Vijay Singh

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Vijay Singh
CF
विजय सिंह (Fiji Hindi)
Personal information
Full nameVijay Singh
NicknameThe Big Fijian
Born (1963-02-22) 22 February 1963 (age 61)
Lautoka, Viti Levu, British Fiji (present-day Fiji)
Height6 ft 2 in (188 cm)
Weight208 lb (94 kg; 14.9 st)
Sporting nationality Fiji
ResidencePonte Vedra Beach, Florida, U.S.
Spouse
Ardena Seth
(m. 1985)
Children1
Career
Turned professional1982
Current tour(s)PGA Tour
PGA Tour Champions
European Senior Tour
Former tour(s)European Tour
Asian Tour
Professional wins66
Highest ranking1 (5 September 2004)[1]
(32 weeks)
Number of wins by tour
PGA Tour34
European Tour13
Asian Tour5
Sunshine Tour2
PGA Tour Champions5
Other14
Best results in major championships
(wins: 3)
Masters TournamentWon: 2000
PGA ChampionshipWon: 1998, 2004
U.S. OpenT3: 1999
The Open ChampionshipT2: 2003
Achievements and awards
World Golf Hall of Fame2005/2006[2][3] (member page)
PGA Tour
Rookie of the Year
1993
PGA Tour
money list winner
2003, 2004, 2008
PGA Tour
Player of the Year
2004
PGA Player of the Year2004
Byron Nelson Award2004
Vardon Trophy2004
European Tour
Golfer of the Year
2004
PGA Tour
FedEx Cup winner
2008

Vijay Singh CF (Fiji Hindi: विजय सिंह pronounced [ˈʋɪdʒəj sɪ̃ɦ]; born 22 February 1963), nicknamed "the Big Fijian", is a Fijian professional golfer. He has won 34 events on the PGA Tour, which is the most by a player from outside of the United States, including three major championships: one Masters title (2000) and two PGA Championships (1998, 2004). He is the first person of South Asian descent to win a major championship. He was elected to the World Golf Hall of Fame in 2006.[3]

Singh reached world number one in the Official World Golf Ranking for 32 weeks in 2004 and 2005. Vijay was the 12th man to reach the world No. 1 ranking and was the only new world No. 1 in the 2000s decade. Singh was the leading PGA Tour money winner in 2003, 2004 and 2008. He also captured the FedEx Cup in 2008.[4]

Early life[edit]

Singh recollected to reporters about his childhood: "When we were kids we couldn't afford golf balls so we had to make do with coconuts. My father used to say, 'Little Vijay, golf balls don't fall off trees you know,' so I found some that did!"[5] Growing up, he played snooker, cricket, football, and the island's most popular sport, rugby. He is the son of Mohan Singh, an airplane technician who also taught golf. Growing up, he admired the swing of Tom Weiskopf, using it as an early model for his own.[6]

Professional career[edit]

Asia Golf Circuit[edit]

Singh turned professional in 1982. Two years later, he won the 1984 Malaysian PGA Championship. However, his career was plunged into crisis after he was suspended from the Asia Golf Circuit in 1985 over allegations he doctored his scorecard. It was alleged that he lowered his score from one over to one under in order to make the cut, but Singh denies this, saying that in any case, it should only have resulted in disqualification from the event rather than a ban. After investigation by the Tour of this and other alleged violations proved true, John Bender, Asian PGA Tour president, issued Singh a lifetime ban on Asian PGA Tour play.

Singh felt he had been more harshly treated because the marker was "the son of a VIP in the Indonesian PGA."[7] He then took a job at the Keningau Club in Sabah, Malaysia, before his move to the Miri Golf Club in Sarawak. While this was a period of hardship for him, he continued to gain experience.[8]

European Tour[edit]

Singh saved the money he needed to resurrect his career and began to re-enter tournaments. In 1988 he teamed up with a sponsor, Red Baron, which funded a trip to Africa to compete on the now-defunct Safari Circuit, an offshoot circuit of the European Tour. Singh captured his first event, the 1988 Nigerian Open, locals cheered him loudly. At the end of that year he entered the European Tour Qualifying school for the second consecutive year, and was successful on this occasion.

In 1989, Singh won his first European Tour title at the Volvo Open Championship in Italy and finished 24th on the European Tour Order of Merit, putting his early struggles firmly behind him. He won four times in 1989, at the Volvo Open di Firenze, Ivory Coast Open, Nigerian Open and Zimbabwe Open. He also finished tied for 23rd at The Open Championship. He won on the European Tour again in 1990 and did so twice in 1992. He also won several tournaments in Asia and Africa in this period.

PGA Tour[edit]

Singh earned membership for the PGA Tour in 1993, winning his first tournament, the Buick Classic in a playoff over Mark Wiebe. That victory led to his being named the 1993 PGA Tour Rookie of the Year. After being hampered with back and neck problems in 1994, he came back to win the Buick Classic again in 1995 as well as the Phoenix Open. After playing well in 1996 (but with no victories), he won both the Memorial Tournament and the Buick Open in 1997.

