on the Sunshine Tour: the 2004 Vodacom Origins of Golf Tour event at Arabella, the 2007 Dimension Data Pro-Am and Platinum Classic, and the Telkom PGA Championship twice, in 2007 and 2008.

He played on the European Challenge Tour in 2003 and has been a member of the European Tour since 2004. In 2009, he finished 31st on the Race to Dubai. On 10 September 2012 he reached the top 10 of the Official World Golf Ranking for the first time in his career.

In March 2010, he won his first European Tour event at the Open de Andalucia de Golf.[5] He also won the 2010 Masters Par 3 Contest.[6]

2010 Open Championship

Oosthuizen entered the 2010 Open Championship at St Andrews ranked 54th in the Official World Golf Ranking,[7] and only having made one cut in eight major championship appearances.[8] He shot a 65 on the first day, placing him in second place, behind a 63 shot by Rory McIlroy.[9]

Oosthuizen's 67 on Friday was the low round of the day[9] and gave him a lead that he would not relinquish throughout the final two rounds.[10] His two-day total of 132 tied the record for the lowest 36-hole score in an Open Championship at St Andrews.[11] A 69 on Saturday placed Oosthuizen at 15-under-par, and four shots clear of second-place Paul Casey with one round to play.[12]

On Sunday, Casey closed the gap to three shots on the 8th hole, before Oosthuizen drove the 9th green and made a long putt for eagle.[13] On the 12th hole, Oosthuizen made birdie, while Casey hit his drive into a gorse bush, and wound up making triple bogey to give Oosthuizen an eight-shot lead.[13][14] In the end, Oosthuizen shot 71 on Sunday, and 16-under-par 272 for the championship, to win by seven strokes. His 272 was the second lowest in St Andrews history. Casey eventually finished third with Lee Westwood taking second.

Oosthuizen became the fourth man from South Africa to win the Claret Jug – following Bobby Locke, Gary Player, and Ernie Els – and moved to 15th in the Official World Golf Ranking,[15][16] leapfrogging fellow South African Retief Goosen in 16th position.

Oosthuizen claims his exemplary focus during the tournament, which enabled him to win by a wide margin, was due to a red spot marked on his glove. He would look at that spot as the beginning of his pre-shot routine and use it to help him remain focused before and during his swing. Oosthuizen had consulted Karl Morris, a Manchester-based sports psychologist, prior to the event for ways in which he could improve his concentration.[17]

After 2010

Oosthuizen finished the 2010 season in 10th place on the Race to Dubai, posting three further top-10s after his major win. In January 2011, he claimed his third European Tour title, and his sixth in his home country, winning the Africa Open in a playoff.[18] In 2012, Oosthuizen successfully defended his title at the Africa Open with a two stroke victory over Tjaart van der Walt. His success was helped by a second round 62, which took Oosthuizen to the top of the leaderboard at the halfway stage and from there he held on for victory.[19]

Oosthuizen was runner-up at the 2012 Masters Tournament. In the final round, he scored an albatross on the second hole of Augusta National Golf Club. This was only the fourth ever albatross in Masters history, and the first to be televised, as well as the first ever on that hole. Oosthuizen took the outright lead of the tournament with this exceptional shot, and maintained the lead until caught on the 16th hole, by Bubba Watson. He was eventually defeated by Watson on the second hole of a sudden-death playoff.[20] He won his fifth European Tour title at the Maybank Malaysian Open the following week.

In the second event of the 2012 PGA Tour FedEx Cup Playoffs, the Deutsche Bank Championship, Oosthuizen held the 54-hole lead by three strokes and came close to his first victory on US soil, finishing second to Rory McIlroy by one shot.

On 10 September 2012, he reached the top 10 of the Official World Golf Ranking for the first time in his career. He finished the season ranked third on the Race to Dubai.

