Harold Henning

Harold Henning
Harold Henning
Personal information
Nickname	Horse
Born	3 October 1934; Johannesburg, South Africa
Died	1 January 2004 (aged 69); Miami Beach, Florida, U.S.
Height	6 ft 0 in (1.83 m)
Weight	165 lb (75 kg; 11.8 st)
Sporting nationality	South Africa
Career
Turned professional	1953
Former tour(s)	PGA Tour; European Tour; Champions Tour
Professional wins	43
Number of wins by tour
PGA Tour	2
European Tour	1
PGA Tour Champions	3
Other	37
Best results in major championships;
Masters Tournament	T11: 1962
PGA Championship	T44: 1969
U.S. Open	T37: 1968
The Open Championship	T3: 1960, 1970

Harold Henning (3 October 1934 – 1 January 2004) was a South African professional golfer who played on the PGA Tour and the Senior PGA Tour. He won professional tournaments on the highest level in Africa, Australia, Asia, North America and Europe.

Early life

Henning was born in Johannesburg, South Africa. His brothers Allan, Brian, and Graham all became professional golfers.^[2]

Professional career

Nicknamed The Horse, he turned pro in 1953. From 1953 to 1965, Henning traveled the world playing on international circuits, winning the national championships of Switzerland. South Africa, Italy, and Germany. A win with Gary Player at the 1965 Canada Cup convinced him to play on the PGA Tour.

In 1966 Henning won the PGA Tour's Texas Open. However, he was not a PGA Tour member yet and was expected to earn membership at 1966 PGA Tour Qualifying School. However, shortly before the tournament, the PGA Tour gave him an exemption from the event.^[3]

In 1970 Henning won the Tallahassee Open Invitational on the PGA Tour. He then retired in 1972.

He returned to the game six years later and recorded a victory at the KLM Dutch Open in 1981. Henning won the title in dramatic fashion, going out on the last hole of the tournament in the last group with Nick Price, both of them on seven under par. Ray Floyd stood in the clubhouse, having finished on seven under par. Henning went in to a greenside bunker with his third shot, while Price was on the green in three. Then Henning holed his bunker shot for a birdie 4 and won the tournament with one-shot-margin.^[4]

Upon reaching age 50 in October 1984, Henning began play on the Senior PGA Tour. During his 18 seasons on this Tour, he won three official events and two Liberty Mutual Legends of Golf Championships.

Personal life

Henning died in 2004 after a long illness.^[5]

Professional wins (43)

PGA Tour wins (2)

No.	Date	Tournament	Winning score	Margin of victory	Runner(s)-up
1	1 May 1966	Texas Open Invitational	−8 (72-67-65-68=272)	3 strokes	Wes Ellis, Gene Littler, Ken Still
2	26 Apr 1970	Tallahassee Open Invitational	−11 (67-76-64-70=277)	1 stroke	Rives McBee

PGA Tour playoff record (0–1)

No.	Year	Tournament	Opponent	Result
1	1969	Los Angeles Open	Charlie Sifford	Lost to birdie on first extra hole

European Tour wins (1)

No.	Date	Tournament	Winning score	Margin of victory	Runners-up
1	26 Jul 1981	KLM Dutch Open	−8 (71-68-70-71=280)	1 stroke	Raymond Floyd, Nick Price

Far East Circuit wins (1)

No.	Date	Tournament	Winning score	Margin of victory	Runner-up
1	13 Mar 1966	Malayan Open	−10 (70-69-71-68=278)	3 strokes	Peter Thomson

Southern Africa Tour wins (3)

No.	Date	Tournament	Winning score	Margin of victory	Runner(s)-up
1	5 Feb 1972	General Motors International Classic	−16 (65-70-74-71=280)	4 strokes	Gary Player
2	25 Nov 1972	Luyt Lager PGA Championship	−1 (69-68-71-71=279)	1 stroke	Hugh Baiocchi
3	29 Nov 1980	ICL International	−7 (73-67-69-72=281)	1 stroke	John Bland, Ian Mosey, Denis Watson

Other South African wins (17)

1956 Natal Open, Cock of the North (Zambia)
1957 South African Open, Transvaal Open, 1.000 Guineas Anglo-African Tournament (Rhodesia)^[6]
1959 Cock of the North (Zambia), Western Province Open
1960 Northern Transvaal Open
1961 Natal Open
1962 South African Open
1965 South African PGA Championship
1966 South African PGA Championship, Kimberley Tournament (South Africa) (tie with Tony Jacklin), General Motors Open
1967 South African PGA Championship
1972 International Better-ball (with Graham Henning),^[7] Ellerines Team Tournament (with Graham Henning)^[8]

European circuit wins (12)

1957 Italian Open
1958 Daks Tournament (tie with Peter Thomson), Yorkshire Evening News Tournament (tie with Eric Brown)
1959 Spalding Tournament (tie with Eric Lester)
1960 Swiss Open, Sprite International
1964 Swiss Open, Pringle of Scotland Tournament, Lancia d'Oro
1965 Swiss Open, German Open
1966 Engadine Open