In 1998, Singh was victorious at the PGA Championship at Sahalee Country Club in Sammamish, Washington, playing a 70-66-67-68 over the four days (the 66 tied a course record) and earning him his first Major title. He followed this up by winning The Masters in 2000, with a three-stroke victory over Ernie Els.[9]

Singh did not win on the PGA Tour in 2001, but finished the year with a Tour-best 14 top-10 finishes and was fourth on the money list with $3,440,829 for the year. In 2002, he won at the Shell Houston Open at TPC at The Woodlands, setting a new tournament 72-hole scoring record with a 266, and at the Tour Championship, winning by two strokes over Charles Howell III.

2003 proved to be a very successful year for Singh. He won four tournaments, had 18 top-10 finishes and was the PGA Tour's money leader (and had the second-highest single-season total in PGA Tour history) with $7,573,907, beating Tiger Woods by $900,494, though Singh played 27 tournaments compared to Woods' 18 tournaments. Singh also tied a 9-hole scoring record at the U.S. Open with a 29 on the back nine of his second round.[10] His victories came at the Phoenix Open, the EDS Byron Nelson Championship, the John Deere Classic and the FUNAI Classic at the Walt Disney World Resort. He narrowly lost the vote for the PGA of America's Player of the Year to Tiger Woods.

However, the 2003 season was also spotted with controversy involving Singh surrounding the year's event at the Bank of America Colonial. LPGA star Annika Sörenstam became the first woman to play at a PGA Tour event since Babe Zaharias at the 1945 Los Angeles Open. Surrounding this fervor, Singh was misquoted as having said that Sörenstam "didn't belong" on the men's tour and that he would not play if he were paired with her. What he actually said is that he would not be paired with her because his playing partner was being selected from the past champion's pool. Singh later clarified, "There are guys out there trying to make a living. It's not a ladies' tour. If she wants to play, she should—or any other woman for that matter—if they want to play the man's tour, they should qualify and play like everybody else."[11]

Singh began 2004 by winning the AT&T Pebble Beach National Pro-Am at −16 and winning $954,000 in prize money. This was his first win on tour in 2004 and his 16th all-time on the PGA Tour. It was his 12th consecutive top-10 finish, which is two shy of Jack Nicklaus' all-time record.

Singh won the final major of 2004, winning the PGA Championship, his third major, in a three-hole aggregate playoff over Justin Leonard and Chris DiMarco. Singh was the leader by one shot over Leonard going into the final round, but made no birdies in the final round, finishing regulation at 67-68-69-76=280. His final round of 76 was the highest winning score by a major champion since 1955. The playoff was a tense affair, and Singh's birdie on the first playoff hole, his first birdie of the day, proved to be the difference.

On 6 September 2004 (Labor Day), Singh won the Deutsche Bank Championship in Norton, Massachusetts. With the win, he overtook Tiger Woods at the top of the Official World Golf Ranking, ending Woods' streak of 264 weeks at the top of the golf world.

Singh finished the 2004 season with a career-best nine victories, 18 top-10s, and a record $10,905,166 in earnings and was named the PGA Tour's and PGA of America's Player of the Year. The former award is decided by a vote of active PGA Tour players.

Despite picking up a win early in 2005, Singh lost his world number 1 ranking when Tiger Woods won the Ford Championship at Doral on 6 March, but just two weeks later he took it back again after notching up top-three finishes in three consecutive weeks. Following Woods' win at the 2005 Masters, Singh once again lost his place as World No. 1 in the Official World Golf Ranking and finished tied for fifth place. In April, he became the youngest living person elected to the World Golf Hall of Fame, garnering 56% of the ballot. Thirty-year-old Karrie Webb was inducted into the Hall of Fame in October 2005, but Singh remained the youngest living electee, as Webb qualified for the Hall without an election process. (The 19th century great Tom Morris, Jr., who was elected in 1975, died at age 24.) Singh deferred his induction for a year, and it took place in October 2006.

In 2006, Singh played enough European Tour events to be listed on the European Tour Order of Merit title for the first time since 1995.

At the start of the 2007 season, Singh won the Mercedes-Benz Championship which was the first FedEx Cup event in PGA Tour history. This win got Singh his 18th tour win over the age of 40, surpassing Sam Snead as most over 40 wins, and making all-time over 40 tour winner. He won again at The Arnold Palmer Invitational in March, but did not win for the rest of the year which turned into a disappointing year for Singh. He did not finish in a top ten of a major for the first time in ten years and finished 10th in the FedEx Cup race. He went through swing changes during the end of 2007 which resulted in weeks of missed cuts and staying outside the top ten through the Presidents Cup.

A new swing brought big changes for Singh in 2008, although he had good opportunities at Pebble Beach and Bay Hill, he was not competing at a high level for the first half of the year. His game was plagued by poor putting for the better part of two years, but his season started to turn around with a tie for fifth at the Travelers Championship. After missing the cut at The Open Championship, Singh won the WGC-Bridgestone Invitational in early August for his first win of the year and first World Golf Championship. His win had been a relief after missing short putts throughout the week. He missed the cut the following two weeks including at Oakland Hills for the PGA Championship and entered the PGA Tour FedEx Cup playoffs ranked 7th in the standings. At the first playoff event, Singh prevailed for his first FedEx Cup win defeating Sergio García and Kevin Sutherland in a playoff. On the first playoff hole García and Singh matched long birdie putts before Singh won with birdie on the second playoff hole. Singh was propelled into first place in the FedEx Cup race with three events remaining. At the second event of the playoffs, he triumphed once again, this time at the Deutsche Bank Championship bewildering the field with a five strokes victory and a final round 63. He had won three times in his last five starts and created an almost insurmountable lead in the points race. He would not contend in the remaining two events, but by playing in both the 2008 FedEx Cup title belonged to Singh. His season which looked to be a major disappointment in July turned into an historic year for Singh: he won the PGA Tour money list for the third time in his career and he surpassed Harry Cooper for most PGA Tour wins of all time for a non-American.

