Gary Player

Lore & Background

Following victories at the 1959 Open Championship, 1961 Masters Tournament and 1962 PGA Championship, Player won the 1965 U.S. Open to become the first non-American to win the career grand slam. He was the third golfer to win the modern career grand slam, and only three more players have achieved the feat since. Player was inducted into the World Golf Hall of Fame in 1974. Nicknamed 'the Black Knight', 'Mr Fitness', and 'the International Ambassador of Golf', Player has been prolific as a golf course architect with more than 400 design projects throughout the world. He has also authored or co-written 36 books on golf instruction, design, philosophy, motivation and fitness. In 2021, Player was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom by United States president Donald Trump.

Reader's Guide

Player was born in Johannesburg, South Africa, the youngest of Muriel and Harry Player's three children. At age 17, he became a professional golfer. Player married wife Vivienne Verwey on 19 January 1957, four years after turning professional. Together they had six children: Jennifer, Marc, Wayne, Michele, Theresa, and Amanda. He also has 22 grandchildren and two great-grandchildren. Vivienne died of cancer in August 2021. In 2020, Player won a legal battle against the Gary Player Group. He was awarded $5 million and the rights to his name and likeness back from the company. Today, the Gary & Vivienne Player Foundation (established after Vivienne’s passing in 2022) operates in South Africa and the United States. Player is the brother of Ian Player, a South African environmental educator, activist and conservationist.

Did You Know?

• Player is one of only six players to win golf's career Grand Slam, along with Gene Sarazen, Ben Hogan, Jack Nicklaus, Tiger Woods and Rory McIlroy.
• He completed the Grand Slam in 1965 at age 29, becoming the youngest at the time, though Jack Nicklaus (26) and Tiger Woods (24) later broke that record.
• He was the only player in the 20th century to win the British Open in three different decades.
• In 2000, Player was voted 'Sportsman of the Century' in South Africa.