Frank Ivan Joseph Nobilo,
CNZMThe New Zealand Order of Merit is an order established in 1996 "for those persons who in any field of endeavour, have rendered meritorious service to the Crown and nation or who have become distinguished by their eminence, talents, contributions or other merits."The order includes five...
(born on 14 May 1960) is a professional
golfGolf is a precision club and ball sport, in which competing players use many types of clubs to hit balls into a series of holes on a golf course using the fewest number of strokes....
er from
New ZealandNew Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...
.
Nobilo had a successful playing career, winning 15 pro tournaments around the world. He was at his peak during the mid 1990s when he also produced strong finishes in all four
major championshipsThe men's major golf championships, commonly known as the Major Championships, and often referred to simply as the majors, are the four most prestigious annual tournaments in professional golf...
.
Since retiring from tournament golf in 2003, Nobilo has worked as an analyst for the Golf Channel's
Champions TourThe Champions Tour, a golf tour run by the PGA Tour, hosts a series of events annually in the United States and the United Kingdom for golfers 50 years of age and older. Many of the PGA Tour's most successful golfers have gone on to play on the Champions Tour.The Senior PGA Championship, founded in...
and
PGA TourThe PGA Tour is the organizer of the main men's professional golf tours in the United States and North America...
coverage.
Personal life
Nobilo was born in
AucklandThe Auckland metropolitan area , in the North Island of New Zealand, is the largest and most populous urban area in the country with residents, percent of the country's population. Auckland also has the largest Polynesian population of any city in the world...
, of Croat and
ItalianItaly , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
descent, and is the great grandson of an Italian pirate. At birth, his right leg was shorter than his left, which has caused him some back problems throughout his life. He was educated at
St Peter's CollegeSt Peter's College is a Catholic college for year 7 to 13 boys . The school, located in Auckland, is one of the largest Catholic schools in New Zealand and is an integrated school under an integration agreement entered into by the Catholic Bishop of Auckland and the Government of New Zealand in...
in Auckland where he was persuaded to play golf by schoolmates (Chris Treen and Mark Lewis). Nobilo used to play
Rugby LeagueRugby league football, usually called rugby league, is a full contact sport played by two teams of thirteen players on a rectangular grass field. One of the two codes of rugby football, it originated in England in 1895 by a split from Rugby Football Union over paying players...
for
GlenoraThe Glenora Bears are a rugby league football club based in Glen Eden, New Zealand who compete in Auckland Rugby League's Fox Memorial competition. The club was established in 1931...
and not
Rugby UnionRugby union, often simply referred to as rugby, is a full contact team sport which originated in England in the early 19th century. One of the two codes of rugby football, it is based on running with the ball in hand...
for St Peter's which was "a bone of contention" with the school. "I got a bit of grief because I preferred league over rugby then and I was a bit more of a rebel. I used to catch the train to and from school and it took about 30-40 minutes. My mum said it drove her crazy because I missed it often and my parents were living in
Glen EdenGlen Eden is a suburb of Auckland city, in New Zealand. The suburb is in the Waitakere Ward, one of the thirteen administrative areas of Auckland and is governed by the Auckland Council....
and I would end up in
HendersonHenderson is a major suburb of Auckland, in the North Island of New Zealand. It is located 13 kilometres to the west of Auckland city centre, and two kilometres to the west of the Whau River, a southwestern arm of the Waitemata Harbour.-Description:...
and they'd have to come and collect me".
Nobilo and his wife, Selena, married in 1998. He has a daughter, Bianca Nobilo, from a previous marriage. Nobilo works as an ambassador for The House of Nobilo, one of New Zealand's leading wineries and founded by one of his relatives
Nikola NobiloNikola "Nick" Nobilo was a New Zealand winemaker and founder of Nobilo Wines. Nobilo was originally from Croatia.-Early life:...
. Nobilo was awarded the
Companion of the New Zealand Order of MeritThe New Zealand Order of Merit is an order established in 1996 "for those persons who in any field of endeavour, have rendered meritorious service to the Crown and nation or who have become distinguished by their eminence, talents, contributions or other merits."The order includes five...
(CNZM) in 1998.
Career
In 1978, Nobilo won the New Zealand Amateur Championship at 18, the second-youngest winner of this title. He turned professional in November 1979. His first professional win came in 1982 at the New South Wales PGA Championship on the
PGA Tour of AustralasiaThe PGA Tour of Australasia is a professional golf tour for men. Official events on the tour count for World Golf Ranking points. The tour was formed in 1973 as the PGA Tour of Australia and adopted its current name in 1991....
.
