Colin Montgomerie
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Colin Stuart Montgomerie, OBE (born June 23, 1963) is a Scottish golfer. He is often referred to by his nickname 'Monty'.
[edit] Early yearsAlthough Scottish by birth and ethnicity, he was raised in Yorkshire, where his father James was a corporate manager. However, he was educated at Strathallan School in Perthshire. His father would later become the secretary of Royal Troon Golf Club, one of Scotland's most famous clubs. Montgomerie became one of the first British golfers to go to a United States college, attending Houston Baptist University. In later years, many top young British golfers (e.g., Luke Donald) would follow Monty's path to United States universities. He won three important Scottish amateur tournaments — the 1983 Scottish Youths Championship, the 1985 Scottish Stroke Play Championship, and the 1987 Scottish Amateur Championship. He also played for Scotland twice in the Eisenhower Trophy (1984 and 1986) and for Great Britain and Ireland in the Walker Cup twice (1985 and 1987). [edit] Career outlineMontgomerie turned professional in 1988, and was named the Rookie of the Year on the European Tour that season. He quickly developed into one of Europe's top pros, making his Ryder Cup debut in 1991. He finished first on the European Tour Order of Merit every year from 1993 to 1999 and has thirty victories on the tour, including the 1998, 1999, and 2000 European PGA Tour Championships. He has finished either second or tied second in five major championships, the 1994, 1997 and 2006 U.S. Opens, the 1995 PGA Championship and the 2005 Open Championship. No other non-major winning player has recorded as many second place finishes. He first reached the top 10 in the Official World Golf Rankings in 1994 and was ranked number 2 at his peak. His form fell away in 2003 and 2004, partly due to marriage problems, and his ranking slumped to the eighties, but he came back strongly in 2005, winning a record eighth European Tour Order of Merit and returning to the top ten in the World Rankings. [1] Late in 2005 he became the first man to win 20 million Euros on the European Tour. In February 2006 he agreed to a clean break divorce settlement of £15 million, in return for his ex-wife giving up any claim on his future earnings. [2] While Montgomerie holds the dubious distinction of being considered by many as the best golfer never to have won a major championship, he is heralded as one of the greatest competitors in the history of the Ryder Cup. Montgomerie has played on seven Ryder Cup teams (1991, 1993, 1995, 1997, 1999, 2002, 2004) and has never been defeated in a singles match at the Cup. In 2004, he had the honour of sinking the putt that ensured Team Europe an outright victory in the Ryder Cup, minutes after Lee Westwood sank the putt that ensured Europe would retain the Cup. Montgomerie captained the Great Britain & Ireland team in the first four stagings of the Seve Trophy, losing in 2000 but winning in 2002, 2003 and 2005. At the end of 2004, Montgomerie was named an Officer of the Order of the British Empire in the New Year's Honours. He represents the Turnberry resort in Scotland, where there is a Colin Montgomerie Golf Academy. In 2006, Montgomerie came close to his first major win at the U.S. Open at Winged Foot on the PGA Tour. After his 60 foot putt for birdie dropped in dramatic fashion at the 17th, he suffered a double bogey 6 at the par-4 18th after changing from a 6 iron to a 7 iron for his 2nd shot to account for increased distance from adrenaline. He hit it fat, and short and right of the green into the deep rough. He could be heard on TV right after striking the shot, "What kind of shot was that?!" He finished in a tie for second with Phil Mickelson who also double bogeyed the 18th to lose the tournament by a shot. [edit] European Tour wins
Montgomerie also came first in the Volvo Bonus Pool every year from 1993 to 1998. The Volvo Bonus Pool was an extra tranche of prize money awarded at the end of each European Tour season from 1988 to 1998 to the regular members of the tour who had had the best performances over the season. [edit] Other professional wins
[edit] Amateur wins
[edit] Results in major championships
DNP = did not play [edit] Team appearancesAmateur
Professional
[edit] See also[edit] External links
[edit] References[edit] Related Articles[edit] Recent Colin Montgomerie ArmchairGM Stories
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