Simon Hobday

Simon Hobday
Simon Hobday
Personal information
Full name	Simon Forbes Newbold Hobday
Nickname	Scruffy
Born	23 June 1940; Mafikeng, South Africa
Died	2 March 2017 (aged 76)
Height	5 ft 11 in (1.80 m)
Weight	170 lb (77 kg; 12 st)
Sporting nationality	South Africa
Career
Turned professional	1969
Former tour(s)	Sunshine Tour; European Tour; Champions Tour
Professional wins	17
Number of wins by tour
European Tour	2
Sunshine Tour	6
PGA Tour Champions	5
Other	4
Best results in major championships;
Masters Tournament	DNP
PGA Championship	DNP
U.S. Open	CUT: 1995
The Open Championship	T19: 1983

Simon Forbes Newbold Hobday (23 June 1940 – 2 March 2017)^[2]^[3] was a South African professional golfer who won tournaments on three continents.

Amateur career[]

Hobday was born in Mafikeng. He lived part of his life in Zambia and represented the country in the 1966 Eisenhower Trophy.^[4] In early 1969 he was still was an amateur golfer and still represented Zambia. At the time, he worked as a car salesman in Lusaka, the capital of Zambia.^[5]

In April 1969, while still an amateur, Hobday played the Kenya Open. In the final round he broke the course record at the Muthaiga Golf Course with a 66 (−6) to leap into second place. At 284 (−4) he finished joint runner-up with Scotland's Bernard Gallacher, five behind champion Maurice Bembridge. He defeated several notable professionals including Christy O'Connor Snr and Australia's Bob Tuohy.^[5]

Professional career[]

Hobday turned professional in 1969. He spent his regular career mainly on the Southern Africa Tour, where he won six times and the European Tour, where he won the 1976 German Open and the 1979 Madrid Open. As a senior, he played mainly in the United States on the Senior PGA Tour (now Champions Tour), where he claimed five titles between 1993 and 1995 including one senior major, the 1994 U.S. Senior Open.

Hobday also lived in Rhodesia.^[6]

Professional wins (17)[]

European Tour wins (2)[]

No.	Date	Tournament	Winning score	Margin of victory	Runner(s)-up
1	15 Aug 1976	German Open	−18 (67-68-65-66=266)	1 stroke	Antonio Garrido
2	29 Apr 1979	Madrid Open	−3 (67-73-71-74=285)	2 strokes	Francisco Abreu, Gordon J. Brand, Tienie Britz

Sunshine Tour wins (6)[]

1971 South African Open
1978 Rhodesian Dunlop Masters
1978 Victoria Falls Classic
1979 Rhodesian Open
1981 ICL International
1985 Trustbank Tournament of Champions

Senior PGA Tour wins (5)[]

Legend
Senior major championships (1)
Other Senior PGA Tour (4)

No.	Date	Tournament	Winning score	Margin of victory	Runner(s)-up
1	4 Jul 1993	Kroger Senior Classic	−11 (67-69-66=202)	1 stroke	Gibby Gilbert, Mike Hill,
2	12 Dec 1993	Hyatt Senior Tour Championship	−17 (64-68-67=199)	2 strokes	Raymond Floyd, Larry Gilbert
3	3 Jul 1994	U.S. Senior Open	−10 (66-67-66-75=274)	1 stroke	Jim Albus, Graham Marsh
4	4 Sep 1994	GTE Northwest Classic	−7 (70-69-70=209)	Playoff	Jim Albus
5	17 Sep 1995	Brickyard Crossing Championship	−12 (71-65-68=204)	1 stroke	Isao Aoki, Hale Irwin, Bob Murphy, Lee Trevino

Senior PGA Tour playoff record (1–0)

No.	Year	Tournament	Opponent	Result
1	1994	GTE Northwest Classic	Jim Albus	Won with birdie on third extra hole

Other senior wins (4)[]

1997/98 Vodacom Senior Classic (South Africa)
2001 Nelson Mandela Invitational (with ), Liberty Mutual Legends of Golf - Legendary Division (with Jim Albus)
2003 Nelson Mandela Invitational (with Lee Westwood)

Champions Tour major championships[]

Wins (1)[]

Year	Championship	Winning score	Margin	Runners-up
1994	U.S. Senior Open	−10 (66-67-66-75=274)	1 stroke	Jim Albus, Graham Marsh

Results in major championships[]

Tournament	1971	1972	1973	1974	1975	1976	1977	1978	1979
U.S. Open
The Open Championship	WD				T28	T21	CUT	T52	T30

Tournament	1980	1981	1982	1983	1984	1985	1986	1987	1988	1989
U.S. Open
The Open Championship	T51			T19	CUT	CUT

Tournament	1990	1991	1992	1993	1994	1995
U.S. Open						CUT
The Open Championship

Note: Hobday never played in the Masters Tournament or PGA Championship.

Did not play

WD = withdrew
CUT = missed the half-way cut (3rd round cut in 1977 and 1984 Open Championships)
"T" indicates a tie for a place

Team appearances[]

Amateur

Eisenhower Trophy (representing Zambia): 1966

Professional

Double Diamond International (representing the Rest of the World): 1976, 1977

References[]

^ Green Sr., Ron (25 July 2011). "'Scruffy' Hobday went with the flow, pleasing fans, sportswriters". News Observer. Retrieved 23 July 2014.
^ "Simon Hobday". Who's Who South Africa. Retrieved 25 January 2013.
^ "Simon Hobday, former US Senior Open champion, passes away aged 76". Sky Sports. 2 March 2017.
^ "World Amateur Team Championship Record Books – Eisenhower Trophy – Championship Results – 1966". Retrieved 25 January 2013.
^ ^a ^b "Bembridge Keeps Kenya Open Golf Title". The Canberra Times. 1969-04-15. p. 23. Retrieved 2021-02-28.
^ "Rhodesian Sport Profiles: Simon Hobday". Retrieved 25 January 2013.

External links[]

Simon Hobday at the Sunshine Tour official site
Simon Hobday at the European Tour official site
Simon Hobday at the PGA Tour official site

[1] Green Sr., Ron (25 July 2011). "'Scruffy' Hobday went with the flow, pleasing fans, sportswriters". News Observer. Retrieved 23 July 2014.

[2] "Simon Hobday". Who's Who South Africa. Retrieved 25 January 2013.

[3] "Simon Hobday, former US Senior Open champion, passes away aged 76". Sky Sports. 2 March 2017.

[4] "World Amateur Team Championship Record Books – Eisenhower Trophy – Championship Results – 1966". Retrieved 25 January 2013.

[:0-5] "Bembridge Keeps Kenya Open Golf Title". The Canberra Times. 1969-04-15. p. 23. Retrieved 2021-02-28.

[6] "Rhodesian Sport Profiles: Simon Hobday". Retrieved 25 January 2013.

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