Miguel Ángel Jiménez

Miguel Ángel Jiménez Rodríguez (born 5 January 1964) is a Spanish professional golfer. He has won 21 times on the European Tour and has been a member of two victorious Ryder Cup teams.

Miguel Ángel Jiménez
Jiménez in 2012
Personal information
Full nameMiguel Ángel Jiménez Rodríguez
NicknameThe Mechanic
Born (1964-01-05) 5 January 1964
Málaga, Spain
Height5 ft 10 in (1.78 m)
Weight184 lb (83 kg; 13.1 st)
Nationality Spain
ResidenceVienna, Austria
SpouseMontserrat Bravo Ramirez (m. 1991-d. 2010)
Susanna Styblo (m. 2014)
ChildrenMiguel Ángel, Victor
Career
Turned professional1982
Current tour(s)European Tour
(joined 1988)
PGA Tour Champions
(joined 2014)
Former tour(s)PGA Tour
Professional wins38
Highest ranking12 (5 December 2004)[1]
Number of wins by tour
European Tour21 (Tied 10th all time)
Asian Tour7 (Tied 9th all time)
PGA Tour of Australasia1
Challenge Tour1
PGA Tour Champions10
European Senior Tour1
Other7
Best results in major championships
Masters Tournament4th: 2014
PGA ChampionshipT10: 1999
U.S. OpenT2: 2000
The Open ChampionshipT3: 2001

Early years

Born in Málaga in southern Spain, Jiménez first played on the European Tour in 1988 and improved steadily over the next few seasons. His first win on the tour came at the Piaget Belgian Open in 1992. During a fairly up and down career, he has so far had four main periods of success. He has finished inside the top 100 on the European Tour Order of Merit every season since 1989. In 1994 he finished fifth on the European Tour Order of Merit. One highlight was scoring an exceptionally rare albatross (double eagle) on the 17th hole at Valderrama, during the 1994 Volvo Masters, sinking his second shot on the par-5 hole with a 3-iron.[2]

After some weaker seasons he bounced back in 1998 and 1999, finishing fourth on the Order of Merit in consecutive years and winning four tournaments including the prestigious Volvo Masters. In 1999 he also came second in the WGC-American Express Championship, which is one of the elite World Golf Championships events, and made his Ryder Cup debut.

Career since 2000

In 2004 he once again bounced back from some modest seasons, notching up another fourth-place finish on the Order of Merit, and winning four European Tour events, which was more than any other player. He maintained his form into 2005, winning the Omega Hong Kong Open, which is a European Tour event, and the Celtic Manor Wales Open. He has featured in the top 20 of the Official World Golf Rankings. Jiménez has had great success in team events representing Europe and Spain, winning the Alfred Dunhill Cup in 1999 and 2000, the Seve Trophy in 2000 and the Ryder Cup in 2004 and 2010.

In 2005 he won the Spanish Pairs final, with Andrés Jiménez at La Cala Resort in Andalucia, Spain.

2008 proved to be another good season with two wins, including the BMW PGA Championship at Wentworth, in which he beat Oliver Wilson in a play-off. His form earned Jiménez a spot on the 2008 Ryder Cup team. He finished the season ranked fourth on the Order of Merit once more.

While defending his BMW PGA Championship title in 2009, Jiménez scored a rare albatross (double eagle) by holing a 206-yard (188 m) six-iron on his second shot on the par-five fourth. It was the second such feat of his competitive career.[3]

In February 2010, Jiménez won the Omega Dubai Desert Classic, beating Lee Westwood in a playoff[4] and in July added the Alstom Open de France, beating Alejandro Cañizares and Francesco Molinari on the first hole of a playoff. He won his third event of the year at the Omega European Masters, finishing three strokes ahead of Edoardo Molinari

Jiménez was named as Europe's fourth assistant captain for the Ryder Cup in 2012.[5] Later in 2012 he won his 19th European Tour event at the UBS Hong Kong Open, and in doing so became the oldest ever winner on the European Tour.