New Zealand circuit wins (1)

1958 Wiseman's Tournament

Other wins (1)

No.	Date	Tournament	Winning score	Margin of victory	Runners-up
1	3 Oct 1965	Canada Cup (with Gary Player)	−5 (142-138-139-152=571)	8 strokes	Spain − Ángel Miguel and Ramón Sota

Senior PGA Tour wins (3)

No.	Date	Tournament	Winning score	Margin of victory	Runner(s)-up
1	27 Oct 1985	Seiko-Tucson Senior Match Play Championship	4 & 3		Dan Sikes
2	13 Mar 1988	GTE Classic	−2 (68-73-73=214)	3 strokes	Bruce Crampton, Dale Douglass
3	8 Sep 1991	First of America Classic	−11 (72-64-66=202)	Playoff	Gibby Gilbert

Senior PGA Tour playoff record (1–2)

No.	Year	Tournament	Opponent(s)	Result
1	1988	Silver Pages Classic	Gary Player	Lost to birdie on first extra hole
2	1989	GTE Suncoast Classic	Bob Charles, Dave Hill, Jim Ferree	Charles won with birdie on third extra hole Ferree and Hill eliminated by birdie on first hole
3	1991	First of America Classic	Gibby Gilbert	Won with birdie on first extra hole

Other senior wins (2)

1989 Liberty Mutual Legends of Golf (with Al Geiberger)
1993 Liberty Mutual Legends of Golf

Results in major championships

Tournament	1957	1958	1959
Masters Tournament
U.S. Open
The Open Championship	29	13	T23
PGA Championship

Tournament	1960	1961	1962	1963	1964	1965	1966	1967	1968	1969
Masters Tournament	CUT		T11		CUT	CUT	T22	T36	T22	T13
U.S. Open								CUT	T37
The Open Championship	T3	T10	T30	T20	T8		T13	T6		T16
PGA Championship									T45	T44

Tournament	1970	1971	1973
Masters Tournament	CUT	41
U.S. Open
The Open Championship	T3		T10
PGA Championship

Tournament	1980	1981	1982	1983	1984
Masters Tournament
U.S. Open
The Open Championship	T51	CUT	41	T6	CUT
PGA Championship

Top 10

Did not play

CUT = missed the half-way cut (3rd round cut in 1984 Open Championship)
"T" indicates a tie for a place

Summary

Tournament	3rd	Top-5	Top-10	Top-25	Events	Cuts made
Masters Tournament	0	0	0	4	10	6
U.S. Open	0	0	0	0	2	1
The Open Championship	2	2	6	12	18	16
PGA Championship	0	0	0	0	2	2
Totals	2	2	6	16	32	19

Most consecutive cuts made – 7 (1967 Open Championship – 1969 PGA)
Longest streak of top-10s – 1 (six times)

Team appearances

this list may be incomplete

World Cup (representing South Africa): 1957, 1958, 1959, 1961, 1965 (winners), 1966, 1967, 1970, 1971

References

^ Desmith, David. "Golf's Animal Kingdom of Player Nicknames". Links Magazine. Retrieved 17 November 2020.
^ "Brothers aim to qualify". News24. 7 January 2003. Retrieved 18 September 2019.
^ "School Screens Pro Hopefuls; Must Pass Tough 144-Hole Test". Hartford Courant. 23 August 1968. p. 44. Retrieved 22 June 2021.
^ "Henning blasts his way to the title". The Glasgow Herald. 27 July 1981. p. 14. Retrieved 2 January 2023.
^ Golfer Harold Henning dead at 69
^ "Henning wins S.A. golf tourney". The Canberra Times. 6 March 1957.
^ "Hennings Win". The Glasgow Herald. 28 February 1972.
^ "Hennings win team event". The Glasgow Herald. 25 December 1972.

External links

Harold Henning at the PGA Tour official site
Harold Henning at the European Tour official site

[1] Desmith, David. "Golf's Animal Kingdom of Player Nicknames". Links Magazine. Retrieved 17 November 2020.

[2] "Brothers aim to qualify". News24. 7 January 2003. Retrieved 18 September 2019.

[:2-3] "School Screens Pro Hopefuls; Must Pass Tough 144-Hole Test". Hartford Courant. 23 August 1968. p. 44. Retrieved 22 June 2021.

[4] "Henning blasts his way to the title". The Glasgow Herald. 27 July 1981. p. 14. Retrieved 2 January 2023.

[5] Golfer Harold Henning dead at 69

[6] "Henning wins S.A. golf tourney". The Canberra Times. 6 March 1957.

[7] "Hennings Win". The Glasgow Herald. 28 February 1972.

[8] "Hennings win team event". The Glasgow Herald. 25 December 1972.

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