R.I.P. Peter Oosterhuis

[J-Blade]

I was very sorry to read this morning that Peter Oosterhuis has passed away at age 75 after a battle with Alzheimer's disease. He was by all accounts a great golfer and an even better person. I had the pleasure many years ago, during the time that he was the Director of Golf at Riviera CC here in L.A., to meet him briefly. It was at the L.A. Open at Riviera in 1992, I noticed him standing around the 18th green and had a brief conversation with him. I remember him as being very humble and nice. 

 

 

Edited May 2 by pga43
removed link off Golfwrx.com

[bajadock]

 

 

Oosterhuis played before the internet era, so his star does not shine as brightly as it should.  

 

 

 

Perhaps it was his familiarity with golf in the US that helped Oosterhuis to such an impressive record in the Ryder Cup, in which he played six times on the trot from 1971 to 1981. Although he was on the losing side each time, his own performances were among the best in the history of the event. From 1977 onwards he created an especially productive pairing with Faldo, and featured in famous wins over Arnold Palmer, Nicklaus and Johnny Miller. In all he won 14 of his 28 Ryder Cup matches and halved three.

 

He had eight top 10 finishes in the majors, twice finishing as runner-up in the Open – at Royal Lytham & St Annes in 1974, where he missed out by four strokes to the brilliance of Gary Player, and then by just a shot to Tom Watson at Royal Troon in 1982. He also came close to winning the 1973 Masters, after he had led for the first three rounds of the competition, but could not quite get across the line on the final day, tying in third place with Jack Nicklaus. It was the best Masters position by a British player up to that point, and remained so until Sandy Lyle’s victory in 1988.

Edited May 2 by pga43

[kwcsports]

RIP Peter. Great in his later years for CBS, enjoyed listening to his insightful commentary.

[the bishop]

Really enjoyed his broadcasting style and always thought he was very informative and insightful.  RIP.

[elwhippy]

 A sad day for Golf. Superb player, commentator and all round nice guy. RIP Peter. 

[bajadock]

Decided to search for a modern comparison player for Oosterhuis.  Oosty had 20 worldwide wins, 1 PGA Tour win(Canadian Open), 7 Euro wins and 8 top tens in Majors.  Is it Tommy Fleetwood with 10 world wins, 7 Euro wins, 8 top tens in majors and last year's sudden death loss at Canadian?

 

Oosterhuis was 14-11-3 in the Ryder Cup during 70s USA dominance.  Fleetwood is 7-3-2 in Ryder Cup and still only 33 years old.

 

Is Poulter similar at 17 world wins, 8 top tens in Majors, 15-8-2 Ryder Cup, six Ryder singles wins(same as Oosty) during Euro dominance?

Edited May 2 by bajadock
add Ryder Cup

[kamaaina1]

Prayers to the family...🙏

[straightshot7]

He came through the TV as just being such a nice guy.

[DoughBack18]

A sad loss for the golf world. His voice was a staple for years and he called a heck of a lot of great golf shots in his time, not to mention his playing career. As other have mentioned, just seemed like a class act and a person that it would be difficult to dislike. Memory loss diseases are a real s.o.b…

[rblmp32]

Always enjoyed Peter's commentary.  RIP.  My father has Alzheimer's, not a fun way to spend the last years of your life.  

[Frank-0-Sport]

R.I.P. Peter ....

Oosterhuis also played a role in another chapter of Masters Tournament history. In the 1974 Monsanto-Pensacola Open, he tied for first place with Lee Elder after 72 holes. In the sudden-death playoff, Elder eventually triumphed with an 18-foot birdie on the 4th extra hole. This made Elder the first African-American golfer to officially qualify for the Masters Tournament.

[Ferguson]

His death was the result of complications from Alzheimer's, more specifically aspiration pneumonia.  

 

Great guy. 

Great loss.

 

RIP.

 

[chip75]

R.I.P. to one of our greats. 

[m d g]

4 hours ago, the bishop said:

Really enjoyed his broadcasting style and always thought he was very informative and insightful.  RIP.

 

The British announcers seem to know when not to talk.

 

And when they do talk, it's usually not something about train smoke...

[KrazyTrain18]

One of the greats, I am too young to be familiar with his playing career but he was excellent on CBS and was irreplaceable when he had to step away.  Rest in Peace.

[bcjim]

Sorry to hear it.  Definitely enjoyed his work in the booth.

[iBanesto]

Great voice of golf.

 

A very accomplished player as well.

• 1 PGA Tour win
• 7 European Tour wins
• 8 top 10 finishes in majors including 2 2nd/T2 places
• 4 consecutive European Tour Order of Merits (1971-1974)
• 6 Ryder Cup teams

 

 

[Ferguson]

At the 1973 Augusta Masters in Georgia, (United States ) Peter had the lead after third round.  However, he never got things going and shot a Sunday round of 74. Jack was in the mix too.

[Duct Tape]

6 hours ago, iBanesto said:

Great voice of golf.

 

A very accomplished player as well.

• 1 PGA Tour win
• 7 European Tour wins
• 8 top 10 finishes in majors including 2 2nd/T2 places
• 4 consecutive European Tour Order of Merits (1971-1974)
• 6 Ryder Cup teams

 

 

 

 

Did Ray and Jack not get the uniform of the day info for this RC match?  🤓. Euro players looking good in their grays, with red. Very stylish. 

 

I greatly enjoyed Peter on TV as a commentator. Great wit and valued silence when appropriate. RIP. 

[iBanesto]

17 hours ago, Duct Tape said:

Did Ray and Jack not get the uniform of the day info for this RC match?  🤓. Euro players looking good in their grays, with red. Very stylish. 

 

I greatly enjoyed Peter on TV as a commentator. Great wit and valued silence when appropriate. RIP. 

 

Interesting pick up that Nicklaus and Floyd were not wearing the same uniform.

 

Must be a similar "hat-gate" kerfuffle... 😅

 

[mizuno player]

 I've miss his delivery and style since he left the booth. He never got in the way of the golf. 

[st1800e]

Saddened by the news.  A great player and commentator, as has been said.   I recall the news of his diagnosis some years ago.   It’s the 7th leading cause of death in the USA.  If you don’t know someone with Alzheimer’s now, you will in the future.  
Followed his journey and his family’s journey through this heartbreaking disease.  BTDT.  

 

No known cure, yet, for those that are so inclined…

 

https://alzfdn.org/donate/

 

 

[Ronnie Mundt]

He was a top notch commentator, always enjoyed him on the broadcasts. He made it about the golf, not himself. A lot of the modern guys could learn something from him. Rest peacefully big guy.

[chillybilly]

Supposedly he resided in Charlotte...I'm unsure where but Quail Hollow area is a guess.

[Big Cat 3]

please comeback Peter ... this CBS crew is insufferable. Just the worst golf TV crew ever assembled and that's counting those idiots on NBC when Zinger was stinking up the place.