Gavan Levenson

Gavan Neil Levenson (born 18 December 1953) is a South African professional golfer.

Gavan Levenson
Personal information
Full name	Gavan Neil Levenson
Born	(1953-12-18) 18 December 1953 (age 71) Johannesburg, South Africa
Height	1.87 m (6 ft 2 in)
Sporting nationality	South Africa
Residence	Bedfordview, South Africa
Career
Turned professional	1978
Former tour(s)	PGA Tour European Tour Southern Africa Tour European Seniors Tour
Professional wins	8
Number of wins by tour
European Tour	2
Sunshine Tour	5
European Senior Tour	1
Best results in major championships
Masters Tournament	DNP
PGA Championship	CUT: 1984
U.S. Open	CUT: 1983, 1984
The Open Championship	T36: 1984
Achievements and awards
Southern Africa Tour Order of Merit winner 1983–84

Early life and amateur career

Levenson was born in Johannesburg. He represented South Africa in the 1976 Eisenhower Trophy and won several major amateur tournaments including the French and Rhodesian Open Amateur Championships in 1978.

Professional career

In 1978, Levenson turned professional and joined the European Tour the following year. He won the Belgian Open and finishing in 29th place on the Order of Merit in his rookie season.

After two seasons in Europe, Levenson qualified for the United States-based PGA Tour. He spent four largely unsuccessful years on the tour, only recording one top ten finish when he tied for 4th place at the 1982 Greater Hartford Open. He returned to Europe in 1985, and although he consistently finished inside the top 100 on the Order of Merit, he did not win again on the European Tour until the 1991 Open de Baleares.

Levenson also played on the Southern Africa Tour during the Northern Hemisphere winters. He won five titles in South Africa, including one South African Open Championship and one South African PGA Championship, and topped the Order of Merit in 1983/84.

Since turning fifty, Levenson has played on the European Seniors Tour, where he has one victory, achieved in just his second tournament, the 2004 DGM Barbados Open.

Amateur wins

• 1975 South African Amateur Stroke-Play Championship
• 1978 French Amateur Open Championship, Rhodesian Amateur Open Championship

Professional wins (8)

European Tour wins (2)

No.	Date	Tournament	Winning score	Margin of victory	Runner(s)-up
1	10 Jun 1979	Belgian Open	−5 (68-71-68-72=279)	3 strokes	Bobby Cole, Nick Faldo, Michael King
2	10 Mar 1991	Open de Baleares	−6 (72-74-67-69=282)	1 stroke	Steven Richardson

Southern Africa Tour wins (5)

No.	Date	Tournament	Winning score	Margin of victory	Runner-up
1	12 Feb 1983	Sigma Vaal Reefs Open	−14 (75-67-70-62=274)	2 strokes	Nick Price
2	4 Feb 1984	Lexington PGA Championship	−9 (70-66-68-67=271)	3 strokes	Nick Price
3	26 Jan 1985	South African Open	−8 (69-68-72-71=280)	3 strokes	Phil Simmons
4	19 Jan 1986	ICL International	−18 (71-65-67-67=270)	1 stroke	David Frost
5	13 Jan 1990	ICL International (2)	−19 (67-68-66-68=269)	2 strokes	Wayne Westner

European Seniors Tour wins (1)

No.	Date	Tournament	Winning score	Margin of victory	Runners-up
1	28 Mar 2004	DGM Barbados Open	−12 (69-64-71=204)	2 strokes	Denis Durnian, Carl Mason

Results in major championships

Tournament	1975	1976	1977	1978	1979
U.S. Open
The Open Championship	CUT				CUT
PGA Championship

Tournament	1980	1981	1982	1983	1984	1985	1986	1987	1988	1989
U.S. Open				CUT	CUT
The Open Championship	CUT				T36			CUT		79
PGA Championship					CUT

Tournament	1990	1991
U.S. Open
The Open Championship	CUT	T57
PGA Championship

Note: Levenson never played in the Masters Tournament.

  Did not play

CUT = missed the half-way cut
"T" = tied

Team appearances

Amateur

• Commonwealth Tournament (representing South Africa): 1975
• Eisenhower Trophy (representing South Africa): 1976

See also

• Spring 1981 PGA Tour Qualifying School graduates
• 1983 PGA Tour Qualifying School graduates

External links

• Gavan Levenson at the European Tour official site
• Gavan Levenson at the Sunshine Tour official site
• Gavan Levenson at the PGA Tour official site
• Gavan Levenson at the Official World Golf Ranking official site