While skiing in southern Spain on 29 December 2012, Jiménez fell and suffered a right tibial plateau fracture, which required surgery and kept him out of competition for several months.[6] He played in the Open de España in April 2013 but missed the cut and returned to the European Tour in late May.[7] In July, Jiménez was the 36-hole leader at The Open Championship. Later that summer, he lost a playoff to Joost Luiten at the KLM Open. In December 2013 Jiménez retained his Hong Kong Open title and broke his own record as the European Tour's oldest winner.[8]

On 18 April 2014, Jiménez made his Champions Tour debut by shooting a course record 65 at the Greater Gwinnett Championship.[9] Jiménez went on to win the tournament by two shots over Bernhard Langer.

Exactly one month later, Jiménez again extended his record as the oldest champion on the European Tour, securing his first triumph in the Open de España in his 27th time playing the event. Jiménez's up-and-down par on the first playoff hole defeated Richard Green and Thomas Pieters.[10] The win was Jiménez's 14th since turning 40 and tied him for 10th all-time among golfers with the most European Tour victories.

In January 2015, Jiménez won his second Champions Tour event at the Mitsubishi Electric Championship at Hualalai. On 23 May 2015, Jiménez aced the par-3 second hole during the BMW PGA Championship at the Wentworth Club, his tenth hole-in-one on the European Tour, which broke the record he jointly held with Colin Montgomerie. The ace was Jiménez's third of the season. He went on to finish joint second in the tournament.[11]

In April 2016, Jiménez won for the third time on the Champions Tour, with a two-stroke victory at the Mississippi Gulf Resort Classic over Scott Dunlap. In April 2017, Jiménez repeated as champion at the Mississippi Gulf Resort Classic.

In May 2018, Jiménez won a major title on the PGA Tour Champions by winning the Regions Tradition. In July 2018, Jiménez won another major title on the PGA Tour Champions by winning the Senior Open Championship at the Old Course at St Andrews.

On 17 February 2019, Jiménez won the Chubb Classic on the PGA Tour Champions, with a playoff victory over Bernhard Langer and Olin Browne. This victory was his 7th career title on the PGA Tour Champions. On 21 October 2019, Jiménez won the Dominion Energy Charity Classic on the PGA Tour Champions. He won with a final round of 63.[12]

On 19 January 2020, Jiménez won the season-opening Mitsubishi Electric Championship at Hualalai on the PGA Tour Champions over Ernie Els and Fred Couples in a sudden death playoff. [13]

At the 2020 Hero Open, Jiménez passed Sam Torrance for most starts on the European Tour, with 707.[14]

Personal

Jiménez is known as "The Mechanic" for his preference for driving, rather than repairing, high-performance vehicles, especially his red Ferrari.[15]

After the winner's press conference following the 2014 Open de España, Jiménez was asked the secret of his longevity. He stated, "There is no secret. Good food, good wine, good cigars and some exercise!"[16]

Professional wins (38)

European Tour wins (21)

Legend
BMW PGA Championships (1)
Other European Tour (20)
No. Date Tournament Winning score To par Margin of
victory
Runner(s)-up
1 27 Sep 1992 Piaget Belgian Open 71-70-64-69=274 −10 3 strokes Barry Lane
2 24 Jul 1994 Heineken Dutch Open 65-68-67-70=270 −18 2 strokes Howard Clark
3 10 May 1998 Turespaña Masters Open Baleares 69-68-70-72=279 −9 2 strokes Miguel Ángel Martín
4 20 Sep 1998 Trophée Lancôme 67-70-67-69=273 −11 2 strokes David Duval, Mark O'Meara,
Jarmo Sandelin, Greg Turner
5 14 Mar 1999 Turespaña Masters - Open Andalucía (2) 69-66-62-67=264 −24 4 strokes Steve Webster
6 31 Oct 1999 Volvo Masters 68-67-69-65=269 −19 2 strokes Retief Goosen, Pádraig Harrington,
Bernhard Langer
7 19 Oct 2003 Turespaña Mallorca Classic1 72-67-65=204* −9 1 stroke José María Olazábal
8 1 Feb 2004 Johnnie Walker Classic2,3 70-66-67-68=271 −17 2 strokes Thomas Bjørn, Jyoti Randhawa
9 4 Apr 2004 Algarve Open de Portugal 69-66-70-67=272 −16 2 strokes Terry Price
10 16 May 2004 BMW Asian Open2 71-66-70-67=274 −14 3 strokes Simon Dyson
11 29 Aug 2004 BMW International Open 68-66-67-66=267 −21 2 strokes Thomas Levet
12 5 Dec 2004
(2005 season)
Omega Hong Kong Open2 65-64-71-66=266 −14 1 stroke Pádraig Harrington, James Kingston
13 5 Jun 2005 Celtic Manor Wales Open 63-67-70-62=262 −14 4 strokes Martin Erlandsson, José Manuel Lara
14 18 Nov 2007
(2008 season)
UBS Hong Kong Open2 (2) 65-67-66-67=265 −15 1 stroke K. J. Choi, Robert Karlsson,
Thongchai Jaidee
15 25 May 2008 BMW PGA Championship 70-67-72-68=277 −11 Playoff Oliver Wilson
16 7 Feb 2010 Omega Dubai Desert Classic 70-67-68-72=277 −11 Playoff Lee Westwood
17 4 Jul 2010 Alstom Open de France 71-69-66-67=273 −11 Playoff Alejandro Cañizares, Francesco Molinari
18 5 Sep 2010 Omega European Masters2 67-61-68-67=263 −21 3 strokes Edoardo Molinari
19 18 Nov 2012 UBS Hong Kong Open2 (3) 65-67-68-65=265 −15 1 stroke Fredrik Andersson Hed
20 8 Dec 2013
(2014 season)
Hong Kong Open2 (4) 70-67-65-66=268 −12 Playoff Stuart Manley, Prom Meesawat
21 18 May 2014 Open de España 69-73-69-73=284 −4 Playoff Richard Green, Thomas Pieters

