The first comprehensive biography of Sir Bob Charles, New Zealand’s most successful golfer, has been published.
Written by Geoff Saunders and published by Ryan Publishing, the 328-page book, Sir Bob Charles – The Biography, charts the remarkable career on one of New Zealand’s great ever sportsman.
Charles competed during the ‘golden age’ of professional golf in the 1960s and 1970s and acquired the title of the “best putter in the world”. His glittering professional career spanned almost 50 years, and brought 80 wins, including the 1963 Open Championship at Royal Lytham & St Annes, when he became the first left-handed player to win a major. He won six PGA Tour events, four European Tour events and 20 tournaments in New Zealand.
After turning 50, Charles joined the senior circuit in 1983, and won 23 titles in Europe and the US, including the British Senior Open in 1989 and 1993.
In 2007, at the age of 71, Charles became the oldest golfer to make the cut in a European Tour event, at the Michael Hill New Zealand Open. He shot 68 and 70 to finish in a tie for 23rd. He officially retired from professional golf in 2010 at the age of 74.
Charles was awarded the OBE in 1971, the CBE in 1992, knighted in 1999, and honoured with the Order of New Zealand in 2011. He was inducted into the World Golf Hall of Fame in 2008 – becoming the first left-handed golfer to earn the accolade – and was invited to become an Honorary Member of The Royal and Ancient Golf Club in 2016.
Now aged 89, Sirt Bob regularly beat his age well into his 80s and still plays off a single-figure handicap.
A hardback limited edition copy of the book, signed by Sir Bob, is priced at £69.99, while the paperback is priced at £29.99 and can be ordered from Ryan Publishing by clicking here.