Peter Arthur Oosterhuis (3 May 1948 – 2 May 2024) was an English professional golfer and broadcaster. He played on the European circuit from 1969 to 1974, winning 10 tournaments and taking the Harry Vardon Trophy for heading the Order of Merit for four consecutive seasons from 1971 to 1974. From 1975 he played on the PGA Tour, winning the Canadian Open in 1981. Oosterhuis was twice runner-up in the Open Championship, in 1974 and 1982. Later he became a golf analyst on TV, initially in Europe and then in the United States. In 2015, he announced that he had Alzheimer's disease.
Amateur career
Oosterhuis won the 1966 Berkshire Trophy by a stroke from Michael Bonallack, after a final round 67 which included nine 3s in 11 holes, with seven 3s in succession. Later in 1966 Oosterhuis won the British Youths Open Amateur Championship by four strokes. In 1968 he was a runner-up in the Golf Illustrated Gold Vase behind Michael Bonallack and tied with Ted Dexter.
Oosterhuis was a regular competitor for English and British teams at the boys (under-18) and youth (under-21) levels. He made his senior debut for England in the 1966 Home Internationals, He also played in the 1968 Eisenhower Trophy where Great Britain and Ireland won the silver medal. Great Britain and Ireland led the United States by 7 strokes after three rounds, but the Americans scored 73, 73 and 75 in the final round to Great Britain and Ireland's 76, 76, and 77 to win by a stroke.
Professional career
European and Southern African circuits
Oosterhuis played in South Africa in early 1969, finishing runner-up to Bobby Cole in the Natal Open. He seemed a likely winner but dropped a shot at the 17th and then took 7 at the final hole. Later in the year, he started the British season by winning the Sunningdale Foursomes, playing with the amateur Peter Benka.
In 1970, Oosterhuis won two age-restricted events, Lord Derby’s Under-23 Professional Tournament and the Coca-Cola Young Professionals' Championship. Oosterhuis had won the General Motors Open in South Africa in February, an event which served as the South African qualifier for the Alcan Golfer of the Year Championship.
In April 1971, Oosterhuis made his debut on the PGA Tour at the 1971 Greater Greensboro Open, the week before competing in his first Masters. The following month Oosterhuis won his first important British event, the Agfa-Gevaert Tournament, and followed this up by winning the Sunbeam Electric Tournament and the Piccadilly Medal later in the season. In September he represented Great Britain and Ireland for the first time in the Ryder Cup in St. Louis, having finished second in the points list. In his singles matches he defeated Gene Littler and Arnold Palmer.
In February 1973, Oosterhuis played on the Caribbean Tour, winning the Ford Maracaibo Open and finishing runner-up in the Caracas Open and the Panama Open, before playing a number of events on the PGA Tour. In April, Oosterhuis led the Masters by three strokes after three rounds, before finishing tied for third place, two strokes behind Tommy Aaron, after a final round 74. Later in the year, Oosterhuis won three European Tour events: the Piccadilly Medal, French Open and Viyella PGA Championship. He won £17,455 in official tour events, second behind Tony Jacklin. In September, he played in the Ryder Cup, having led the points list. As in 1971, he again played well in his singles matches, halving with Lee Trevino and beating Arnold Palmer.
In March and April 1974, Oosterhuis played three events on the PGA Tour, including the Masters. Oosterhuis won three more European Tour events in 1974: the French Open and the last two tournaments of the season, the Italian Open and El Paraiso Open. In November, Oosterhuis played in the 1974 PGA Tour Qualifying School in Palm Springs, California. Oosterhuis easily qualified, finishing in fourth place, three strokes behind the winner Fuzzy Zoeller.