*Note: The 2003 Turespaña Mallorca Classic was shortened to 54 holes due to bad weather.
1Dual-ranking event with the Challenge Tour
2Co-sanctioned by the Asian Tour
3Co-sanctioned by the PGA Tour of Australasia

European Tour playoff record (5–3)

No.YearTournamentOpponent(s)Result
1 1994 Honda Open Robert Allenby Lost to par on third extra hole
2 1999 WGC-American Express Championship Tiger Woods Lost to birdie on first extra hole
3 2008 BMW PGA Championship Oliver Wilson Won with birdie on second extra hole
4 2010 Omega Dubai Desert Classic Lee Westwood Won with par on third extra hole
5 2010 Alstom Open de France Alejandro Cañizares, Francesco Molinari Won with par on first extra hole
6 2013 KLM Open Joost Luiten Lost to par on first extra hole
7 2013 Hong Kong Open Stuart Manley, Prom Meesawat Won with birdie on first extra hole
8 2014 Open de España Richard Green, Thomas Pieters Won with par on first extra hole

Asian Tour wins (7)

No. Date Tournament Winning score To par Margin of
victory
Runner(s)-up
1 1 Feb 2004 Johnnie Walker Classic1,2 70-66-67-68=271 −17 2 strokes Thomas Bjørn, Jyoti Randhawa
2 16 May 2004 BMW Asian Open1 71-66-70-67=274 −14 3 strokes Simon Dyson
3 5 Dec 2004 Omega Hong Kong Open1 65-64-71-66=266 −14 1 stroke Pádraig Harrington, James Kingston
4 18 Nov 2007 UBS Hong Kong Open1 (2) 65-67-66-67=265 −15 1 stroke K. J. Choi, Robert Karlsson,
Thongchai Jaidee
5 5 Sep 2010 Omega European Masters1 67-61-68-67=263 −21 3 strokes Edoardo Molinari
6 18 Nov 2012 UBS Hong Kong Open1 (3) 65-67-68-65=265 −15 1 stroke Fredrik Andersson Hed
7 8 Dec 2013 Hong Kong Open1 (4) 70-67-65-66=268 −12 Playoff Prom Meesawat, Stuart Manley

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

Asian Tour playoff record (1–0)

No.YearTournamentOpponentsResult
1 2013 Hong Kong Open Prom Meesawat, Stuart Manley Won with birdie on first extra hole

Challenge Tour wins (1)

No. Date Tournament Winning score To par Margin of
victory
Runner-up
1 19 Oct 2003 Turespaña Mallorca Classic1 72-67-65=204* −9 1 stroke José María Olazábal

*Note: The 2003 Turespaña Mallorca Classic was shortened to 54 holes due to bad weather.
1Dual-ranking event with the European Tour

