Sam Torrance

Sam Torrance
— Golfer —
At the Dutch Seniors Open 2010
Personal information
Full name	Samuel Robert Torrance OBE
Born	(1953-08-24) 24 August 1953 Largs, Scotland
Height	5 ft 11 in (1.80 m)
Nationality	Scotland
Residence	Virginia Water, England
Spouse	Suzanne Danielle (m.1988)
Children	Daniel, Phoebe, Anouska
Career
Turned professional	1970
Current tour(s)	European Senior Tour Champions Tour
Former tour(s)	European Tour
Professional wins	43
Number of wins by tour
European Tour	21 (T10th all time)
European Senior Tour	11
Best results in major championships
Masters Tournament	T31: 1985
U.S. Open	T16: 1996
The Open Championship	5th: 1981
PGA Championship	T23: 1995
Achievements and awards
Officer of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire	2003
Sir Henry Cotton Rookie of the Year	1972
European Senior Tour Order of Merit winner	2005, 2006, 2009

Samuel Robert Torrance OBE (born 24 August 1953) is a Scottish professional golfer and sports commentator. He was one of the leading players on the European Tour from the mid-1970s to the late 1990s, with 21 Tour wins. Torrance was a member of European Ryder Cup teams on eight occasions, from 1981 to 1995 consecutively; he was on Cup-winning teams in 1985, 1987, 1989, and 1995. He was the winning non-playing captain of the European Ryder Cup team in 2002. Torrance was honoured with the MBE (1996) and OBE (2003), for his outstanding contributions to golf.

Golf career

European Tour

Torrance turned professional at age 16, and joined the European Tour at 17. He achieved his first professional win in 1972, and won the Sir Henry Cotton Rookie of the Year award in the same year. He recorded his first European Tour win in 1976. He won 21 times on the European Tour; only fellow Scot Colin Montgomerie has accumulated more European Tour titles without winning one of golf's four major championships. His best finish on the European Tour Order of Merit was second, which he achieved in 1984 and 1995. In total he finished in the top ten on the list ten times. He holds the record for the most career appearances on the European Tour, with over 700 events played at the close of the 2008 season. During his prime Torrance was known for long driving and accurate short iron play, often played in a daring style.

Torrance was also an early user of the broomhandle putter. After a disappointing 1988 season on the greens, Torrance experimented with the long putter that was already being used successfully in the U.S. He debuted his version, which anchored on the chin rather than the midriff, at the 1989 Jersey Open and subsequently finished in the top five. He has used it relatively successfully ever since.

European Senior Tour

In 2003, upon turning 50, Torrance became eligible to play in senior tournaments, and he picked up his first win on the European Senior Tour in 2004. He finished first on the European Senior Tour's Order of Merit in 2005, 2006 and 2009.

Ryder Cup

Torrance played for Europe in the Ryder Cup eight times, from 1981 to 1995 consecutively; the Cup is contested every two years. In 1985 he sank the winning putt, which deprived the Americans of the trophy for the first time in 28 years. He also was a member of Cup-winning teams in 1987 (first-ever win for Europe on American soil), 1989 and 1995. In 2002, he was the non-playing captain on the European team which won the 2002 Cup at The Belfry. This made him the second European captain to sink the winning putt and captain a winning team at separate Ryder Cups, after Seve Ballesteros in 1987 (as a player) and 1997 (as captain). He was also named a vice-captain for the 2016 Ryder Cup at Hazeltine by captain Darren Clarke.^[1]

Family, honours

Torrance's father Bob was a highly respected golf instructor^[2] who coached son Sam from childhood. He also coached Sam's son Daniel who also played golf to a high level competing with Sam at the Dunhill Links Tournament in the Pro Am competition, winning it once. Torrance married English actress Suzanne Danielle in 1988. They have three children: golfer Daniel, model and actress Phoebe and model Anouska.^[3]

Torrance was awarded an MBE in 1996 for services to golf, and an OBE in the 2003 New Year Honours List, for his captaincy of Europe's Ryder Cup team.

Broadcasting career

Torrance currently works as a commentator for BBC Sport golf coverage. Along with Kelly Tilghman, he also provided commentary for Tiger Woods PGA Tour 09.