Singh has won 22 times on the PGA Tour since turning 40 – beating the record previously set by Sam Snead. He is the second man to reach $60 million in PGA Tour career earnings, after Tiger Woods. His 34 career victories are the most on the PGA Tour by a non-American player and place him 14th on the all-time list. He has spent over 540 weeks ranked in the top 10 of the Official World Golf Ranking.[12][13] Singh's longevity on the PGA Tour and his number of wins earn him a lifetime exemption on the PGA Tour.

Kenny Perry, another player who found success at a late age is good friends with Singh, who calls him "Biggie". Of Singh, Perry said "Vijay has always been good to me. We talk a lot. He wants to know how my family is doing. I think the world of him."[14]

After the 2008 playoffs, Singh announced his withdrawal from a couple of Asian Tour events because of a nagging back injury and was advised by doctors to rest.[15] He missed two and a half months, returning to win Tiger Woods's tournament, the Chevron World Challenge at Sherwood Country Club in California in December. It was his first victory in the event. During the start of the 2009 season Singh announced that he would miss three weeks after undergoing arthroscopic surgery to repair a torn meniscus in his right knee.[16] Singh had a mediocre 2009 season, with no top 5 finishes and ended the year with his lowest ever ranking on the PGA Tour money list in 68th.

Singh at the 2010 PGA Championship

His poor form continued into 2010, resulting in him being 66th on the PGA Tour money list. He dropped out of the top 50 in the world rankings for the first time since the early 1990s.

After returning from knee surgery, Singh started the 2011 season making five out of his first five cuts. In February, Singh was in contention to win his first PGA Tour Title since 2008 at the Waste Management Phoenix Open in Scottsdale, Arizona. Despite shooting a final round 66, Singh finished two shots behind Jason Dufner and eventual winner Mark Wilson. A couple of weeks later, Singh was in contention again, this time at the Northern Trust Open at Riviera Country Club. However, he came up short again, not helped by back-to-back bogeys on holes 12 and 13. He would eventually finish two shots back of the winner Aaron Baddeley, although he did secure second spot on his own. This early season form however was not enough to secure a spot at the opening World Golf Championship of the year, the WGC-Accenture Match Play Championship the following week. However, at number 10 in the 2011 FedEx Cup standings, it was just enough to secure a spot at the WGC-Cadillac Championship in March.

On 6 June 2011, Singh missed his tee-time for the U.S. Open qualifying in Columbus, Ohio. At the time, this ended the longest active streak of consecutive majors played by a professional golfer, at 67.[17]

On 30 January 2013, Singh admitted to using deer-antler spray while not knowing that it is a banned substance.[18] The PGA Tour later dropped its case against him.[19] On 8 May 2013, Singh sued the PGA Tour for exposing him to public humiliation and ridicule during a 12-week investigation into his use of deer-antler spray. On 20 November 2018, the PGA Tour and Singh announced that the lawsuit had been settled. The PGA Tour confirmed that it does not believe that Singh intended to gain an unfair advantage over his fellow competitors in this matter. Other terms of the settlement were not announced.[20]

Singh at the 2015 PGA Championship

Senior career[edit]

Singh played his first PGA Tour Champions event in 2013, finishing T6 at the Pacific Links Hawai'i Championship. During this era, he still played some PGA Tour events, finishing second at the Quicken Loans National, three strokes behind winner Billy Hurley III.

In 2017, Singh won his first senior event, the Bass Pro Shops Legends of Golf with Carlos Franco. In March 2018, Singh won the Toshiba Classic. Four months later, in July, Singh won one of the PGA Tour Champions' major tournaments, the Constellation Senior Players Championship in a playoff over Jeff Maggert. At the end of the season, in November, Singh won the season-ending Charles Schwab Cup Championship in Phoenix, Arizona. The victory was worth $440,000.[21] By winning the tournament, he also finished fourth in the season-long Charles Schwab Cup, winning an additional $200,000.[22]

In March 2019, Singh shot his way into the final group of the final round of the Honda Classic. Singh shot even-par to finish sixth, three strokes behind winner Keith Mitchell.

Personal life[edit]

An Indo-Fijian practising Hinduism,[23] Singh was born in Lautoka, Fiji and grew up in Nadi. A resident of Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida, he is known for his meticulous preparation, often arriving hours before, and staying long after his tournament rounds to work on his game on the driving range and putting greens.