PGA Tour
Oosterhuis made his debut on his PGA Tour rookie season at the opening event, the 1975 Phoenix Open. In the middle of the year, he recorded a second-place finish at First NBC New Orleans Open to Billy Casper. He was also in contention for the U.S. Open on the last day. He was in a tie for 4th place as he entered the final round. The leaders struggled early and Oosterhuis's even-par golf through the first 8 holes was nearly enough to catch them. However, he made four consecutive bogeys in the middle of the round to eliminate his chances. He would still finish only two back, in a tie for seventh. Oosterhuis also recorded one other top-10 in 1975. His overall record for the year was 28 starts with 24 made cuts along with 3 top-10s and 10 top-25s. Late in the year, Oosterhuis played the 1975 Ryder Cup. He again had much success at the event, defeating Johnny Miller and J. C. Snead.
Oosterhuis did not progress on this performance, however. Through the late 1970s, he would easily keep his Tour card but was not a regular contender to win events on the PGA Tour. His year-end statistics through the late 1970s are remarkably similar to his 1975 results. In 1976, he made the cut in 25 of 29 events with 3 top-10s and 11 top-25s. In 1977, he made 18 of 25 cuts with 3 top-10s and 9 top-25s, including a runner-up finish at the Canadian Open, his third and final runner-up finish on tour. In 1978, he recorded 20 made cuts in 24 events with, for the fourth straight year, 3 top-10s as well as 6 top-25s. He had gotten some advice, however, from former pro and instructor Bert Yancey which, in this words, "helped immensely." This work eventually paid off as he won the Canadian Open in August 1981. It would be his only PGA Tour win. He defeated Andy North, Bruce Lietzke, and Jack Nicklaus by a shot. Nicklaus had a 20-foot eagle putt on the last hole to tie but missed.
Broadcasting career
In 1994, Oosterhuis was hired to cover the PGA Tour by Britain's Sky Sports and covered the Open Championship for the BBC in 1996 and 1997. From 1995 to 1997, he was the lead analyst for the Golf Channel's coverage of the European Tour. He was educated at Dulwich College.
In May 2015, Oosterhuis announced that he was battling early-onset Alzheimer's disease. He died from complications of the disease at a Charlotte memory care facility on 2 May 2024 at the age of 75, a day before what would have been his 76th birthday.
Amateur wins
- 1966 Berkshire Trophy,
European Tour wins (7)
{| class="wikitable" style="font-size:95%;"
!No.
!Date
!Tournament
!Winning score
!Margin of<br>victory
!Runner(s)-up
|-
|align=center|1
|align=right|13 May 1972
|Penfold-Bournemouth Tournament
| +1 (72-70-72-71=285)
|Playoff
| Christy O'Connor Jnr
|-
|align=center|2
|align=right|28 Apr 1973
|Piccadilly Medal
|−6 (67)
|6 strokes
| Terry Westbrook
|-
|align=center|3
|align=right|3 Jun 1973
|French Open
|−4 (75-69-68-68=280)
|1 stroke
| Tony Jacklin
|-
|align=center|4
|align=right|25 Aug 1973
|Viyella PGA Championship
|−4 (69-69-70-72=280)
|3 strokes
| Dale Hayes, Donald Swaelens
|-
|align=center|5
|align=right|5 May 1974
|French Open (2)
| +4 (71-72-68-73=284)
|2 strokes
| Peter Townsend
|-
|align=center|6
|align=right|20 Oct 1974
|Italian Open
|−2 (37-72-70-70=249)
|2 strokes
| Dale Hayes
|-
|align=center|7