Torrance has appeared on the sport personality quiz show A Question of Sport five times since 2005.^[4] In October 2006, he took over nine minutes to consider with his teammates Ally McCoist and Michael Holding the question, "Who is the only golfer from Europe or the United States to have won two majors without making a Ryder Cup appearance", eventually correctly answering John Daly.^[5] On 17 March 2008, he competed with Sharron Davies and team captain Phil Tufnell in the 37th season of A Question of Sport, and made history by achieving the first ever perfect score on the show since it started in 1970. He is a supporter of Celtic and Manchester United football clubs.

Professional wins (43)

European Tour wins (21)

No.	Date	Tournament	Winning score	Margin of victory	Runner(s)-up
1	15 May 1976	Piccadilly Medal	−15 (67-72-66-72=277)	2 strokes	Bob Shearer
2	12 Jun 1976	Martini International	−8 (69-67-71-73=280)	2 strokes	Tommy Horton
3	16 Aug 1981	Carroll's Irish Open	−12 (68-67-69-72=276)	5 strokes	Nick Faldo
4	3 Aug 1982	Benson & Hedges Spanish Open	−15 (71-65-67-70=273)	8 strokes	Roger Chapman, Sandy Lyle, Ian Woosnam
5	7 Nov 1982	Portuguese Open	−9 (71-67-69=207)	4 strokes	Nick Faldo
6	3 Jul 1983	Scandinavian Enterprise Open	−8 (73-69-68-70=280)	1 stroke	Craig Stadler
7	6 Nov 1983	Portuguese Open	−2 (72-73-71-70=286)	3 strokes	Chris Moody
8	15 Apr 1984	Tunisian Open	−6 (66-71-75-70=282)	1 stroke	Brian Waites
9	19 Aug 1984	Benson & Hedges International Open	−18 (63-68-70-69=270)	1 stroke	Wayne Grady
10	23 Sep 1984	Sanyo Open	−7 (71-69-70-71=281)	Playoff	Des Smyth
11	30 Jun 1985	Johnnie Walker Monte Carlo Open	−12 (69-63-62-70=264)	1 stroke	Isao Aoki
12	3 May 1987	Lancia Italian Open	−17 (64-68-71-68=271)	Playoff	José Rivero
13	7 Oct 1990	Mercedes German Masters	−16 (70-65-64-73=272)	3 strokes	Bernhard Langer, Ian Woosnam
14	14 Apr 1991	Jersey European Airways Open	−9 (68-69-69-73=279)	1 stroke	Mark Davis
15	28 Mar 1993	Kronenbourg Open	−4 (69-68-73-74=284)	1 stroke	Mike Miller
16	25 Apr 1993	Heineken Open	−15 (71-63-67=201)	2 strokes	Jay Townsend
17	13 Jun 1993	Honda Open	−10 (68-69-68-73=278)	Playoff	Paul Broadhurst, Johan Ryström, Ian Woosnam
18	7 May 1995	Italian Open	−19 (69-70-63-67=269)	2 strokes	José Rivero
19	9 Jul 1995	Murphy's Irish Open	−11 (68-68-70-71=277)	Playoff	Stuart Cage, Howard Clark
20	17 Sep 1995	Collingtree British Masters	−18 (67-66-68-69=270)	1 stroke	Michael Campbell
21	28 Jun 1998	Peugeot Open de France	−12 (64-70-72-70=276)	2 strokes	Olivier Edmond, Massimo Florioli, Mathew Goggin, Bernhard Langer

European Tour playoff record (4–2)

No.	Year	Tournament	Opponent(s)	Result
1	1984	Sanyo Open	Des Smyth	Won with par on first extra hole
2	1987	Lancia Italian Open	José Rivero	Won with par on sixth extra hole
3	1987	London Standard Four Stars National Pro-Celebrity	Mark McNulty	Lost to birdie on second extra hole
4	1990	NM English Open	Mark James	Lost to birdie on first extra hole
5	1993	Honda Open	Paul Broadhurst, Johan Ryström, Ian Woosnam	Won with birdie on first extra hole
6	1995	Murphy's Irish Open	Stuart Cage, Howard Clark	Won with eagle on second extra hole Cage eliminated with par on first hole

