John Bland (golfer)

John Louis Bland (22 September 1945 – 9 May 2023) was a South African professional golfer who won more than thirty professional tournaments around the world.

John Bland
Bland at the 2010 Dutch Senior Open
Personal information
Full name	John Louis Bland
Born	(1945-09-22)22 September 1945 Johannesburg, Transvaal, South Africa
Died	9 May 2023(2023-05-09) (aged 77) George, Western Cape, South Africa
Height	1.75 m (5 ft 9 in)
Weight	73 kg (161 lb; 11.5 st)
Sporting nationality	South Africa
Career
Turned professional	1969
Former tour(s)	European Tour Sunshine Tour Champions Tour European Senior Tour
Professional wins	36
Highest ranking	49 (28 April 1991)[1]
Number of wins by tour
European Tour	2
Sunshine Tour	19
Challenge Tour	1
PGA Tour Champions	5
European Senior Tour	3
Other	6
Best results in major championships
Masters Tournament	DNP
PGA Championship	DNP
U.S. Open	DNP
The Open Championship	T16: 1980
Achievements and awards
Southern Africa Tour Order of Merit winner 1977–78, 1987–88, 1989–90, 1990–91 Senior PGA Tour Rookie of the Year 1996

Early life and career

Bland was born in Johannesburg, Union of South Africa. Turning professional in 1969, he was a leading player on the Southern African Tour for over twenty years. He spent the northern summers playing on the European Tour, where he won twice. He was a more consistent contender than this tally might suggest, as he finished in the top-20 on the Order of Merit six times.

After reaching the age of fifty in 1995, Bland played mainly on the United States-based Champions Tour. He won five tournaments on the tour, including four in 1996, when he finished third on the money list. He has also won three tournaments on the European Senior Tour.

Death

Bland died after battling cancer in George, Western Cape, South Africa, on 9 May 2023, at the age of 77.^[2][3]

Professional wins (36)

European Tour wins (2)

No.	Date	Tournament	Winning score	Margin of victory	Runner-up
1	21 Aug 1983	Benson & Hedges International Open	−15 (68-70-67-68=273)	1 stroke	Bernhard Langer
2	20 Apr 1986	Suze Open	−12 (68-71-70-67=276)	4 strokes	Seve Ballesteros

Southern Africa Tour wins (19)

Legend
Tour Championships (2)
Other Southern Africa Tour (17)

No.	Date	Tournament	Winning score	Margin of victory	Runner(s)-up
1	22 Oct 1977	Lexington PGA Championship	−5 (68-67-70-70=275)	2 strokes	Gary Player
2	29 Oct 1977	Victoria Falls Classic	−9 (70-69-72-72=283)	3 strokes	John Fourie
3	3 Dec 1977	Holiday Inns Invitational	−23 (67-66-65-67=265)	4 strokes	Bobby Cole
4	7 Feb 1979	Holiday Inns Open (2)	−21 (66-69-65-67=267)	Playoff	Andries Oosthuizen
5	17 Jan 1981	Sigma Series 2	−15 (71-65-70-67=273)	3 strokes	Nick Price
6	24 Jan 1981	Sigma Series 3	−15 (71-66-66-70=273)	1 stroke	Tienie Britz, Nick Price
7	26 Feb 1983	Holiday Inns Pro-Am (3)	−17 (68-65-68-70=271)	2 strokes	Teddy Webber
8	5 Mar 1983	Kodak Golf Classic	−17 (65-67-70-69=271)	Playoff	David Sann
9	22 Dec 1984	Goodyear Classic	−11 (68-69-72-68=277)	Playoff	Nick Price
10	20 Dec 1987	Goodyear Classic (2)	−3 (71-69-72-69=281)	2 strokes	Mark Wiltshire
11	13 Mar 1988	Trustbank Tournament of Champions	−20 (67-66-67-68=268)	3 strokes	Philip Jonas, Mark McNulty
12	26 Nov 1988	Safmarine South African Masters	−13 (69-70-63-73=275)	3 strokes	Tony Johnstone
13	7 Jan 1989	Dewar's White Label Trophy	−15 (70-66-71-66=273)	1 stroke	Tony Johnstone
14	3 Mar 1990	Dewar's White Label Trophy (2)	−14 (64-70-71-69=274)	1 stroke	Jay Townsend
15	17 Nov 1990	Minolta Copiers Match Play	−2 (70)	5 strokes	Hugh Baiocchi
16	15 Dec 1990	Bloemfontein Classic	−15 (65-67-73-68=273)	6 strokes	Hugh Baiocchi
17	12 Jan 1991	Palabora Classic	−10 (70-69-68-71=278)	1 stroke	Mark Wiltshire
18	23 Feb 1991	Bell's Cup	−11 (68-67-71-71=277)	1 stroke	Retief Goosen
19	2 Mar 1991	Trustbank Tournament of Champions (2)	−19 (62-71-70-66=269)	7 strokes	Justin Hobday