|align=right|26 Oct 1974
|El Paraiso Open
|−4 (69-69-74=212)
|Playoff
| Manuel Ballesteros
|}
Source:
European Tour playoff record (2–1)
{| class="wikitable" style="font-size:95%;"
!No.!!Year!!Tournament!!Opponent!!Result
|-style="background:#D0F0C0;"
|align=center|1
|1972
|Penfold-Bournemouth Tournament
| Christy O'Connor Jnr
|Won with birdie on first extra hole
|-style="background:#F2C1D1;"
|align=center|2
|1974
|German Open
| Simon Owen
|Lost to birdie on first extra hole
|-style="background:#D0F0C0;"
|align=center|3
|1974
|El Paraiso Open
| Manuel Ballesteros
|Won with birdie on first extra hole
|}
Sources:
Southern Africa Tour wins (3)
{| class="wikitable" style="font-size:95%;"
!No.!!Date!!Tournament!!Winning score!!Margin of<br>victory!!Runner-up
|-
|align=center|1
|align=right|19 Dec 1971
|Rhodesian Dunlop Masters
|−16 (68-67-69-68=272)
|3 strokes
| Tienie Britz
|-
|align=center|2
|align=right|4 Mar 1972
|Glen Anil Classic
|−15 (68-66-67-72=273)
|Playoff
| Hugh Baiocchi
|-
|align=center|3
|align=right|27 Jan 1973
|Rothmans International Matchplay
|colspan=2 align=center|6 and 5
| Gary Player
|}
Sources:
Southern Africa Tour playoff record (1–1)
{| class="wikitable" style="font-size:95%;"
!No.!!Year!!Tournament!!Opponent(s)!!Result
|- style="background:#F2C1D1;"
|align=center|1
|1971
|Luyt Lager PGA Championship
| Tienie Britz, Don Gammon
|Britz won 18-hole playoff;<br>Britz: −5 (67),<br>Oosterhuis: −2 (70),<br>Gammon: −1 (71)
|-style="background:#D0F0C0;"
|align=center|2
|1972
|Glen Anil Classic
| Hugh Baiocchi
|Won with birdie on second extra hole
|}
Sources:
|-
|align=center|2
|29 Jun 1971
|Sunbeam Electric Tournament
|67-65=132
|4 strokes
| Peter Thomson
|
|-
|align=center|3
|14 Aug 1971
|Piccadilly Medal
|align=center colspan=2|Conceded
| Eric Brown
|
|}
South African circuit wins (3)
{| class="wikitable" style="font-size:95%;"
!No.
!Date
!Tournament
!Winning score
!Margin of<br>victory
!Runner-up
!Ref
|-
|align=center|1
|14 Feb 1970
|General Motors Open
|70-65-75-75=285
|2 strokes
| Gary Player
|
|-
|align=center|2
|20 Feb 1971
|Transvaal Open
|70-70-67-72=279
|6 strokes
| Graham Henning
|
|-
|align=center|3
|6 Mar 1971
|Schoeman Park Open
|67-67-65-68=267
|3 strokes
| John Bland
|
|}
Caribbean Tour wins (1)
- 1973 Ford Maracaibo Open
Other wins (10)
This list may be incomplete.
- 1969 Sunningdale Foursomes (with Peter Benka), Whitbread Trophy (with Nigel Paul)
- 1970 Lord Derby’s Under-23 Professional Tournament, Coca-Cola Young Professionals' Championship
- 1971 Southern Professional Championship
- 1972 Coca-Cola Young Professionals' Championship
- 1974 Raleigh Cup (Guadalajara, Mexico)
- 1983 Spalding Invitational
- 1985 Spalding Invitational
- 1989 New Jersey PGA Championship
Source:
Results in major championships
{| class="wikitable" style="font-size:95%;text-align:center;"
!Tournament
!1968
!1969
|-
|align=left|Masters Tournament
|style="background:#eeeeee;"|
|style="background:#eeeeee;"|
|-
|align=left|U.S. Open
|style="background:#eeeeee;"|
|style="background:#eeeeee;"|
|-
|align=left|The Open Championship
|CUT
|CUT
|-
|align=left|PGA Championship
|style="background:#eeeeee;"|
|style="background:#eeeeee;"|
|}
{| class="wikitable" style="font-size:95%;text-align:center;"
!Tournament
!1970
!1971
!1972
!1973
!1974
!1975
!1976
!1977
!1978
!1979
|-