On 13 January 2013, he won the Volvo Golf Champions, shooting a six-under-par 66 final round to win the title by one stroke.[21]

In January 2014, he retained the Volvo Golf Champions title by one shot over Branden Grace.[22]

Oosthuizen finished as a joint runner-up in the 2015 Open Championship at St Andrews after losing in a four-hole aggregate playoff during a Monday finish to the event. He was in the final group tied for the 54-hole co-lead but needed to birdie the 18th hole during his final round to tie the lead at 15-under and join Zach Johnson and Marc Leishman in the playoff. In the four-hole playoff, he birdied the first hole alongside Johnson, but could not convert his birdie putt on the second hole, giving Johnson a one-stroke advantage. All three players bogeyed the third hole and after Johnson missed his birdie putt on the final hole, Oosthuizen had a 15 footer to extend the playoff to sudden death. However his putt caught the lip on the low side and he finished at even-par, one stroke behind Johnson. This was Oosthuizen's second consecutive runner-up placing in a major championship, following the 2015 U.S. Open.

On 13 August 2017, Oosthuizen finished joint runner-up at the PGA Championship, finishing a career "second-place" Grand Slam.

On 9 December 2018, Oosthuizen won the South African Open. This event was co-sanctioned by the European Tour, Sunshine Tour and the Asian Tour.

In December 2019, Oosthuizen played on the International team at the 2019 Presidents Cup at Royal Melbourne Golf Club in Australia. The U.S. team won 16–14. Oosthuizen went 2–1–1 and lost a 3 up lead to halve his Sunday singles match against Matt Kuchar.[23]

Amateur wins (6)
  • 2000 World Junior Championship
  • 2001 All African Games (Kenya), Transvaal Amateur Stroke Play Championship (South Africa)
  • 2002 Indian Amateur Open Championship (tied), Irish Amateur Open Championship, Natal Open Stroke Play Championship (South Africa)

Professional wins (14)
Oosthuizen at the 2007 Valle Romano Open at the Aloha Golf Club, Marbella, Spain

PGA Tour wins (1)
Legend
Major championships (1)
Other PGA Tour (0)
No.DateTournamentWinning scoreTo parMargin of
victory		Runner-up
1 18 Jul 2010 The Open Championship 65-67-69-71=272 −16 7 strokes Lee Westwood

PGA Tour playoff record (0–2)

No.YearTournamentOpponent(s)Result
1 2012 Masters Tournament Bubba Watson Lost to par on second extra hole
2 2015 The Open Championship Zach Johnson, Marc Leishman Johnson won four-hole aggregate playoff;
Johnson: −1 (3-3-5-4=15),
Oosthuizen: E (3-4-5-4=16),
Leishman: +2 (5-4-5-4=18)

European Tour wins (9)
Legend
Major championships (1)
Other European Tour (8)
No.DateTournamentWinning scoreTo parMargin of
victory		Runner(s)-up
1 28 Mar 2010 Open de Andalucía de Golf 67-63-66-67=263 −17 3 strokes Richard Finch, Peter Whiteford
2 18 Jul 2010 The Open Championship 65-67-69-71=272 −16 7 strokes Lee Westwood
3 9 Jan 2011 Africa Open1 70-67-69-70=276 −16 Playoff Manuel Quirós, Chris Wood
4 8 Jan 2012 Africa Open1 (2) 69-62-67-67=265 −27 2 strokes Tjaart van der Walt
5 15 Apr 2012 Maybank Malaysian Open2 66-68-69-68=271 −17 3 strokes Stephen Gallacher
6 13 Jan 2013 Volvo Golf Champions 68-64-74-66=272 −16 1 stroke Scott Jamieson
7 12 Jan 2014 Volvo Golf Champions (2) 68-69-71-68=276 −12 1 stroke Branden Grace
8 28 Feb 2016 ISPS Handa Perth International2,3 70-64-67-71=272 −16 1 stroke Alexander Lévy
9 9 Dec 2018
(2019 season)		 South African Open1,2 62-70-67-67=266 −18 6 strokes Romain Langasque

1Co-sanctioned by the Sunshine Tour
2Co-sanctioned by the Asian Tour
3Co-sanctioned by the PGA Tour of Australasia

European Tour playoff record (1–3)