Singh has a brother named Krishna who is also a professional golfer.[24]

Media relations[edit]

Singh at a press conference in 2014

Controversy surrounded Singh in 2003 before the Bank of America Colonial. Annika Sörenstam was scheduled to play the event, and Singh was quoted as saying, "I hope she misses the cut ... because she doesn't belong out here." He later said that the substance of his interview to an Associated Press reporter was that she would be displacing some other struggling male player, for whom he had his sympathies. However, the media focused on this statement. Golf Digest wrote that Singh had become "pro golf's bad guy".

After Singh's win at the Masters, Ernie Els took issue with some of the negative press his friend received. He wrote an article in Sports Illustrated to defend him, saying, "Golf should be proud of Vijay Singh." Later Els said of Singh "He's a wonderful guy. I've known him for the better part of 10 years now. He's a great competitor. I think people have a misconception of Vijay. He's a really good guy."[25]

In May 2005, Singh was appointed a goodwill ambassador for Fiji. He said that he did not expect anything in return from the Fijian government for representing his country. At a press conference on 18 May 2005, Singh commented on what he said was a deterioration in race relations in Fiji, saying that for such a small country, people of all races should live together, put their differences aside, and get on with life. Relations between Indo-Fijians and indigenous Fijians had been more harmonious when he was younger, he said.[26]

Professional wins (66)[edit]

PGA Tour wins (34)[edit]

Legend
Major championships (3)
World Golf Championships (1)
Tour C'ships/FedEx Cup playoff events (3)
Other PGA Tour (27)
No. Date Tournament Winning score Margin of
victory
Runner(s)-up
1 13 Jun 1993 Buick Classic −4 (72-68-74-66=280) Playoff United States Mark Wiebe
2 29 Jan 1995 Phoenix Open −15 (70-67-66-66=269) Playoff United States Billy Mayfair
3 21 May 1995 Buick Classic (2) −6 (70-69-67-72=278) Playoff United States Doug Martin
4 2 Jun 1997 Memorial Tournament −14 (70-65-67=202)* 2 strokes United States Jim Furyk, Australia Greg Norman
5 10 Aug 1997 Buick Open −15 (67-73-67-66=273) 4 strokes United States Tom Byrum, United States Russ Cochran,
South Africa Ernie Els, United States Brad Fabel,
Japan Naomichi Ozaki, United States Curtis Strange
6 16 Aug 1998 PGA Championship −9 (70-66-67-68=271) 2 strokes United States Steve Stricker
7 23 Aug 1998 Sprint International 47 pts (15-12-6-14=47) 6 points United States Phil Mickelson, United States Willie Wood
8 14 Mar 1999 Honda Classic −11 (71-69-68-69=277) 2 strokes United States Payne Stewart
9 9 Apr 2000 Masters Tournament −10 (72-67-70-69=278) 3 strokes South Africa Ernie Els
10 31 Mar 2002 Shell Houston Open −22 (67-65-66-68=266) 6 strokes Northern Ireland Darren Clarke
11 3 Nov 2002 The Tour Championship −12 (65-71-65-67=268) 2 strokes United States Charles Howell III
12 26 Jan 2003 Phoenix Open (2) −23 (67-66-65-63=261) 3 strokes United States John Huston
13 18 May 2003 EDS Byron Nelson Championship −15 (65-65-69-66=265) 2 strokes Zimbabwe Nick Price
14 15 Sep 2003 John Deere Classic −16 (66-68-69-65=268) 4 strokes United States Jonathan Byrd, United States J. L. Lewis,
United States Chris Riley
15 26 Oct 2003 Funai Classic at the Walt Disney World Resort −23 (64-65-69-67=265) 4 strokes United States Stewart Cink, United States Scott Verplank,
United States Tiger Woods
16 8 Feb 2004 AT&T Pebble Beach National Pro-Am −16 (67-68-68-69=272) 3 strokes United States Jeff Maggert
17 26 Apr 2004 Shell Houston Open (2) −11 (74-66-69-68=277) 2 strokes United States Scott Hoch
18 3 May 2004 HP Classic of New Orleans −22 (70-65-68-63=266) 1 stroke United States Phil Mickelson, United States Joe Ogilvie
19 1 Aug 2004 Buick Open (2) −23 (63-70-65-67=265) 1 stroke United States John Daly
20 15 Aug 2004 PGA Championship (2) −8 (67-68-69-76=280) Playoff United States Chris DiMarco, United States Justin Leonard
21 6 Sep 2004 Deutsche Bank Championship −16 (68-63-68-69=268) 3 strokes Australia Adam Scott, United States Tiger Woods
22 12 Sep 2004 Bell Canadian Open −9 (68-66-72-69=275) Playoff Canada Mike Weir
23 26 Sep 2004 84 Lumber Classic −15 (64-68-72-69=273) 1 stroke United States Stewart Cink
24 31 Oct 2004 Chrysler Championship −18 (65-69-67-65=266) 5 strokes United States Tommy Armour III, Sweden Jesper Parnevik
25 16 Jan 2005 Sony Open in Hawaii −11 (69-68-67-65=269) 1 stroke South Africa Ernie Els
26 24 Apr 2005 Shell Houston Open (3) −13 (64-71-70-70=275) Playoff United States John Daly
27 8 May 2005 Wachovia Championship −12 (70-69-71-66=276) Playoff United States Jim Furyk, Spain Sergio García
28 31 Jul 2005 Buick Open (3) −24 (65-66-63-70=264) 4 strokes United States Zach Johnson, United States Tiger Woods
29 11 Jun 2006 Barclays Classic (3) −10 (70-64-72-68=274) 2 strokes Australia Adam Scott
30 7 Jan 2007 Mercedes-Benz Championship −14 (69-69-70-70=278) 2 strokes Australia Adam Scott
31 18 Mar 2007 Arnold Palmer Invitational −8 (70-68-67-67=272) 2 strokes United States Rocco Mediate
32 3 Aug 2008 WGC-Bridgestone Invitational −10 (67-66-69-68=270) 1 stroke Australia Stuart Appleby, England Lee Westwood
33 24 Aug 2008 The Barclays (4) −8 (70-70-66-70=276) Playoff Spain Sergio García, United States Kevin Sutherland
34 1 Sep 2008 Deutsche Bank Championship (2) −22 (64-66-69-63=262) 5 strokes Canada Mike Weir

