Retief Goosen

Lore & Background

In 1987, Goosen was struck by lightning while golfing with his friend Henri Potgieter at Pietersburg Golf Club. His clothes were burned from his body, his shoes disintegrated, and his underwear and watch band melted to his skin. He retains a scar on his wrist from the incident. He recovered enough to take up the game again a few weeks later. His father took his survival as a sign from God.

In Their Own Story

The air at Augusta in April 2001 carried the particular humidity that makes the pines smell of resin and old rain. Goosen stood over a 14-iron on the 16th, the gallery a hushed wall of green and white behind the rope. He didn't rush. He never rushed. The swing came — that enormous, coiled turn, the clubhead snapping through the ball with a crack that echoed off the Azalea bank. The ball sailed, hung, and dropped with a whisper of turf. He exhaled, looked at his caddie, and said nothing. He didn't need to. They both knew what the next eighteen holes would demand. And he delivered.

Reader's Guide

Goosen turned professional in 1990. He won the South African Amateur Championship in 1990. He was medalist at the European Tour's Qualifying School in 1992. His first European Tour win came in 1996 at the Slaley Hall Northumberland Challenge. He won the U.S. Open in 2001 (at Southern Hills) and 2004 (at Shinnecock Hills). He won seven PGA Tour events between 2001 and 2009. He also won the European Tour Order of Merit in 2001 and 2002.

Did You Know?

• Goosen was born in Pietersburg (now Polokwane), South Africa.
• He was struck by lightning in 1987 and his clothes were burned off his body.
• He won the 2001 U.S. Open after three-putting from 12 feet on the 72nd hole, then winning an 18-hole playoff.
• He had 11 one-putts in the final round of the 2004 U.S. Open.
• He played in the Presidents Cup, not the Ryder Cup.