Geoff Charles Ogilvy (born June 11, 1977) is an
Australian professional golfer who now resides in
Scottsdale, Arizona, in the United States.
Ogilvy was born in Adelaide, South Australia to an
English born father Mike and Australian born mother
Jane. He turned professional in May 1998 and he won
a European Tour card at that year's Qualifying
school. He played on the European Tour in 1999 and
2000, finishing 65th in his first season and
improving to 48th in his second. He joined the U.S.
based PGA Tour in 2001, and finished in the top 100
in each of his first five seasons. His first
professional tournament win came in 2005 at the PGA
Tour's Chrysler Classic of Tucson. In February 2006
he beat Davis Love III in the final of the 2006
WGC-Accenture Match Play Championship.
Ogilvy won his first major championship at the 2006
U.S. Open, after American Phil Mickelson gave up a
two shot lead with three holes to play, becoming the
first Australian to win a men's golf major since
Steve Elkington at the 1995 PGA Championship. Ogilvy
finished his round with a champion's flourish,
making improbable pars on each of the last two
holes. He holed a 30-foot chip shot at the 17th, and
then got up-and-down for par at the 18th, dropping a
downhill six-footer for his final stroke as all his
competitors collapsed around him. Phil Mickelson and
Colin Montgomerie needed pars on the final hole to
win, or bogeys to tie with Ogilvy, but they ruined
their chances by producing double-bogey sixes to
give Ogilvy a dramatic win. Jim Furyk needed par to
force a playoff but bogeyed the final hole. This
success moved Ogilvy into the top ten of the
Official World Golf Rankings for the first time, at
Number 8. He reached his highest placing to date on
9 July 2006 when he was ranked Number 7, and he
returned to that rank in February 2007 after
finishing as runner-up to Henrik Stenson whilst
defending his title at the 2007 WGC-Accenture Match
Play Championship. He has spent over 50 weeks in the
top-10 of the rankings.
Ogilvy is a founding owner of MOJO Pies, "The
Original Australian Pie" located in Scottsdale,
Arizona.