*Note: The 1997 Memorial Tournament was shortened to 54 holes due to rain.

PGA Tour playoff record (8–4)

No. Year Tournament Opponent(s) Result
1 1993 Buick Classic United States Mark Wiebe Won with birdie on third extra hole
2 1995 Phoenix Open United States Billy Mayfair Won with par on first extra hole
3 1995 Buick Classic United States Doug Martin Won with birdie on fifth extra hole
4 1998 The Tour Championship United States Hal Sutton Lost to birdie on first extra hole
5 2004 PGA Championship United States Chris DiMarco, United States Justin Leonard Won three-hole aggregate playoff;
Singh: −1 (3-3-4=10),
DiMarco: x (4-3-x=x),
Leonard: x (4-3-x=x)
6 2004 Bell Canadian Open Canada Mike Weir Won with par on third extra hole
7 2005 The Honda Classic Republic of Ireland Pádraig Harrington, United States Joe Ogilvie Harrington won with par on second extra hole
Ogilvie eliminated by par on first hole
8 2005 Shell Houston Open United States John Daly Won with par on first extra hole
9 2005 Wachovia Championship United States Jim Furyk, Spain Sergio García Won with par on fourth extra hole
García eliminated by par on first hole
10 2006 Mercedes Championships Australia Stuart Appleby Lost to birdie on first extra hole
11 2008 AT&T Pebble Beach National Pro-Am United States Steve Lowery Lost to birdie on first extra hole
12 2008 The Barclays Spain Sergio García, United States Kevin Sutherland Won with birdie on second extra hole
Sutherland eliminated by birdie on first hole

European Tour wins (13)[edit]

Legend
Major championships (3)
World Golf Championships (1)
Other European Tour (9)
No. Date Tournament Winning score Margin of
victory
Runner(s)-up
1 2 Apr 1989 Volvo Open Championship −12 (72-68-68-68=276) 3 strokes Australia Peter Fowler
2 8 Apr 1990 El Bosque Open −10 (66-69-74-69=278) 2 strokes England Richard Boxall, South Africa Chris Williams
3 16 Feb 1992 Turespaña Masters Open de Andalucía −11 (72-70-69-66=277) 2 strokes England Gary Evans
4 23 Aug 1992 Volvo German Open −26 (66-68-64-64=262) 11 strokes Spain José Manuel Carriles
5 31 Jul 1994 Scandinavian Masters −20 (68-67-69-64=268) 3 strokes Zimbabwe Mark McNulty
6 25 Sep 1994 Trophée Lancôme −17 (65-63-69-66=263) 1 stroke Spain Miguel Ángel Jiménez
7 9 Feb 1997 South African Open1 −18 (69-66-66-69=270) 1 stroke Zimbabwe Nick Price
8 16 Aug 1998 PGA Championship −9 (70-66-67-68=271) 2 strokes United States Steve Stricker
9 9 Apr 2000 Masters Tournament −10 (72-67-70-69=278) 3 strokes South Africa Ernie Els
10 18 Feb 2001 Carlsberg Malaysian Open2 −14 (68-70-68-68=274) Playoff Republic of Ireland Pádraig Harrington
11 25 Feb 2001 Caltex Singapore Masters2 −21 (64-63-68-68=263) 2 strokes England Warren Bennett
12 15 Aug 2004 PGA Championship (2) −8 (67-68-69-76=280) Playoff United States Chris DiMarco, United States Justin Leonard
13 3 Aug 2008 WGC-Bridgestone Invitational −10 (67-66-69-68=270) 1 stroke Australia Stuart Appleby, England Lee Westwood

1Co-sanctioned by the Southern Africa Tour
2Co-sanctioned by the Asian Tour

European Tour playoff record (2–0)

No. Year Tournament Opponent(s) Result
1 2001 Carlsberg Malaysian Open Republic of Ireland Pádraig Harrington Won with birdie on third extra hole
2 2004 PGA Championship United States Chris DiMarco, United States Justin Leonard Won three-hole aggregate playoff;
Singh: −1 (3-3-4=10),
DiMarco: x (4-3-x=x),
Leonard: x (4-3-x=x)

Asian Tour wins (5)[edit]

