Orville James Moody (December 9, 1933 – August 8, 2008) was an American

professional golfer A professional golfer is somebody who receives payments or financial rewards in the sport of golf that are directly related to their skill or reputation. A person who earns money by teaching or playing golf is traditionally considered a "golf pr ...

who won numerous tournaments in his career. He won the U.S. Open in 1969, the last champion in the 20th century to win through local and sectional qualifying.

Early life

Born in

Chickasha, Oklahoma Chickasha is a city in and the county seat of Grady County, Oklahoma, United States. The population was 16,036 at the 2010 census. Chickasha is home to the University of Science and Arts of Oklahoma. The city is named for and strongly connecte ...

, Moody was the youngest of ten children. The son of a golf course superintendent, he began his career at

Capitol Hill High School Capitol Hill High School (CHHS) is a public high school in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. It is part of the Oklahoma City Public Schools. The high school has recorded a significant history with noteworthy sucess in interscholastic sports activities. ...

Oklahoma City Oklahoma City (), officially the City of Oklahoma City, and often shortened to OKC, is the capital and largest city of the U.S. state of Oklahoma. The county seat of Oklahoma County, it ranks 20th among United States cities in population, a ...

, winning the 1952 state high school golf championship. After attempting college for a few weeks at the

University of Oklahoma The University of Oklahoma (OU) is a Public university, public research university in Norman, Oklahoma. Founded in 1890, it had existed in Oklahoma Territory near Indian Territory for 17 years before the two Territories became the state of Oklahom ...

Norman Norman or Normans may refer to: Ethnic and cultural identity * The Normans, a people partly descended from Norse Vikings who settled in the territory of Normandy in France in the 10th and 11th centuries ** People or things connected with the Norm ...

, Moody joined the

U.S. Army The United States Army (USA) is the land service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army of the United States in the U.S. Constitution.Article II, section 2, cl ...

. He was able to continue playing golf while in uniform, winning the All-Service championship and three Korea Opens. He spent fourteen years in the Army, heading up maintenance supervision and instruction at all Army golf courses.

Professional golf career

Moody gave up his military career in favor of a trial run at 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 k ...

1967 Events January * January 1 – Canada begins a year-long celebration of the 100th anniversary of Confederation, featuring the Expo 67 World's Fair. * January 5 ** Spain and Romania sign an agreement in Paris, establishing full consular and ...

. His nickname on tour was "Sarge" because he rose to the rank of

sergeant Sergeant (abbreviated to Sgt. and capitalized when used as a named person's title) is a rank in many uniformed organizations, principally military and policing forces. The alternative spelling, ''serjeant'', is used in The Rifles and other uni ...

in the Army. Moody had limited success on the PGA Tour prior to 1969. In April of that year, he took part in a four-way playoff at the

Greater Greensboro Open The Wyndham Championship is a professional golf tournament in North Carolina on the PGA Tour. It is played annually in Greensboro and was originally the Greater Greensboro Open. History Founded in 1938 as the Greater Greensboro Open, it was usua ...

won by

Gene Littler Gene Alec Littler (July 21, 1930 – February 15, 2019) was an American professional golfer and a member of the World Golf Hall of Fame. Known for a solid temperament and nicknamed "Gene the Machine" for his smooth, rhythmical swing, he once said ...

. The U.S. Open in 1969 was played in June at the Cypress Creek Course of the

Champions Golf Club Champions Golf Club is a 36-hole private golf club located in Houston, Texas. Established in 1957 by multiple major champions Jack Burke Jr. and Jimmy Demaret, who were both raised in the city, Champions carries a long history for Houston golf. B ...

Houston Houston (; ) is the most populous city in Texas, the most populous city in the Southern United States, the fourth-most populous city in the United States, and the sixth-most populous city in North America, with a population of 2,304,580 in ...

Texas Texas (, ; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2 ...

. Defending champion

Lee Trevino Lee Buck Trevino (born December 1, 1939) is an American retired professional golfer who is regarded as one of the greatest players in golf history. He was inducted to the World Golf Hall of Fame in 1981. Trevino won six major championships and ...

picked Moody to win, saying, "He's one helluva player." Moody won by one stroke over

Deane Beman } Deane R. Beman (born April 22, 1938) is an American professional golfer, golf administrator. He was the second commissioner of the PGA Tour, serving from 1974 to 1994. Early years Born in Washington, D.C., Beman attended the University of Maryl ...

Al Geiberger Allen Lee Geiberger Sr. (born September 1, 1937) is an American former professional golfer. Professional career Geiberger turned pro in 1959 and joined the PGA Tour in 1960. Geiberger won 11 tournaments on the PGA Tour, the first being the 1962 ...

, and Bob Rosburg with a 72-hole score of 281. He tied for sixteenth at the

British Open 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 th ...

, tied for seventh at the

PGA Championship The PGA Championship (often referred to as the US PGA Championship or USPGA outside the United States) is an annual golf tournament conducted by the Professional Golfers' Association of America. It is one of the four men's major championships ...

, and was named

PGA Player of the Year 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 ...

for 1969. The U.S. Open win was Moody's sole tour victory in 266 career events, although he was runner-up five times. He toured

Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...

