Stephen Dodd

For the Australian actor, see Steve Dodd. For the Australian footballer, see Steven Dodd. For the police officer killed by an IRA bomb, see Harrods bombing.

Stephen Christopher Dodd (born 15 July 1966) is a Welsh professional golfer who after a moderate career, unexpectedly won two events on the European Tour in the 2005 season at the age of 38 and won a third time in 2006. He also won the 2005 WGC-World Cup in partnership with Bradley Dredge. Since turning 50 he has won four times on the European Senior Tour, including the 2021 Senior Open Championship.

Stephen Dodd
Dodd in 2009
Personal information
Full name	Stephen Christopher Dodd
Born	(1966-07-15) 15 July 1966 (age 59) Cardiff, Wales
Height	5 ft 11 in (1.80 m)
Weight	187 lb (85 kg; 13.4 st)
Sporting nationality	Wales
Residence	Barry, Wales
Career
Turned professional	1990
Current tour(s)	European Senior Tour PGA Tour Champions
Former tour(s)	European Tour Challenge Tour PGA EuroPro Tour MENA Tour
Professional wins	19
Highest ranking	56 (22 May 2005)[1]
Number of wins by tour
European Tour	3
Asian Tour	1
Challenge Tour	1
PGA Tour Champions	1
European Senior Tour	4
Other	11
Best results in major championships
Masters Tournament	CUT: 1990
PGA Championship	CUT: 2005, 2006
U.S. Open	DNP
The Open Championship	CUT: 1989, 2005, 2006, 2022
Achievements and awards
MENA Golf Tour Order of Merit winner 2012 European Senior Tour Order of Merit winner 2021

Early life and amateur career

Dodd was born in Cardiff. He had a successful amateur career highlighted by victory in The Amateur Championship at Royal Birkdale in 1989, which qualified him to play in The Open Championship that year and the Masters Tournament the following year. He played in the 1989 Walker Cup, being part of the first Great Britain and Ireland team to win in the United States. He was named BBC Wales Sports Personality of the Year in 1989.

Professional career

Dodd turned professional in 1990. He spent the early years of his professional career on Europe's second tier Challenge Tour. In 1992 he won the Bank Austria Open on that tour, but his results were generally patchy. He first gained his place on the main European Tour in 1995, but found himself returning to qualifying school every year until 2001, when he finally broke into the top 100 on the Order of Merit to automatically retain his playing status. He then steadily improved, having new personal best seasons in 2003 and 2004, finishing 80th and 58th respectively on the money list.

The 2005 season marked a sudden improvement in Dodd's fortunes. He won the first tournament he entered that season, the Volvo China Open (actually played in late 2004), which was one of several events co-sanctioned by the European Tour and the Asian Tour.^[2] A few weeks later he picked up a new biggest paycheck of his career by coming tied second in the higher profile Dubai Desert Classic. He went on to win the Nissan Irish Open in May,^[3] and in November he won the WGC-World Cup for Wales in partnership with Bradley Dredge. He finished the season ranked a career high 17th on the Order of Merit.

In 2006 Dodd won the Smurfit European Open, granting him a five-year exemption on the European Tour.^[4] He finished the season ranked 29th on the Order of Merit. Since then his form has dropped, and in 2008 he made just 4 cuts as he slipped to 245th on the end of season money list. His career started to decline and by 2012, he was playing on the third-tier Dubai-based MENA Golf Tour, where he had three wins. In 2016 he won the GRENKE Championship on the PGA EuroPro Tour, a few weeks before his 50th birthday.

Dodd joined the European Senior Tour after turning 50. In his first season, 2016, he won the Senior Italian Open and followed up with wins in the 2017 Farmfoods European Senior Masters and the 2018 WINSTONgolf Senior Open.

Dodd's biggest success of his career came at the 2021 Senior Open Championship. He shot an 8-under-par 62 in the third round to take a two shot lead going into the final round. A 68 on the final day was good enough to see off Miguel Ángel Jiménez by one shot. The win also gave him an exemption into the 2022 Open Championship.^[5]

Personal life

Dodd lives in Barry, Wales with his wife Allison and their son Liam.

Awards and honors

• In 1989, Dodd was named BBC Wales Sports Personality of the Year
• In 2012, he earned the Order of Merit title for the MENA Golf Tour
• In 2021, Dodd earned the Order of Merit title for the European Senior Tour

Amateur wins

• 1989 The Amateur Championship, Welsh Amateur Championship, Welsh Amateur Open Stroke Play Championship

Professional wins (19)

European Tour wins (3)

No.	Date	Tournament	Winning score	Margin of victory	Runner(s)-up
1	28 Nov 2004 (2005 season)	Volvo China Open1	−12 (68-70-70-68=276)	3 strokes	Thomas Bjørn
2	22 May 2005	Nissan Irish Open	−9 (69-70-72-68=279)	Playoff	David Howell
3	9 Jul 2006	Smurfit Kappa European Open	−9 (67-69-73-70=279)	2 strokes	José Manuel Lara, Anthony Wall

