Orville Moody (born December 9, 1933) is an American professional golfer who has won numerous tournaments in his career.
Moody was born in Chickasha, Oklahoma. The son of a golf course superintendent, he began his career at Capitol Hill High School in Oklahoma City, winning the 1952 state high school golf championship. After attempting college for a few weeks at the University of Oklahoma, Moody joined the U.S. Army. He was able to continue playing golf while in uniform, winning the All-Service championship and three Korean Opens. He spent 14 years in the Army, heading up maintenance supervision and instruction at all Army golf courses.
Moody gave up his military career in favor of a trial run at the PGA Tour in 1967. After a few months on the tour, the decision to give up the Army proved none too difficult. He had been making $5,000 per year in the military; his earnings the first year on the tour totaled almost $300,000. His nickname on the Tour was "Sarge" due to the fact that he rose to the rank of sergeant in the Army.
Moody's success on the PGA Tour was limited during the next few years, albeit he won on the biggest stage in men's professional golf in 1969, the U.S. Open, within 15 months of joining the tour; and was named PGA Player of the Year that year. It was the only PGA Tour victory for Moody, a gifted ball-striker whose career was plagued by putting problems, due in part, no doubt, to a cross-handed putting grip. He toured Japan, played in a few tournaments and eventually took a club pro job in Sulphur Springs, Texas. [1]
The 1969 U.S. Open was played at the Cypress Creek Course of the Champions Golf Club in Houston, Texas. Moody won by one stroke over three other golfers with a 72-hole score of 281. Deane Beman, Al Geiberger and Bob Rosburg all finished the tournament with a score of 282. [2]
His luck on the Senior Tour (now known as the Champions Tour) has been dramatically different. After turning 50, he won three of his first five tournaments and finished fifth on the money list on his way to a total of 11 Senior Tour victories. In 1989, he became only the fourth man to win both the U.S. Open and the U.S. Senior Open.
Moody had triple bypass heart surgery prior to the 1995 season, but still managed to play in 29 events. He currently resides in Lexington, Kentucky.
PGA Tour wins (1)
- 1969 U.S. Open
Major championship is shown in bold.
Champions Tour wins (11)
- 1984 (2) Daytona Beach Seniors Golf Classic, MONY Senior Tournament of Champions
- 1987 (2) Rancho Murieta Senior Gold Rush, GTE Kaanapali Classic
- 1988 (3) Vintage Chrysler Invitational, Senior Players Reunion Pro-Am, Greater Grand Rapids Open
- 1989 (2) Mazda SENIOR TOURNAMENT PLAYERS Championship, U.S. Senior Open
- 1991 (1) PaineWebber Invitational
- 1992 (1) Franklin Showdown Classic
Senior major championships are shown in bold.
Other senior wins
- 1984 Viceroy Panama Open
- 1987 Liberty Mutual Legends of Golf (with Bruce Crampton)
- 1988 Liberty Mutual Legends of Golf (with Bruce Crampton)
- 1995 Liberty Mutual Legends of Golf - Legendary Division (with Jimmy Powell)
- 1996 Liberty Mutual Legends of Golf - Legendary Division (with Jimmy Powell)
- 1999 Liberty Mutual Legends of Golf - Legendary Division (with Jimmy Powell)
- 2005 Liberty Mutual Legends of Golf - Demaret Division (with Jimmy Powell)
- 2006 Liberty Mutual Legends of Golf - Demaret Division (with Jimmy Powell)
Results in major championships
| Tournament | 1962 | 1963 | 1964 | 1965 | 1966 | 1967 | 1968 | 1969 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| The Masters | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP |
| U.S. Open | CUT | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP | 1 |
| The Open Championship | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP | T16 |
| PGA Championship | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP | T7 |
| Tournament | 1970 | 1971 | 1972 | 1973 | 1974 | 1975 | 1976 | 1977 | 1978 | 1979 | 1980 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| The Masters | T18 | T20 | CUT | CUT | 44 | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP |
| U.S. Open | CUT | T27 | T15 | CUT | DNP | CUT | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP |
| The Open Championship | CUT | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP | T11 | T19 | CUT |
| PGA Championship | T41 | CUT | WD | T30 | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP | CUT | DNP |
DNP = Did not play
WD = Withdrew
CUT = missed the half-way cut
"T" indicates a tie for a place
Green background for wins. Yellow background for top-10