Howard Clark (golfer)


Howard Keith Clark is an English professional golfer who played on the European Tour for many years and had his most successful period in the mid-1980s.

Early life and amateur career

Clark was born in Leeds, England. He learned the game from his father, who was a scratch amateur. He won the 1971 Boys Amateur Championship and played for Great Britain & Ireland in the 1973 Walker Cup.

Professional career

Clark turned professional in 1973 and joined the European Tour in 1974. His first professional tournament win came in the 1975 Greater Manchester Open. In 1976 he won the T.P.D. Under-25 Championship and his first win on the European Tour was two years later at the 1978 Portuguese Open. Clark's final tally of European Tour wins was eleven, including pairs of wins in four consecutive seasons from 1984 to 1987. He also won the individual title at the World Cup of Golf in 1985. His best placing on the Order of Merit was third, which he achieved in both 1984 and 1986. His form fell away in the early 1990s, but revived for a time in the middle of that decade, and he made the top twenty of on the Order of Merit in 1994 and 1995. His last season on the tour was 1999 and he subsequently worked as an on course commentator for BBC Sport before moving to Sky Sports.
Clark played in the Ryder Cup six times and was on three winning European teams and also the 1989 team which tied the match and retained the Cup.

Amateur wins

European Tour wins (11)

No.DateTournamentWinning scoreMargin of
victory		Runner-up
115 Apr 1978Portuguese Open−1 1 stroke Brian Barnes, Simon Hobday
229 Apr 1978Madrid Open−6 2 strokes José María Cañizares
329 Apr 1984Cepsa Madrid Open −14 3 strokes José María Cañizares
428 May 1984Whyte & Mackay PGA Championship−12 2 strokes Gordon J. Brand, Bernhard Langer
516 Jun 1985Jersey Open−1 1 stroke Warren Humphreys, Philip Parkin,
Ian Woosnam
611 Aug 1985Glasgow Open−6 Playoff Sandy Lyle
727 Apr 1986Cepsa Madrid Open −14 1 stroke Seve Ballesteros
818 May 1986Peugeot Spanish Open−16 1 stroke Ian Baker-Finch
922 Mar 1987Moroccan Open−8 3 strokes Mark James
109 Aug 1987PLM Open−17 2 strokes Ossie Moore
112 Oct 1988English Open−9 3 strokes Peter Baker

European Tour playoff record
No.YearTournamentOpponentResult
11985Glasgow Open Sandy LyleWon with birdie on second extra hole
21995Murphy's Irish Open Stuart Cage, Sam TorranceTorrance won with eagle on second extra hole
Cage eliminated by par on first hole

Other wins (3)

CUT = missed the half-way cut
"T" indicates a tie for a place

Summary

Amateur
Professional