Other wins (7)

  • 1988 Open de l'Informatique (France)
  • 1989 Benson & Hedges Trophy (with Xonia Wunsch-Ruiz)
  • 1999 Oki Telepizza – Olivia Nova (Spain)
  • 1999 Spanish Professional Closed Championship[17]
  • 2002 Spanish Professional Closed Championship
  • 2003 Spanish Professional Closed Championship
  • 2006 Spanish Professional Closed Championship

PGA Tour Champions wins (10)

Legend
PGA Tour Champions major championships (2)
Other PGA Tour Champions (8)
No. Date Tournament Winning score To par Margin of
victory
Runner(s)-up
1 20 Apr 2014 Greater Gwinnett Championship 65-70-67=202 −14 2 strokes Bernhard Langer
2 25 Jan 2015 Mitsubishi Electric Championship at Hualalai 69-64-66=199 −17 1 stroke Mark O'Meara
3 3 Apr 2016 Mississippi Gulf Resort Classic 68-70-64=202 −14 2 strokes Scott Dunlap
4 2 Apr 2017 Mississippi Gulf Resort Classic (2) 67-66-70=203 −13 Playoff Gene Sauers
5 20 May 2018 Regions Tradition 64-69-66-70=269 −19 3 strokes Joe Durant, Gene Sauers,
Steve Stricker
6 29 Jul 2018 The Senior Open Championship 68-67-72-69=276 −12 1 stroke Bernhard Langer
7 17 Feb 2019 Chubb Classic 68-66-66=200 −13 Playoff Olin Browne, Bernhard Langer
8 21 Oct 2019 Dominion Energy Charity Classic 67-68-63=198 −18 2 strokes Tommy Tolles
9 18 Jan 2020 Mitsubishi Electric Championship at Hualalai (2) 64-71-67=202 −14 Playoff Fred Couples, Ernie Els
10 13 Sep 2020 Sanford International 65-66-65=196 −14 1 stroke Steve Flesch

PGA Champions Tour playoff record (3–2)

No.YearTournamentOpponent(s)Result
1 2016 3M Championship Joe Durant Lost to eagle on first extra hole
2 2017 Mississippi Gulf Resort Classic Gene Sauers Won with birdie on first extra hole
3 2017 PowerShares QQQ Championship Bernhard Langer Lost to birdie on second extra hole
4 2019 Chubb Classic Olin Browne, Bernhard Langer Won with par on first extra hole
5 2020 Mitsubishi Electric Championship at Hualalai Fred Couples, Ernie Els Won with birdie on second extra hole
Couples eliminated with par on first hole

European Senior Tour wins (1)

Legend
Senior major championships (1)
Other European Senior Tour (0)
No. Date Tournament Winning score To par Margin of
victory
Runner-up
1 29 Jul 2018 The Senior Open Championship 68-67-72-69=276 −12 1 stroke Bernhard Langer

European Senior Tour playoff record (0–1)

No.YearTournamentOpponentResult
1 2018 Costa Blanca Benidorm Senior Golf Masters Paul Streeter Lost to birdie on first extra hole

Playoff record

PGA Tour playoff record (0–1)

No.YearTournamentOpponentResult
1 1999 WGC-American Express Championship Tiger Woods Lost to birdie on first extra hole

Results in major championships

Tournament 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999
Masters Tournament CUT CUT
U.S. Open T28 T23
The Open Championship T80 T51 CUT T88 CUT CUT DQ CUT
PGA Championship T13 T24 T10
Tournament 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009
Masters Tournament T49 T10 T9 CUT T31 T11 T44 T8 T46
U.S. Open T2 CUT CUT T16 T6 CUT
The Open Championship T26 T3 CUT T47 T52 T41 T12 CUT T13
PGA Championship T64 T31 T40 CUT CUT T36
Tournament201020112012201320142015201620172018
Masters Tournament T12 T27 56 4 CUT
U.S. Open CUT CUT CUT CUT CUT
The Open Championship T27 T25 T9 T13 CUT CUT T18
PGA Championship CUT T64 T27 T29 CUT CUT
Tournament 2019
Masters Tournament
PGA Championship
U.S. Open
The Open Championship CUT
  Top 10
  Did not play

CUT = missed the half-way cut
DQ = Disqualified
"T" = tied

Summary

TournamentWins2nd3rdTop-5Top-10Top-25EventsCuts made
Masters Tournament0001461612
PGA Championship0000131510
U.S. Open010124135
The Open Championship0011272514
Totals01139206941
  • Most consecutive cuts made – 6 (1999 PGA – 2001 Masters)
  • Longest streak of top-10s – 2 (twice)

Results in The Players Championship

Tournament 1999200020012002200320042005200620072008
The Players Championship T38 CUT CUT CUT T46 T38 T32
  Did not play

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

Results in World Golf Championships

Results not in chronological order prior to 2015.