No. Date Tournament Winning score Margin of
victory
Runner(s)-up
1 2 Sep 1995 Passport Open −16 (70-72-65-65=272) 1 stroke India Jeev Milkha Singh
2 10 Sep 2000 Johnnie Walker Taiwan Open −1 (73-72-71-71=287) Playoff South Africa Craig Kamps
3 18 Feb 2001 Carlsberg Malaysian Open1 −14 (68-70-68-68=274) Playoff Republic of Ireland Pádraig Harrington
4 25 Feb 2001 Caltex Singapore Masters1 −21 (64-63-68-68=263) 2 strokes England Warren Bennett
5 7 Oct 2007 Kolon-Hana Bank Korea Open2 −6 (66-69-70-73=278) 2 strokes South Korea Kim Kyung-tae, South Korea Yang Yong-eun

1Co-sanctioned by the European Tour
2Co-sanctioned by the Korean Tour

Asian Tour playoff record (2–0)

No. Year Tournament Opponent Result
1 2000 Johnnie Walker Taiwan Open South Africa Craig Kamps Won with par on first extra hole
2 2001 Carlsberg Malaysian Open Republic of Ireland Pádraig Harrington Won with birdie on third extra hole

Asia Golf Circuit wins (1)[edit]

No. Date Tournament Winning score Margin of
victory
Runners-up
1 15 Mar 1992 Benson & Hedges Malaysian Open −9 (65-67-74-69=275) 3 strokes Taiwan Hsieh Chin-sheng, Australia Brad King,
United States Craig McClellan, Sri Lanka Nandasena Perera,
United States Lee Porter

Southern Africa Tour wins (2)[edit]

No. Date Tournament Winning score Margin of
victory
Runner-up
1 10 Jan 1993 Bell's Cup −10 (73-69-68-68=278) 2 strokes Zimbabwe Mark McNulty
2 9 Feb 1997 South African Open1 −18 (69-66-66-69=270) 1 stroke Zimbabwe Nick Price

1Co-sanctioned by the European Tour

Safari Circuit wins (4)[edit]

No. Date Tournament Winning score Margin of
victory
Runner(s)-up
1 31 Jan 1988 Nigerian Open −3 (281) Playoff Scotland Mike Miller
2 29 Jan 1989 Zimbabwe Open −6 (72-67-71-72=282) 2 strokes Wales Mark Mouland
3 19 Nov 1989 Nigerian Open (2) −5 (71-68-72-68=279) 1 stroke England Gordon J. Brand, England Jeff Pinsent,
England Ian Spencer
4 26 Nov 1989 Ivory Coast Open −14 (70-65-65-74=274) 1 stroke England Jeff Pinsent

Swedish Golf Tour wins (1)[edit]

No. Date Tournament Winning score Margin of
victory
Runner-up
1 7 Aug 1988 Länsförsäkringar Open −6 (70-70-69-73=282) 1 stroke Sweden Jesper Parnevik

Other wins (8)[edit]

No. Date Tournament Winning score Margin of
victory
Runner(s)-up
1 8 Dec 1984 Malaysian PGA Championship −2 (286) 1 stroke Malaysia Nazamuddin Yusof
2 24 Nov 1991 Hassan II Golf Trophy −7 (70-73-71-71=285) Playoff United States Payne Stewart
3 12 Oct 1997 Toyota World Match Play Championship 1 up South Africa Ernie Els
4 10 Nov 1998 Johnnie Walker Super Tour −19 (70-66-71-62=269) 2 strokes South Africa Ernie Els
5 24 Jul 2001 Telus Skins Game $180,000 $105,000 United States David Duval
6 24 Jun 2003 Telus Skins Game (2) $140,000 $45,000 Canada Ian Leggatt
7 21 Dec 2008 Chevron World Challenge −11 (71-72-67-67=277) 1 stroke United States Steve Stricker
8 18 Dec 2022 PNC Championship
(with son Qass Singh)
−26 (59-59=118) 2 strokes United States John Daly and son John Daly II,
United States Justin Thomas and father Mike Thomas

Other playoff record (1–2)

No. Year Tournament Opponent(s) Result
1 1991 Hassan II Golf Trophy United States Payne Stewart Won with birdie on first extra hole
2 1995 Johnnie Walker World Golf Championship United States Fred Couples, United States Loren Roberts Couples won with birdie on second extra hole
3 2000 PGA Grand Slam of Golf United States Tiger Woods Lost to eagle on first extra hole

PGA Tour Champions wins (5)[edit]

Legend
PGA Tour Champions major championships (1)
Charles Schwab Cup playoff events (1)
Other PGA Tour Champions (3)
No. Date Tournament Winning score Margin of
victory
Runner(s)-up
1 23 Apr 2017 Bass Pro Shops Legends of Golf
(with Paraguay Carlos Franco)
−15 (51-42=93) 1 stroke United States Fred Funk and United States Jeff Sluman,
United States Paul Goydos and United States Kevin Sutherland,
United States Corey Pavin and United States Duffy Waldorf
2 11 Mar 2018 Toshiba Classic −11 (68-68-66=202) 1 stroke United States Scott McCarron, United States Tom Pernice Jr.,
United States Tommy Tolles
3 15 Jul 2018 Constellation Senior Players Championship −20 (68-67-66-67=268) Playoff United States Jeff Maggert
4 11 Nov 2018 Charles Schwab Cup Championship −22 (67-67-67-61=262) 4 strokes United States Tim Petrovic
5 27 Aug 2023 The Ally Challenge −14 (66-68-68=202) 1 stroke United States Jeff Maggert