Other wins (11)

• 1972 Radici Open (Italy), Lord Derby's Under-25 Match Play Championship
• 1975 Zambia Open
• 1978 Scottish Professional Championship
• 1979 Colombian Open
• 1980 Australian PGA Championship, Scottish Professional Championship
• 1983 C* Scottish PGA Championship
• 1985 Scottish Professional Championship
• 1991 Scottish Professional Championship
• 1993 Scottish Professional Championship
• 2006 Hassan II Golf Trophy

European Senior Tour wins (11)

No.	Date	Tournament	Winning score	Margin of victory	Runner(s)-up
1	15 Aug 2004	Travis Perkins Senior Masters	−13 (72-69-62=203)	2 strokes	Seiji Ebihara
2	12 Jun 2005	Irvine Whitlock Seniors Classic	−11 (65-68-72=205)	4 strokes	David J Russell
3	7 Aug 2005	De Vere PGA Seniors Championship	−17 (66-70-66-69=271)	4 strokes	David J Russell
4	25 Sep 2005	Bendinat London Seniors Masters	−15 (64-67-70=201)	3 strokes	David J Russell
5	21 May 2006	Sharp Italian Seniors Open	−11 (68-70-67=205)	4 strokes	Eamonn Darcy
6	4 Jun 2006	AIB Irish Seniors Open	−6 (70-68-69=207)	Playoff	Jerry Bruner, Guillermo Encina, Stewart Ginn
7	28 Aug 2006	PGA Seniors Championship (2)	−20 (65-66-71-66=268)	3 strokes	Luis Carbonetti
8	3 Sep 2006	Charles Church Scottish Seniors Open	−3 (76-67-70=213)	1 stroke	Bill Longmuir
9	24 Jun 2007	Bendinat London Seniors Masters (2)	−10 (68-68-70=206)	1 stroke	José Rivero
10	9 Nov 2008	OKI Castellón Open España - Senior Tour Championship	−13 (68-66-69=203)	2 strokes	Ángel Fernández, Katsuyoshi Tomori
11	20 Mar 2009	DGM Barbados Open	−14 (65-63-74=202)	4 strokes	Ángel Franco

Results in major championships

DNP = Did not play
CUT = missed the half-way cut
"T" indicates a tie for a place
Yellow background for top-10

Summary

• Most consecutive cuts made – 10 (1980 Open Championship – 1988 Open Championship)
• Longest streak of top-10s – 1 (twice)

Results in senior major championships

Results are not in chronological order before 2016.

DNP = Did not play
CUT = missed the halfway cut
"T" indicates a tie for a place.
Yellow background for top-10.

Team appearances

• Ryder Cup (representing Europe): 1981, 1983, 1985 (winners), 1987 (winners), 1989 (tied and retained trophy), 1991, 1993, 1995 (winners), 2002 (winners, non-playing captain)
• World Cup (representing Scotland): 1976, 1978, 1982, 1984, 1985, 1987, 1989, 1990, 1991, 1993, 1995
• Double Diamond International (representing Scotland): 1973 (winners), 1976, 1977
• Hennessy Cognac Cup (representing Great Britain and Ireland): 1976 (winners), 1978 (winners), 1980 (winners), 1982 (winners), (representing Scotland) 1984
• Alfred Dunhill Cup (representing Scotland): 1985, 1986, 1987, 1989, 1990, 1991, 1993, 1995 (winners), 1999
• Four Tours World Championship (representing Europe): 1985, 1991 (winners, captain)
• UBS Cup (representing the Rest of the World): 2001, 2002, 2004
• Seve Trophy (representing Great Britain & Ireland): 2013 (non-playing captain)

See also

• List of golfers with most European Tour wins
• List of golfers with most European Senior Tour wins