No.YearTournamentOpponent(s)Result
1 2011 Africa Open Manuel Quirós, Chris Wood Won with birdie on first extra hole
2 2012 Masters Tournament Bubba Watson Lost to par on second extra hole
3 2012 Barclays Singapore Open Matteo Manassero Lost to eagle on third extra hole
4 2015 The Open Championship Zach Johnson, Marc Leishman Johnson won four-hole aggregate playoff;
Johnson: −1 (3-3-5-4=15),
Oosthuizen: E (3-4-5-4=16),
Leishman: +2 (5-4-5-4=18)

Asian Tour wins (3)
No.DateTournamentWinning scoreTo parMargin of
victory		Runner-up
1 15 Apr 2012 Maybank Malaysian Open1 66-68-69-68=271 −17 3 strokes Stephen Gallacher
2 28 Feb 2016 ISPS Handa Perth International1,2 70-64-67-71=272 −16 1 stroke Alexander Lévy
3 9 Dec 2018 South African Open1,3 62-70-67-67=266 −18 6 strokes Romain Langasque

1Co-sanctioned by the European Tour
2Co-sanctioned by the PGA Tour of Australasia
3Co-sanctioned by the Sunshine Tour

Asian Tour playoff record (0–1)

No.YearTournamentOpponentResult
1 2012 Barclays Singapore Open Matteo Manassero Lost to eagle on third extra hole

Sunshine Tour wins (8)
Legend
South African Opens (1)
Other Sunshine Tour (7)
No.DateTournamentWinning scoreTo parMargin of
victory		Runner(s)-up
1 19 Sep 2004 Vodacom Origins of Golf
at Arabella		 74-70-71=215 −1 1 stroke Keith Horne
2 28 Jan 2007 Dimension Data Pro-Am 66-71-71-69=277 −11 1 stroke Omar Sandys
3 25 Feb 2007 Telkom PGA Championship 67-65-69-65=266 −22 1 stroke Richard Sterne
4 27 Oct 2007 Platinum Classic 64-71-70=205 −11 Playoff Marc Cayeux, Adilson da Silva
5 24 Feb 2008 Telkom PGA Championship (2) 66-63-66-65=260 −28 14 strokes Hennie Otto
6 9 Jan 2011 Africa Open1 70-67-69-70=276 −16 Playoff Manuel Quirós, Chris Wood
7 8 Jan 2012 Africa Open1 (2) 69-62-67-67=265 −27 2 strokes Tjaart van der Walt
8 9 Dec 2018 South African Open1,2 62-70-67-67=266 −18 6 strokes Romain Langasque

1Co-sanctioned by the European Tour
2Co-sanctioned by the Asian Tour

Sunshine Tour playoff record (2–1)

No.YearTournamentOpponent(s)Result
1 2007 Vodacom Championship Richard Sterne Lost to birdie on second extra hole
2 2007 Platinum Classic Marc Cayeux, Adilson da Silva Won with par on second extra hole
da Silva eliminated by par on first hole
3 2011 Africa Open Manuel Quirós, Chris Wood Won with birdie on first extra hole

Major championships

Wins (1)
YearChampionship54 holesWinning scoreMarginRunner-up
2010The Open Championship4 shot lead−16 (65-67-69-71=272)7 strokes Lee Westwood

Results timeline

Results not in chronological order in 2020.

Tournament200420052006200720082009
Masters Tournament CUT
U.S. Open
The Open Championship CUT CUT CUT
PGA Championship 73 CUT
Tournament201020112012201320142015201620172018
Masters Tournament CUT CUT 2 CUT 25 T19 T15 T41 T12
U.S. Open CUT T9 CUT WD T40 T2 T23 T23 T16
The Open Championship 1 T54 T19 WD T36 T2 CUT CUT T28
PGA Championship CUT CUT T21 T15 T30 T22 T2
Tournament 20192020
Masters Tournament T29 T23
PGA Championship T60 T33
U.S. Open T7 3
The Open Championship T20 NT
  Win
  Top 10
  Did not play

CUT = missed the half-way cut
WD = withdrew
"T" = tied
NT = No tournament due to COVID-19 pandemic

Summary
TournamentWins2nd3rdTop-5Top-10Top-25EventsCuts made
Masters Tournament010116128
PGA Championship010114118
U.S. Open011247118
The Open Championship110224137
Totals14168214731
  • Most consecutive cuts made – 11 (2017 PGA – 2020 Masters, current)
  • Longest streak of top-10s – 2 (2015 U.S. Open – 2015 Open Championship)

Results in The Players Championship
Tournament 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019
The Players Championship CUT CUT T19 CUT T69 T28 T2 CUT T56
  Top 10

CUT = missed the halfway cut
"T" indicates a tie for a place

Results in World Golf Championships

Results not in chronological order before 2015.