¹Co-sanctioned by the Asian Tour

European Tour playoff record (1–0)

No.	Year	Tournament	Opponent	Result
1	2005	Nissan Irish Open	David Howell	Won with birdie on first extra hole

Challenge Tour wins (1)

No.	Date	Tournament	Winning score	Margin of victory	Runner-up
1	5 Jul 1992	Bank Austria Open	−11 (69-67-71-70=277)	3 strokes	Gordon Manson

Challenge Tour playoff record (0–1)

No.	Year	Tournament	Opponent	Result
1	1992	Memorial Olivier Barras	Jeff Hall	Lost to birdie on second extra hole

PGA EuroPro Tour wins (1)

No.	Date	Tournament	Winning score	Margin of victory	Runner-up
1	24 Jun 2016	Grenke Championship	−13 (66-66-68=200)	Playoff	Adam Hodkinson

MENA Golf Tour wins (3)

No.	Date	Tournament	Winning score	Margin of victory	Runners-up
1	24 Oct 2012	Shaikh Maktoum Dubai Open	−11 (68-68-69=205)	2 strokes	Martin LeMesurier, Zane Scotland
2	21 Mar 2013	Royal D'Anfa Open	−6 (70-69-71=210)	Playoff	Ian Keenan, Zane Scotland
3	23 Oct 2013	Abu Dhabi Golf Citizen Open	−6 (72-68-70=210)	1 stroke	Stuart Archibald, Craig Hinton

Other wins (7)

• 1991 Memorial Olivier Barras
• 1995 Welsh PGA Championship
• 2001 Welsh PGA Championship
• 2005 WGC-World Cup (with Bradley Dredge)
• 2007 Ryder Cup Wales Welsh PGA Championship
• 2011 Welsh National PGA Championship
• 2014 Welsh National PGA Championship

PGA Tour Champions wins (1)

Legend
Senior major championships (1)
Other PGA Tour Champions (0)

No.	Date	Tournament	Winning score	Margin of victory	Runner-up
1	25 Jul 2021	The Senior Open Championship	−13 (66-71-62-68=267)	1 stroke	Miguel Ángel Jiménez

European Senior Tour wins (4)

Legend
Senior major championships (1)
Other European Senior Tour (3)

No.	Date	Tournament	Winning score	Margin of victory	Runner(s)-up
1	23 Oct 2016	Senior Italian Open	−9 (69-64-71=204)	1 stroke	Phillip Price
2	22 Oct 2017	Farmfoods European Senior Masters	−2 (71-73-70=214)	1 stroke	Clark Dennis, Paul McGinley
3	15 Jul 2018	WINSTONgolf Senior Open	−15 (64-66-71=201)	6 strokes	Jean-François Remésy
4	25 Jul 2021	The Senior Open Championship	−13 (66-71-62-68=267)	1 stroke	Miguel Ángel Jiménez

Results in major championships

Results not in chronological order in 2020.

Tournament	1989	1990	1991	1992	1993	1994	1995	1996	1997	1998	1999
Masters Tournament		CUT
The Open Championship	CUT
PGA Championship

Tournament	2000	2001	2002	2003	2004	2005	2006	2007	2008	2009
Masters Tournament
The Open Championship						CUT	CUT
PGA Championship						CUT	CUT

Tournament	2010	2011	2012	2013	2014	2015	2016	2017	2018
Masters Tournament
The Open Championship
PGA Championship

Tournament	2019	2020	2021	2022
Masters Tournament
PGA Championship
The Open Championship		NT		CUT

  Did not play

CUT = missed the half-way cut
NT = No tournament due to the COVID-19 pandemic
Note: Dodd never played in the U.S. Open.

Results in World Golf Championships

Tournament	2005	2006
Match Play
Championship	T18
Invitational	69	T50

  Did not play

"T" = Tied

Senior major championships

Wins (1)

Year	Championship	54 holes	Winning score	Margin	Runner-up
2021	The Senior Open Championship	2 shot lead	−13 (66-71-62-68=267)	1 stroke	Miguel Ángel Jiménez

Results timeline

Results not in chronological order.

Tournament	2016	2017	2018	2019	2020	2021	2022	2023	2024	2025
The Tradition					NT		T68		T75	73
Senior PGA Championship		CUT	T56	CUT	NT		T70	CUT		WD
Senior Players Championship								T25	66	77
U.S. Senior Open	CUT			CUT	NT		CUT		CUT
The Senior Open Championship	T14	T61	T18	T18	NT	1	T47	CUT	T64	CUT

  Win

  Did not play

CUT = missed the halfway cut
WD = withdrw
"T" indicates a tie for a place
NT = no tournament due to COVID-19 pandemic

Team appearances

Amateur

• Walker Cup (representing Great Britain & Ireland): 1989 (winners)
• European Amateur Team Championship (representing Wales): 1987, 1989

Professional

• Seve Trophy (representing Great Britain & Ireland): 2005 (winners)
• World Cup (representing Wales): 2005 (winners), 2006, 2007, 2009