Robert John Toski, born Algustoski (born September 18, 1926), is an American professional

golf Golf is a club-and-ball sport in which players use various clubs to hit balls into a series of holes on a course in as few strokes as possible. Golf, unlike most ball games, cannot and does not use a standardized playing area, and coping ...

er and golf instructor. He was inducted into the PGA Golf Professional Hall of Fame in 2013.

Early years

He was born in Haydenville, Massachusetts of Polish descent, the eighth of nine children born to Walenty Algustoski and his wife Mary. He learned to play golf at Northampton Country Club, where he caddied and where two of his elder brothers, Jack and Ben, were assistant professionals.

PGA Tour

He joined the

PGA Tour The PGA Tour (stylized in all capital letters as PGA TOUR by its officials) is the organizer of professional golf tours in the United States and North America. It organizes most of the events on the flagship annual series of tournaments also ...

in 1949 and broke through for his first win in the Insurance City Open in 1953. He was the leading money winner in 1954, when his four victories included the World Championship of Golf, where first prize was $50,000, by far the richest prize-money golf event in the world. That victory also earned him a $50,000 contract from promoter George S. May to put on 50 exhibitions the following year; he would put on 57 and play in only 14 events in 1955. He scaled back his playing career starting in 1957 after wife Lynn gave birth to three boys in a span of less than four years. Toski found stardom on the Tour despite weighing only 118 pounds. He was the smallest Tour player throughout his playing career and his combination of his small size and his driving prowess earned him the nickname "Mouse" from

Sam Snead Samuel Jackson Snead (pronounced English_phonology">sni:d.html" ;"title="English_phonology.html" ;"title="nowiki/>English phonology">sni:d">English_phonology.html" ;"title="nowiki/>English phonology">sni:d May 27, 1912 – May 23, 2002) was an ...

, a reference to the cartoon superhero Mighty Mouse popular at that time.

Club professional, coach, author, broadcaster

Toski left the tour aged 30 so he could spend more time with his young family (perhaps influenced by having lost his own mother at age six), and took a series of jobs as a club professional, while still competing occasionally on the Tour. Later he found renewed fame as a leading golf coach, assisting tour pros such as

World Golf Hall of Fame The World Golf Hall of Fame is located at World Golf Village near St. Augustine, Florida, in the United States, and it is unusual among sports halls of fame in that a single site honors both men and women. It is supported by a consortium of 26 go ...

inductees

Tom Kite Thomas Oliver Kite Jr. (born December 9, 1949) is an American professional golfer and golf course architect. He won the U.S. Open in 1992 and spent 175 weeks in the top-10 of the Official World Golf Ranking between 1989 and 1994. Career Kite w ...

and

Judy Rankin Judy Rankin ( Torluemke; born February 18, 1945) is an American professional golfer and golf broadcaster. A member of the World Golf Hall of Fame, she joined the LPGA Tour in 1962 at age 17 and won 26 tour events. Since 2010, Rankin has served a ...

as well as Australian star

Bruce Crampton Bruce Crampton (born 28 September 1935) is an Australian professional golfer. Early life Crampton was born in Sydney, New South Wales, and attended Kogarah High School from 1948 to 1950. In August 1953 he reached final of the New South Wales Am ...

. He also wrote several golf instructional books, and made some of the earliest golf instruction videos. In the early 1980s he was a regular on NBC Sports golf telecasts. He worked as color commentator with Hughes Sports Network golf telecasts in the 1970s.

Senior PGA Tour

Toski began playing on the Senior PGA Tour (now Champions Tour) upon its formation in 1980. He left the Tour in January 1986 after he became involved in a controversy over how he marked his ball in a tournament in Japan. Fellow Senior PGA Tour player

Gay Brewer Gay Robert Brewer Jr. (March 19, 1932 – August 31, 2007) was an American professional golfer who played on the PGA Tour and won the 1967 Masters Tournament. Life Brewer was born in Middletown, Ohio, and raised in Lexington, Kentucky. As an amat ...

stated that Toski improved his lie by marking it away from a spike mark near where his ball had come to rest on the green. Toski said that he had no recollection of any rules infraction. He returned in April 1986 and played several more years on the Tour.

Legacy

He was the first living instructor inducted into the World Golf Teachers Hall of Fame, and he is also a member of the National Polish-American Hall of Fame.

Professional wins (12)

PGA Tour wins (5)

*1953 (1) Insurance City Open *1954 (4) Baton Rouge Open, Azalea Open, Eastern Open, World Championship of Golf

Other wins (5)

''this list is probably incomplete'' *1953 Havana Invitational *1958

Massachusetts Open The Massachusetts Open is the Massachusetts state open golf tournament, open to both amateur and professional golfers. It is organized by Mass Golf (formerly the Massachusetts Golf Association). It has been played annually since 1905 (except for wa ...

Jamaica Open The Jamaica Open is a golf Golf is a club-and-ball sport in which players use various clubs to hit balls into a series of holes on a course in as few strokes as possible. Golf, unlike most ball games, cannot and does not use a standardize ...

Puerto Rico Open The Puerto Rico Open is a professional golf tournament on the PGA Tour that was first played in 2008. It is the only PGA Tour event ever held in Puerto Rico. The tournament is played at the Coco Beach Golf Course (previously Trump International ...

*1959

Maine Open The Maine Open is the Maine state open golf Golf is a club-and-ball sport in which players use various clubs to hit balls into a series of holes on a course in as few strokes as possible. Golf, unlike most ball games, cannot and does not ...

Other senior wins (2)

*1990

Liberty Mutual Legends of Golf The Bass Pro Shops Legends of Golf at Big Cedar is a golf tournament in Missouri on the PGA Tour Champions. Since 2014, it has been played at Big Cedar Lodge in Ridgedale on the par-3 Top of the Rock course, designed by Jack Nicklaus and the 18- ...

- Legendary Division (with Mike Fetchick) *1992

- Legendary Division (with Mike Fetchick)

Playoff record

Senior PGA Tour playoff record (0–1)

Results in major championships

''Note: Toski never played in

The Open Championship The Open Championship, often referred to as The Open or the British Open, is the oldest golf tournament in the world, and one of the most prestigious. Founded in 1860, it was originally held annually at Prestwick Golf Club in Scotland. Later t ...

.''
CUT = missed the half-way cut
"T" indicates a tie for a place
R128, R64, R32, R16, QF, SF = round in which player lost in PGA Championship match play

Major works

* * * * * * * *''Find Your Own Fundamentals'' (with Jim Flick), Golf Digest, 1992

References

External links

*
GolfOnline bio and guide to Toski's coaching theoryToski Golf
- golf equipment company
Toski-Battersby Golf Learning Center
- Toski's golf school in Florida {{DEFAULTSORT:Toski, Bob American male golfers PGA Tour golfers PGA Tour Champions golfers American golf instructors Golf writers and broadcasters Golfers from Massachusetts American people of Polish descent People from Williamsburg, Massachusetts 1926 births Living people