Denis Watson


Denis Leslie Watson is a professional golfer from Zimbabwe.
Born in Salisbury, Rhodesia Watson was educated at Oriel Boys High School, Chisipite. He was Rhodesian Sportsman of the Year in 1975, but went on to represent South Africa in the World Series of Golf in 1980 and 1982 – sporting connections between Rhodesia and Apartheid South Africa were blurred at the time, for example the Rhodesian cricket team was once part of the South African domestic set-up.
Watson turned professional in 1976 and played on the European Tour from 1978 to 1980. After moving to the United States, where he joined the PGA Tour, he had his career year in 1984 when he won the Buick Open, NEC World Series of Golf, and Panasonic Las Vegas Invitational to tie for the most wins on the PGA Tour that season.
Watson finished second in the 1985 U.S. Open, missing out on forcing a playoff by one shot, having incurred a two-stroke penalty earlier in the tournament. The penalty was assessed on the eighth hole in the first round, after he had waited longer than the allowed ten seconds for a putt that had hung on the lip of the hole to drop in. The ball did fall into the hole, but the birdie was disallowed and the penalty strokes added. The USGA and R&A, the sports governing bodies, have since amended the penalty for this rules infraction to just a single stroke. Andy North was eventually the only player to beat him, by one shot despite himself bogeying the last hole.
Watson's career came to a sudden halt when he was injured while playing in the 1985 Goodyear Classic in South Africa. While hitting his ball out of the rough with a 9-iron, he struck a tree stump that had been hidden from view causing damage to his wrist, elbow and neck. He went on to win the tournament, but his problems had just begun. He required surgery on his wrist and neck, and was initially told that he would never play again. He did, but was unable to consistently reach the high standard that he had previously attained and after several more operations he retired towards the end of the 1990s.
After turning fifty, Watson joined the Champions Tour, and began to rediscover competitive form. He won the 2007 Senior PGA Championship at Kiawah Island, a senior major, by two strokes over Argentina's Eduardo Romero, his first win in 23 years. He was voted the 2007 Champions Tour Rookie of the Year.

Professional wins (9)

PGA Tour wins (3)

PGA Tour playoff record
No.YearTournamentOpponentsResult
11982Bay Hill Classic Tom Kite, Jack NicklausKite won with birdie on first extra hole

Sunshine Tour wins (2)

No.DateTournamentWinning scoreTo parMargin of
victory		Runner-up
127 May 2007Senior PGA Championship71-71-69-68=279−92 strokes Eduardo Romero
226 Aug 2007Boeing Classic69-69-69=207−9Playoff R. W. Eaks, David Eger,
Gil Morgan, Naomichi Ozaki,
Dana Quigley, Craig Stadler
316 Mar 2008AT&T Champions Classic73-71-65=209−7Playoff Brad Bryant, Loren Roberts
44 May 2008FedEx Kinko's Classic67-70-69=206−101 stroke Scott Hoch, Tim Simpson,
Nick Price

Champions Tour playoff record
No.YearTournamentOpponentsResult
12007Boeing Classic R. W. Eaks, David Eger,
Gil Morgan, Naomichi Ozaki,
Dana Quigley, Craig Stadler		Won with eagle on second extra hole
Eger, Morgan, Ozaki and Quigley eliminated with birdie on first hole
22008AT&T Champions Classic Brad Bryant, Loren RobertsWon with birdie on third extra hole
Bryant eliminated with birdie on second hole

Results in major championships

CUT = missed the half-way cut
WD = withdrew
"T" = tied

Summary

Wins (1)

Results timeline

Results not in chronological order before 2012.
DNP = Did not play
CUT = missed the halfway cut
DQ = Disqualified
"T" indicates a tie for a place
Green background for wins. Yellow background for top-10.

Team appearances

Amateur