References

External links

• Sam Torrance at the European Tour official site

Sam Torrance in the Ryder Cup
European Ryder Cup captains Great Britain 1927 Ted Ray 1929 George Duncan 1931 Charles Whitcombe 1933 John Henry Taylor 1935 Charles Whitcombe 1937 Charles Whitcombe 1947 Henry Cotton 1949 Charles Whitcombe 1951 Arthur Lacey 1953 Henry Cotton 1955 Dai Rees 1957 Dai Rees 1959 Dai Rees 1961 Dai Rees 1963 John Fallon 1965 Harry Weetman 1967 Dai Rees 1969 Eric Brown 1971 Eric Brown Great Britain & Ireland 1973 Bernard Hunt 1975 Bernard Hunt 1977 Brian Huggett Europe 1979 John Jacobs 1981 John Jacobs 1983 Tony Jacklin 1985 Tony Jacklin 1987 Tony Jacklin 1989 Tony Jacklin 1991 Bernard Gallacher 1993 Bernard Gallacher 1995 Bernard Gallacher 1997 Seve Ballesteros 1999 Mark James 2002 Sam Torrance 2004 Bernhard Langer 2006 Ian Woosnam 2008 Nick Faldo 2010 Colin Montgomerie 2012 José María Olazábal 2014 Paul McGinley 2016 Darren Clarke European Ryder Cup team – 1981 José Maria Cañizares Howard Clark Eamonn Darcy Nick Faldo Bernard Gallacher Mark James Bernhard Langer Sandy Lyle Peter Oosterhuis Manuel Piñero Des Smyth Sam Torrance John Jacobs (non-playing captain) Lost: 9.5 – 18.5 European Ryder Cup team – 1983 Seve Ballesteros Gordon J. Brand Ken Brown José Maria Cañizares Nick Faldo Bernard Gallacher Bernhard Langer Sandy Lyle Sam Torrance Brian Waites Paul Way Ian Woosnam Tony Jacklin (non-playing captain) Lost: 13.5 – 14.5 European Ryder Cup team – 1985 Seve Ballesteros Ken Brown José Maria Cañizares Howard Clark Nick Faldo Bernhard Langer Sandy Lyle Manuel Piñero José Rivero Sam Torrance Paul Way Ian Woosnam Tony Jacklin (non-playing captain) Won: 16.5 – 11.5 European Ryder Cup team – 1987 Seve Ballesteros Gordon Brand, Jnr Ken Brown Howard Clark Eamonn Darcy Nick Faldo Bernhard Langer Sandy Lyle José María Olazábal José Rivero Sam Torrance Ian Woosnam Tony Jacklin (non-playing captain) Won: 15 – 13 European Ryder Cup team – 1989 Seve Ballesteros Gordon Brand, Jnr José Maria Cañizares Howard Clark Nick Faldo Mark James Bernhard Langer Christy O'Connor Jnr José María Olazábal Ronan Rafferty Sam Torrance Ian Woosnam Tony Jacklin (non-playing captain) Tied: 14 – 14 European Ryder Cup team – 1991 Seve Ballesteros Paul Broadhurst Nick Faldo David Feherty David Gilford Mark James Bernhard Langer Colin Montgomerie José María Olazábal Steven Richardson Sam Torrance Ian Woosnam Bernard Gallacher (non-playing captain) Lost: 13.5 – 14.5 European Ryder Cup team – 1993 Peter Baker Seve Ballesteros Nick Faldo Joakim Haeggman Mark James Barry Lane Bernhard Langer Colin Montgomerie José María Olazábal Costantino Rocca Sam Torrance Ian Woosnam Bernard Gallacher (non-playing captain) Lost: 13 – 15 European Ryder Cup team – 1995 Seve Ballesteros Howard Clark Nick Faldo David Gilford Mark James Per-Ulrik Johansson Bernhard Langer Colin Montgomerie Costantino Rocca Sam Torrance Philip Walton Ian Woosnam Bernard Gallacher (non-playing captain) Won: 14.5 – 13.5 European Ryder Cup team – 2002 Thomas Bjørn Darren Clarke Niclas Fasth Pierre Fulke Sergio García Pádraig Harrington Bernhard Langer Paul McGinley Colin Montgomerie Jesper Parnevik Phillip Price Lee Westwood Sam Torrance (non-playing captain) Won: 15.5 – 12.5