Retief Goosen

Retief Goosen (born 3 February 1969) is a South African professional golfer from Pietersburg (now Polokwane) who has won 41 professional tournaments worldwide, including two U.S. Open championships (2001, 2004). A former World Number Three, he was inducted into the World Golf Hall of Fame in 2019. He currently competes on PGA Tour Champions. Known as 'The Goose' and 'The Iceman' for his famously unflappable demeanor, Goosen's calm was forged in extraordinary circumstances. At age 15, he was struck by lightning on the golf course — the strike welded his irons together, melted his shoes, and burned the clothes off his body. A doctor in the group behind saved his life. After six days in the hospital, he emerged a changed person: from a daredevil to the shy, quiet, ice-cool competitor the golf world would come to know. Goosen turned professional in 1990 after winning the South African Amateur Championship. He earned his European Tour card at Qualifying School in 1992 and won his first European Tour title in 1996. His breakthrough came in 2001 when he won the U.S. Open at Southern Hills, recovering from a notorious three-putt on the 72nd hole to win an 18-hole Monday playoff. That year, he won the European Tour Order of Merit — becoming the first non-European to do so — and was named European Tour Golfer of the Year. He defended the Order of Merit in 2002, becoming the first non-European to win it in consecutive seasons. In 2004, Goosen won his second U.S. Open at Shinnecock Hills, delivering one of the most dominant final-round putting performances in major championship history — 11 one-putts on a day when the scoring average was the second-highest in U.S. Open history. No player shot under par for the first time in 41 years. He also won the TOUR Championship that year. With 7 PGA Tour wins, 14 European Tour titles, 5 Asian Tour wins, 6 Sunshine Tour wins, and 5 PGA Tour Champions titles (including the 2019 SENIOR PLAYERS Championship), Goosen is one of South Africa's most decorated golfers. He represented the International Team in six Presidents Cups (2000, 2003, 2005, 2007, 2009, 2011) and won the WGC-World Cup with Trevor Immelman in 2005. Goosen reached a career-high World Number 3 on 15 January 2006 and spent over 250 weeks in the world top 10 between 2001 and 2007. He was inducted into the World Golf Hall of Fame in 2019. His life philosophy reflects the calm that defined his career: 'Inside, you are nervous. Looking at it from the outside, everything looks smooth and comfortable and slow. You make the putts when you're in that mode.'