|align=left|Masters Tournament
|style="background:#eeeeee;"|
|CUT
|T38
|style="background:yellow;"|T3
|T31
|CUT
|T23
|T46
|T14
|T34
|-
|align=left|U.S. Open
|style="background:#eeeeee;"|
|style="background:#eeeeee;"|
|style="background:#eeeeee;"|
|style="background:#eeeeee;"|
|style="background:#eeeeee;"|
|style="background:yellow;"|T7
|T55
|style="background:yellow;"|T10
|T27
|style="background:#eeeeee;"|
|-
|align=left|The Open Championship
|style="background:yellow;"|T6
|T18
|T28
|T18
|style="background:yellow;"|2
|style="background:yellow;"|T7
|T42
|style="background:#eeeeee;"|
|style="background:yellow;"|6
|T41
|-
|align=left|PGA Championship
|style="background:#eeeeee;"|
|style="background:#eeeeee;"|
|style="background:#eeeeee;"|
|style="background:#eeeeee;"|
|style="background:#eeeeee;"|
|T40
|T38
|style="background:#eeeeee;"|
|T26
|style="background:#eeeeee;"|
|}
{| class="wikitable" style="font-size:95%;text-align:center;"
!Tournament
!1980
!1981
!1982
!1983
!1984
!1985
!1986
|-
|align=left|Masters Tournament
|style="background:#eeeeee;"|
|style="background:#eeeeee;"|
|T24
|T20
|CUT
|style="background:#eeeeee;"|
|style="background:#eeeeee;"|
|-
|align=left|U.S. Open
|style="background:#eeeeee;"|
|style="background:#eeeeee;"|
|T30
|T50
|T25
|56
|69
|-
|align=left|The Open Championship
|T23
|CUT
|style="background:yellow;"|T2
|CUT
|style="background:#eeeeee;"|
|style="background:#eeeeee;"|
|style="background:#eeeeee;"|
|-
|align=left|PGA Championship
|CUT
|CUT
|T22
|T47
|CUT
|style="background:#eeeeee;"|
|style="background:#eeeeee;"|
|}
CUT = missed the half-way cut (3rd round cut in 1981 Open Championship)<br>
"T" indicates a tie for a place
{| class=wikitable style=text-align:center
|+Summary
!Tournament !! Wins !! 2nd !! 3rd !! Top-5 !! Top-10 !! Top-25 !! Events !! Cuts made
|-
|align=left|Masters Tournament || 0 || 0 || 1 || 1 || 1 || 5 || 12 || 9
|-
|align=left|U.S. Open || 0 || 0 || 0 || 0 || 2 || 3 || 9 || 9
|-
|align=left|The Open Championship || 0 || 2 || 0 || 2 || 5 || 8 || 15 || 11
|-
|align=left|PGA Championship || 0 || 0 || 0 || 0 || 0 || 1 || 8 || 5
|-
!Totals !! 0 !! 2 !! 1 !! 3 !! 8 !! 17 !! 44 !! 34
|}
- Most consecutive cuts made – 16 (1975 U.S. Open – 1980 Open Championship)
- Longest streak of top-10s – 2 (1975 U.S. Open – 1975 Open Championship)
Source:
Team appearances
Amateur
- Boys' match v Continent of Europe (representing combined England & Scotland): 1964 (winners), 1965 (winners)
- England–Scotland boys match (representing England): 1964 (winners), 1965 (winners)
- England–Scotland youths match (representing England): 1966 (winners), 1967 (tied), 1968
- Men's Home Internationals (representing England): 1966 (winners), 1967, 1968 (winners)
- EGA Trophy (representing Great Britain & Ireland): 1967 (winners), 1968 (winners)
- Walker Cup (representing Great Britain & Ireland): 1967
- Eisenhower Trophy (representing Great Britain & Ireland): 1968
Professional
- Ryder Cup (representing Great Britain & Ireland/Europe): 1971, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1979, 1981
- World Cup (representing England): 1971
- Double Diamond International (representing England): 1973, 1974 (winners, captain)
- Sotogrande Match: (representing Great Britain and Ireland): 1974 (winners)
See also
- 1974 PGA Tour Qualifying School graduates