, played in a few tournaments and eventually took a club pro job in

Sulphur Springs, Texas Sulphur Springs is a city in and the county seat of Hopkins County, Texas, United States. As of the 2010 United States Census, 2010 census, its population was 15,449. Sulphur Springs is located along the western edge of Northeast Texas. History ...

. Moody was troubled by poor putting during his early pro years. His career on the Senior PGA Tour (now

PGA Tour Champions PGA Tour Champions (formerly the Senior PGA Tour and the Champions Tour) is a men's professional senior golf tour, administered as a branch of the PGA Tour. History and format The Senior PGA Championship, founded in 1937, was for many years ...

) was dramatically different. After turning fifty in late 1983, he won two of his first five tournaments in

1984 Events January * January 1 – The Bornean Sultanate of Brunei gains full independence from the United Kingdom, having become a British protectorate in 1888. * January 7 – Brunei becomes the sixth member of the Association of Southeast A ...

and finished fifth on the money list. In 1989, he became only the fourth man to win both the U.S. Open and the

U.S. Senior Open The U.S. Senior Open is one of the five major championships in senior golf, introduced in 1980. It is administered by the United States Golf Association (USGA) and is recognized as a major championship by both the PGA Tour Champions and the Eu ...

. Moody went to a long putter after becoming a senior golfer, and this method improved his putting significantly. He had eleven wins on the senior tour, with the last in

1992 File:1992 Events Collage V1.png, From left, clockwise: 1992 Los Angeles riots, Riots break out across Los Angeles, California after the Police brutality, police beating of Rodney King; El Al Flight 1862 crashes into a residential apartment buildi ...

. Moody had triple bypass heart surgery prior to the

1995 File:1995 Events Collage V2.png, From left, clockwise: O.J. Simpson is O. J. Simpson murder case, acquitted of the murders of Nicole Brown Simpson and Ronald Goldman from the 1994, year prior in "The Trial of the Century" in the United States; The ...

season, but still managed to play in 29 events.

Later life

Moody continued to play in charity and other golf events up until 2007. The following year, he died at age 74 in

Allen, Texas Allen is a city in Collin County in the U.S. state of Texas, and a northern suburb of Dallas. According to the 2020 U.S. census its population was 104,627, up from 84,246 in 2010. Allen is located approximately twenty miles (32.2 km) north ...

, from complications of a

stroke A stroke is a medical condition in which poor blood flow to the brain causes cell death. There are two main types of stroke: ischemic, due to lack of blood flow, and hemorrhagic, due to bleeding. Both cause parts of the brain to stop functionin ...

he had earlier suffered and/or complications from

multiple myeloma Multiple myeloma (MM), also known as plasma cell myeloma and simply myeloma, is a cancer of plasma cells, a type of white blood cell that normally produces antibodies. Often, no symptoms are noticed initially. As it progresses, bone pain, an ...

. He was survived by his wife, Beverly, their son and three daughters, and eight grandchildren.

Professional wins (31)

PGA Tour wins (1)

PGA Tour playoff record (0–2)

Asia Golf Circuit wins (1)

Korean wins (5)

*1958 Korea Open *1959

KPGA Championship The KPGA Championship is a men's professional golf tournament that has been held annually in South Korea since 1958. Together with the Korea Open it is the longest running event on the Korean Tour. It is organised by the Korea Professional Golfers ...

, Korea Open *1960 Korea Open *1966

Other wins (3)

''This list is incomplete'' *1969

World Series of Golf The World Series of Golf was a professional golf tournament on the PGA Tour, played at Firestone Country Club in Akron, Ohio. From its inception in 1962 through 1975, it was an unofficial 36-hole event matching the winners of the four major champi ...

World Cup A world cup is a global sporting competition in which the participant entities – usually international teams or individuals representing their countries – compete for the title of world champion. The event most associated with the concept i ...

(team with

) *1971

Hassan II Golf Trophy The Hassan II Golf Trophy is a golf tournament in Morocco hosted by Prince Moulay Rachid. The tournament was founded by, and is now named for, his father, Hassan II, who served as King of Morocco. The tournament was originally staged as an invita ...

Senior PGA Tour wins (11)

''*Note: Tournament shortened to 36 holes due to weather.'' Senior PGA Tour playoff record (3–4)

Other senior wins (10)

*1984 Viceroy Panama Open *1986

Australian PGA Seniors Championship The Australian PGA Seniors Championship is a golf tournament in Australia. History The inaugural tournament was held in 1986. Legendary golfer Peter Thomson referred to the tournament as "a breakthrough" for Australian senior golf. The 1986 an ...

*1987

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- ...

(with

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 ...

) *1987 Australian PGA Seniors Championship *1988 Liberty Mutual Legends of Golf (with

) *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)

Major championships

Wins (1)

Results timeline

CUT = missed the half-way cut (3rd round cut in 1970 and 1980 Open Championships)
WD = withdrew
"T" = tied

Summary

*Most consecutive cuts made – 4 (1969 U.S. Open – 1970 Masters) *Longest streak of top-10s – 1 (twice)

Champions Tour major championships

Wins (2)

U.S. national team appearances

Professional *

: 1969 (winners)

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Moody, Orville American male golfers PGA Tour golfers PGA Tour Champions golfers Winners of men's major golf championships Winners of senior major golf championships Golfers from Oklahoma Golfers from Texas United States Army soldiers Deaths from multiple myeloma People from Chickasha, Oklahoma 1933 births 2008 deaths