PGA Tour Champions playoff record (1–0)

No. Year Tournament Opponent Result
1 2018 Constellation Senior Players Championship United States Jeff Maggert Won with birdie on second extra hole

Major championships[edit]

Wins (3)[edit]

Year Championship 54 holes Winning score Margin Runner(s)-up
1998 PGA Championship Tied for lead −9 (70-66-67-68=271) 2 strokes United States Steve Stricker
2000 Masters Tournament 3 shot lead −10 (72-67-70-69=278) 3 strokes South Africa Ernie Els
2004 PGA Championship (2) 1 shot lead −8 (67-68-69-76=280) Playoff1 United States Chris DiMarco, United States Justin Leonard

1Defeated Justin Leonard and Chris DiMarco in three-hole playoff: Singh (3-3-4=10), Leonard (4-3-x=x), and DiMarco (4-3-x=x)

Results timeline[edit]

Results not in chronological order in 2020.

Tournament 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999
Masters Tournament T27 CUT T39 T17 CUT T24
U.S. Open CUT T10 T7 T77 T25 T3
The Open Championship T23 T12 T12 T51 T59 T20 T6 T11 T38 T19 CUT
PGA Championship T48 4 CUT CUT T5 T13 1 T49
Tournament 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009
Masters Tournament 1 T18 7 T6 T6 T5 T8 T13 T14 T30
U.S. Open T8 T7 T30 T20 T28 T6 T6 T20 T65 T27
The Open Championship T11 T13 CUT T2 T20 T5 CUT T27 CUT T38
PGA Championship CUT T51 8 T34 1 T10 CUT CUT CUT T16
Tournament 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018
Masters Tournament CUT CUT T27 T38 T37 54 CUT CUT 49
U.S. Open T40 CUT
The Open Championship T37 T9 CUT CUT
PGA Championship T39 CUT T36 T68 T35 T37 CUT 66 78
Tournament 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023
Masters Tournament CUT WD CUT CUT CUT
PGA Championship
U.S. Open
The Open Championship NT
  Win
  Top 10
  Did not play

CUT = missed the half way cut
WD = withdrew
"T" indicates a tie for a place.
NT = No tournament due to COVID-19 pandemic

Summary[edit]

Tournament Wins 2nd 3rd Top-5 Top-10 Top-25 Events Cuts made
Masters Tournament 1 0 0 2 6 11 30 19
PGA Championship 2 0 0 4 6 8 27 19
U.S. Open 0 0 1 1 7 10 18 16
The Open Championship 0 1 0 2 4 13 25 19
Totals 3 1 1 9 23 42 100 73
  • Most consecutive cuts made – 15 (2002 PGA – 2006 U.S. Open)
  • Longest streak of top-10s – 7 (2004 PGA – 2006 U.S. Open)

Results in The Players Championship[edit]

Tournament 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999
The Players Championship T28 T55 T43 T8 T31 T54 T20
Tournament 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009
The Players Championship T33 2 CUT CUT T13 T12 T8 T44 CUT T9
Tournament 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019
The Players Championship CUT CUT CUT CUT T63 T28 T16 CUT
  Top 10
  Did not play

CUT = missed the halfway cut
"T" indicates a tie for a place

World Golf Championships[edit]

Wins (1)[edit]

Year Championship 54 holes Winning score Margin Runners-up
2008 WGC-Bridgestone Invitational Tied for lead −10 (67-66-69-68=270) 1 stroke Australia Stuart Appleby, England Lee Westwood

Results timeline[edit]

Tournament 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012
Match Play R32 R64 R32 R32 R32 R32 R16 R32 QF R32 R64
Championship T16 T3 NT1 3 T2 T6 T56 T11 T2 T53 T11 T22 T66
Invitational T15 T13 T11 T6 T32 T3 T45 T56 1 T29 T58
Champions

1Cancelled due to 9/11

  Win
  Top 10
  Did not play

QF, R16, R32, R64 = Round in which player lost in match play
"T" = tied
NT = No tournament
Note that the HSBC Champions did not become a WGC event until 2009.

Senior major championships[edit]

Wins (1)[edit]

Year Championship 54 holes Winning score Margin Runners-up
2018 Constellation Senior Players Championship 1 shot deficit −20 (68-67-66-67=268) Playoff United States Jeff Maggert

Results timeline[edit]

Results not in chronological order before 2022.