Tournament19992000200120022003200420052006200720082009201020112012201320142015
Championship 2 T25 NT1 T16 T41 T26 T63 T55 T45 T13
Match Play R64 QF R64 R32 R32 R64 R64 R32 R64 QF R16 R64 T34
Invitational T27 36 T36 T27 57 T54 T10 T6 T22 72 T4 T45
Champions T41 T38 72 71 T46

1Cancelled due to 9/11

  Top 10
  Did not play

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

Senior major championships

Wins (2)

YearChampionship54 holesWinning scoreMarginRunner(s)-up
2018Regions Tradition3 shot lead−19 (64-69-66-70=269)3 strokes Joe Durant, Gene Sauers,
Steve Stricker
2018The Senior Open ChampionshipTied for lead−12 (68-67-72-69=276)1 stroke Bernhard Langer

Results timeline

Results not in chronological order before 2017.

Tournament2014201520162017201820192020
The Tradition T20 1 T37 NT
Senior PGA Championship T3 5 NT
U.S. Senior Open T17 T2 T18 T2 T6 NT
Senior Players Championship T2 4 T10 T13 T3
The Senior Open Championship T8 4 T3 T11 1 T10 NT
  Win
  Top 10
  Did not play

CUT = missed the halfway cut
"T" indicates a tie for a place
NT = No tournament due to COVID-19 pandemic

Team appearances

See also

References

  1. "Week 49 2004 Ending 5 Dec 2004" (pdf). OWGR. Retrieved 25 September 2019.
  2. The Golf Channel, broadcast of 2010 Andalucia Masters, 30 October 2010
  3. "Casey holds on for Wentworth win". BBC Sport. 24 May 2009. Retrieved 18 March 2012.
  4. "Miguel Angel Jimenez beats Lee Westwood in Dubai". BBC Sport. 7 February 2010. Retrieved 8 February 2010.
  5. "Miguel Angel Jimenez named Europe assistant". BBC Sport. 26 August 2012. Retrieved 26 August 2012.
  6. Rogers, Iain (30 December 2012). "Miguel Ángel Jiménez faces up to five months out after breaking leg in skiing accident". The Telegraph. Retrieved 20 July 2013.
  7. "2013 Results: Miguel Ángel Jiménez". PGA European Tour. Retrieved 20 July 2013.
  8. "Miguel Angel Jimenez wins Hong Kong Open to break Tour record". BBC Sport. Retrieved 8 December 2013.
  9. "Miguel A. Jimenez posts 65 in debut". ESPN. Associated Press. 18 April 2014.
  10. "Jimenez Rewrites History on Home Soil". PGA European Tour. 18 May 2014.
  11. "Aces High: Ten of the Best for Miguel". PGA European Tour. 23 May 2015.
  12. Strege, John (21 October 2019). "Miguel Angel Jimenez closes with a 63 to win the Dominion Energy Charity Classic by two". Golf Digest. Retrieved 22 October 2019.
  13. Strege, John (19 January 2020). "Miguel Angel Jimenez outlasts a Hall of Fame leader board to win the season opener". Golf Digest. Retrieved 19 January 2020.
  14. Lavner, Ryan (30 July 2020). "Miguel Angel Jimenez shoots 64 while breaking European Tour starts record". Golf Channel.
  15. "European Tour – Miguel Angel Jiménez – Biography". PGA European Tour. Retrieved 16 March 2012.
  16. "Jimenez Rewrites History on Home Soil". PGA European Tour. 18 May 2014.
  17. "2020 Official Competition Guide" (PDF). Royal Spanish Golf Federation. pp. 114–115. Retrieved 9 November 2020.
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