Southern Africa Tour playoff record (3–1)

No.	Year	Tournament	Opponent(s)	Result
1	1979	Holiday Inns Open	Andries Oosthuizen	Won with par on fifth extra hole
2	1981	Datsun South African Open	Warren Humphreys, Gary Player	Player won with birdie on third extra hole after 18-hole playoff; Player: −2 (70), Bland: −2 (70), Humphreys: E (72)
3	1983	Kodak Golf Classic	David Sann	Won with par on third extra hole
4	1984	Goodyear Classic	Nick Price	Won with birdie on first extra hole

Challenge Tour wins (1)

No.	Date	Tournament	Winning score	Margin of victory	Runner-up
1	22 Jun 1991	Martini Open	−18 (270)	3 strokes	Jon Evans

Other wins (2)

• 1970 Transvaal Open
• 1976 Holiday Inns Champion of Champions

Senior PGA Tour wins (5)

No.	Date	Tournament	Winning score	Margin of victory	Runner(s)-up
1	22 Oct 1995	Ralphs Senior Classic	−12 (69-67-65=201)	1 stroke	Jim Colbert
2	21 Jan 1996	Puerto Rico Senior Tournament of Champions	−9 (69-68-70=207)	1 stroke	Jim Colbert
3	2 Jun 1996	Bruno's Memorial Classic	−8 (67-70-71=208)	Playoff	John Paul Cain, Kermit Zarley
4	18 Aug 1996	Northville Long Island Classic	−14 (70-66-66=202)	3 strokes	Jim Colbert
5	13 Oct 1996	The Transamerica	−12 (69-69-66=204)	1 stroke	Jim Colbert

Senior PGA Tour playoff record (1–1)

No.	Year	Tournament	Opponent(s)	Result
1	1996	Bruno's Memorial Classic	John Paul Cain, Kermit Zarley	Won with bogey on third extra hole Zarley eliminated by par on second hole
2	1997	Senior British Open	Gary Player	Lost to birdie on second extra hole

European Senior Tour wins (3)

No.	Date	Tournament	Winning score	Margin of victory	Runner(s)-up
1	1 Oct 1995	London Masters	−6 (70-69-71=210)	4 strokes	Tony Grubb, Hugh Inggs, John Morgan, Bobby Verwey
2	9 Aug 2009	Bad Ragaz PGA Seniors Open	−11 (65-69-65=199)	Playoff	Bob Boyd
3	20 Jun 2010	Ryder Cup Wales Seniors Open	−8 (69-68-71=208)	1 stroke	Ángel Franco, Chris Williams

European Senior Tour playoff record (1–1)

No.	Year	Tournament	Opponent	Result
1	1997	Senior British Open	Gary Player	Lost to birdie on second extra hole
2	2009	Bad Ragaz PGA Seniors Open	Bob Boyd	Won with birdie on second extra hole

Other senior wins (4)

• 1997 Liberty Mutual Legends of Golf (with Graham Marsh), Franklin Templeton Senior South African Open
• 1998 Franklin Templeton Senior South African Open
• 2010 Liberty Mutual Legends of Golf – Raphael Division (with Graham Marsh)

Results in major championships

Tournament	1977	1978	1979	1980	1981	1982	1983	1984	1985	1986	1987	1988	1989	1990	1991
The Open Championship	CUT	T52	CUT	T16	CUT	CUT	CUT	CUT	CUT	CUT	CUT	CUT	CUT	T53	T80

Note: Bland only played in The Open Championship.
CUT = missed the half-way cut (3rd round cut in 1979, 1981, 1982, 1983 and 1984 Open Championships)
"T" = tied

Team appearances

• World Cup (representing South Africa): 1975
• Hennessy Cognac Cup (representing the Rest of the World): 1982
• Dunhill Cup (representing South Africa): 1991, 1992