Tournament 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023
The Tradition 64 T19 T43 NT 62 T15
Senior PGA Championship 2 T19 T21 NT T30 T8
U.S. Senior Open T5 T18 T7 T16 T24 NT T26 T33 T18
Senior Players Championship WD T18 1 T18 T43 T12 T31 T32
Senior British Open Championship T14 NT CUT CUT 3
  Win
  Top 10
  Did not play

CUT = missed the halfway cut
WD = withdrew
"T" indicates a tie for a place
NT = No tournament due to COVID-19 pandemic

PGA Tour career summary[edit]

Season Wins (Majors) Earnings ($) Rank[27]
1993 1 657,831 19
1994 0 325,959 52
1995 2 1,018,713 9
1996 0 855,140 17
1997 2 1,059,236 16
1998 2 (1) 2,238,998 2
1999 1 2,283,233 4
2000 1 (1) 2,573,835 5
2001 0 3,440,829 4
2002 2 3,756,563 3
2003 4 7,573,907 1
2004 9 (1) 10,905,166 1
2005 4 8,017,336 2
2006 1 4,602,416 4
2007 2 4,728,376 3
2008 3 6,601,094 1
2009 0 1,276,815 68
2010 0 1,334,262 66
2011 0 2,371,050 28
2012 0 1,586,305 51
2013 0 309,351 162
2014 0 989,028 97
2015 0 752,462 124
2016 0 1,210,104 88
2017 0 337,305 173
2018 0 95,334 210
2019 0 244,800 198
2020 0 20,088 234
Career* 34 (3) 71,236,216 4[28]

*As of the 2020 season.
There is a summary of Singh's European Tour career here.[29]

Team appearances[edit]

Amateur

Professional

See also[edit]

References[edit]

  1. ^ "Week 36 2004 Ending 5 Sep 2004" (pdf). OWGR. Retrieved 20 December 2018.
  2. ^ Singh was elected to the Hall of Fame in 2005 but deferred his induction until 2006.
  3. ^ a b "Nelson, Singh inducted into World Golf Hall of Fame". ESPN. Associated Press. 30 October 2006. Retrieved 8 November 2011.
  4. ^ "Vijay Singh – Performance". PGA Tour. Retrieved 18 June 2019.
  5. ^ Rees, Peter (1 November 2004). "Golf's Humble Fijian: Vijay Singh's Rise To Number One". Pacific Magazine. Retrieved 8 January 2007.
  6. ^ Shapiro, Leonard (18 August 1998). "Hard Work Finally Pays Off For Singh". Washington Post. Retrieved 25 April 2023.
  7. ^ "Vijay Singh Has Always Been Reluctant To Discuss His Early Years As A Pro, And For Good Reason". Golf. 11 May 2015. Retrieved 25 April 2023.
  8. ^ Mizell, Hubert (10 April 2000). "Experience a good teacher". St. Petersburg Times. Retrieved 8 January 2007.
  9. ^ "Singh claims US Masters". BBC Sport. 10 April 2000. Retrieved 7 April 2023.
  10. ^ Brown, Clifton (14 June 2003). "Singh Ties Record And Shares Lead With Furyk". The New York Times. Retrieved 8 April 2012.
  11. ^ "Vijay Apologizes For Swing At Annika". CBS News. 14 May 2003. Retrieved 22 July 2023.
  12. ^ "69 Players Who Have Reached The Top-10 in World Ranking" (PDF). Official World Golf Ranking. Retrieved 8 November 2011.
  13. ^ "Players who have reached the Top Ten in the Official World Golf Ranking since 1986". European Tour Official Guide 09 (38th ed.). PGA European Tour. 2009. p. 558.
  14. ^ Potter, Jerry (21 March 2005). "A surprising friendship". USA Today. Retrieved 27 May 2010.
  15. ^ "Singh sidelined two months with tendinitis". ESPN. Associated Press. 30 September 2008. Retrieved 8 April 2012.
  16. ^ "Singh has knee scoped". The Boston Globe. Associated Press. 16 January 2009. Retrieved 8 April 2012.
  17. ^ "Singh fails to show up for U.S. Open qualifier". PGA Tour. 6 June 2011. Retrieved 15 January 2014.
  18. ^ Harig, Bob (30 January 2013). "Vijay Singh could face suspension". ESPN. Retrieved 30 January 2013.
  19. ^ Harig, Bob (8 May 2013). "Vijay Singh Sues the PGA Tour". ESPN. Retrieved 8 May 2013.
  20. ^ Hoggard, Rex (20 November 2018). "Tour announces it has "resolved" lawsuit with Vijay Singh following the Fijian's anti-doping suspension which was later rescinded". Twitter. Retrieved 20 November 2018.
  21. ^ "2018 Charles Schwab Cup Championship purse, winner's share, prize money payout". 11 November 2018. Retrieved 11 November 2018.
  22. ^ "2018 Charles Schwab Cup bonus pool, purse, winner's share, prize money payout". 11 November 2018. Retrieved 11 November 2018.
  23. ^ "Vijay Singh Biography". JockBio. Retrieved 8 November 2011.
  24. ^ "Golf: The Shark helps Australia cruise into semi-final". The Canberra Times. 18 October 1992. p. 16. Retrieved 17 May 2020.
  25. ^ "The many sides of Vijay Singh". Sports Illustrated. Retrieved 8 November 2011.
  26. ^ "Singh returns to native Fiji". Sports Illustrated. 18 May 2005. Retrieved 8 November 2011.
  27. ^ "Official Money". PGA Tour. Retrieved 2 October 2020.
  28. ^ "Career Money Leaders". PGA Tour. Retrieved 2 October 2020.
  29. ^ "Vijay Singh – Record". European Tour. Retrieved 27 September 2016.

External links[edit]