Tournament200620072008200920102011201220132014201520162017201820192020
Championship T32 T50 T68 T20 T18 T60 T33 T40 6 T14 T48 T30 T25 T51
Match Play R64 R64 R32 R32 QF QF 2 T17 R16 QF NT1
Invitational T9 T37 4 61 T42 T21 T50 T24 T20 T6
Champions T72 T7 T6 T15 T14 T44 T45 3 NT1

1Cancelled due to COVID-19 pandemic

  Top 10
  Did not play

QF, R16, R32, R64 = Round in which player lost in match play
NT = no tournament
"T" = tied
Note that the HSBC Champions did not become a WGC event until 2009.

Team appearances

Amateur

Professional

See also

References
  1. "Louis Oosthuizen biography". PGA European Tour. Retrieved 20 July 2015.
  2. "Week 02 2013 Ending 13 Jan 2013" (pdf). OWGR. Retrieved 20 December 2018.
  3. "Official World Golf Ranking for Louis Oosthuizen". Official Golf World Ranking. Retrieved 9 December 2018.
  4. Lynn Zinser, "Oosthuizen Leads Wind-Interrupted Open", New York Times, 16 July 2010.
  5. "Louis Oosthuizen seals maiden Tour win in Andalucia". BBC Sport. 28 March 2010. Retrieved 30 March 2010.
  6. "Oosthuizen wins Augusta Par-3 contest". United Press International. 7 April 2010. Retrieved 26 July 2010.
  7. Don, Markus (18 July 2010). "Big names were nonfactors in forgettable British Open". The Baltimore Sun. Retrieved 19 July 2010.
  8. Jeff, Shain (18 July 2010). "Any way you say it, Louis Oosthuizen is British Open champion". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 19 July 2010.
  9. "The 2010 Open Championship – Leaderboard". PGA Tour. Retrieved 19 July 2010.
  10. Associated Press (18 July 2010). "2010 British Open: Louis Oosthuizen wins British Open". ESPN. Retrieved 19 July 2010.
  11. Gene Wojciechowski, "Oosthuizen thinking big with Open lead", ESPN.com, 16 July 2010.
  12. Evans, Miles (17 July 2010). "Nerveless Oosthuizen closes on maiden major". Reuters. Retrieved 19 July 2010.
  13. Ferguson, Doug (18 July 2010). "Oosthuizen pulls away to dominating Open title". Associated Press. Retrieved 19 July 2010.
  14. Hiestand, Michael (18 July 2010). "British Open analysts: Final round was boring". USA Today. Retrieved 19 July 2010.
  15. Corrigan, James (19 July 2010). "Oosthuizen writes name in history with nerveless finale". The Independent. Retrieved 19 July 2010.
  16. "Official World Golf Ranking, week 29 2010" (PDF). Retrieved 29 July 2010.
  17. Connor, Steve (20 July 2010). Psychology of sport: how a red dot swung it for Open champion. The Independent. UK. Retrieved 20 July 2010.
  18. "Oosthuizen beats Wood in play-off for Africa Open win". BBC Sport. 9 January 2011. Retrieved 10 January 2011.
  19. "Oosthuizen retains Africa Open". European Tour. 8 January 2012. Retrieved 10 January 2012.
  21. "Louis Oosthuizen wins Volvo Golf Champions with impressive come back in Durban". The Daily Telegraph. 14 January 2013. Retrieved 14 January 2013.
  22. "Louis Oosthuizen wins Volvo Golf Champions title in Durban". BBC Sport. 12 January 2014. Retrieved 30 January 2014.
  23. Dusek, David (15 December 2019). "Presidents Cup grades: Captains, Royal Melbourne score high marks". Golfweek.
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