Nobilo joined the
European TourThe PGA European Tour is an organization which operates the three leading men's professional golf tours in Europe: the elite European Tour, the European Seniors Tour and the developmental Challenge Tour. Its headquarters are at Wentworth Club in Virginia Water, Surrey, England...
in 1985 as a full-time player, having played in selected events in 1982 and 1983. He recorded his first win on the Tour in the 1988
PLM OpenThe PLM Open was a golf tournament that was played in Sweden until 1990. Founded in 1983, it was a European Tour event from 1986, and in its final year it had a prize fund of £356,930, which was mid-range for a European Tour event at that time...
(not to be confused with the
KLM OpenThe KLM Open is an annual golf tournament played in The Netherlands, and has been part of the European Tour's schedule since the Tour was inaugurated in 1972. Founded in 1912, the tournament was originally known as the Dutch Open, before a variety of sponsors resulted in numerous name changes over...
). Nobilo subsequently won four other European Tour events and finished inside the top 50 on the Order of Merit every season from 1988 to 1996, with a best of 14th place in 1993.
After strong performances in all the majors, including a 4th place finish in the Masters Tournament and a tie for 8th in the
PGA ChampionshipThe PGA Championship is an annual golf tournament conducted by the PGA of America as part of the PGA Tour. It is one of the four major championships in men's professional golf, and is the golf season's final major, usually played in mid-August, customarily four weeks after The Open Championship...
, Nobilo left Europe at the end of 1996 and joined the
United StatesThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
based
PGA TourThe PGA Tour is the organizer of the main men's professional golf tours in the United States and North America...
for the following season. He won the Greater Greensboro Chrysler Classic during his rookie season, which proved to be his only win on that tour. He has featured in the top 50 of the
Official World Golf RankingsThe Official World Golf Ranking is a system for rating the performance level of male professional golfers...
.
One week after his marriage to Selena in 1998, Nobilo was struck above the left eye by an errant tee shot at the
Lake Nona Golf & Country ClubLake Nona Golf & Country Club is a private residential golf club community in southeast Orlando, Florida. The community features an 18-hole championship golf course designed by Tom Fazio...
in
Central FloridaFlorida is a state in the southeastern United States, located on the nation's Atlantic and Gulf coasts. It is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the north by Alabama and Georgia and to the east by the Atlantic Ocean. With a population of 18,801,310 as measured by the 2010 census, it...
. The injury required 30 stitches, and affected his play afterwards.
Nobilo played for the International Team in each of the first three
Presidents CupThe Presidents Cup is a series of men's golf matches between a team representing the United States and an International Team representing the rest of the world less Europe. Europe competes against the U.S. in a similar but considerably older event, the Ryder Cup. The Presidents Cup is held biennially...
s (1994, 1996, 1998). He contributed significantly to the international appeal of the event when in 1998 and paired with fellow kiwi
Greg TurnerGreg Turner is a New Zealand professional golfer.Turner was born in Dunedin. He attended Oklahoma University in the United States but has spent most of his career on the PGA Tour of Australasia and the European Tour. He won four tournaments on the European Tour and achieved a career best ranking...
he holed a 70 foot putt on the final green to defeat the American pairing. On October 2, 2008, International Presidents Cup team captain
Greg NormanGregory John Norman AO is an Australian professional golfer and entrepreneur who spent 331 weeks as the world's Number 1 ranked golfer in the 1980s and 1990s...
announced that Frank Nobilo will serve as his assistant captain for the 2009 Presidents Cup Oct. 6-11 2009 at Harding Park Golf Course in San Francisco.
Nobilo retired from professional golf in 2003 because of injuries, and subsequently joined the Golf Channel, where he works as an analyst and commentator for the network's PGA and Champions Tour coverage, in addition to appearing on the
Sprint Post Game and
Golf CentralGolf Central is Golf Channel's news program. It was launched in 1995, in the same year as the network it airs on.A nightly half-hour show, Golf Central features news and highlights from the major golf tours and events of the world, in addition to on-site reports from tournaments.-Format:The show's...
.
On 9 October 2007, it was reported that Nobilo had announced he would be coming out of retirement, and attempt to gain a card for the U.S. PGA Tour through
qualifying schoolIn professional golf the term qualifying school is used for the annual qualifying tournaments for leading golf tours such as the U.S. based PGA and LPGA Tours and the European Tour. A fixed number of players in the event win membership of the tour for the following season, otherwise known as a...
. However, in a statement issued on the Golf Channel's website, Nobilo denied the report: "I have not, nor did I have any intention of entering this years PGA Tour Qualifying school."
Amateur wins (2)
- 1978 New Zealand Amateur Championship
- 1979 New Zealand Under-25 Stroke Play Championship
European Tour wins (5)
- 1988 PLM Open
The PLM Open was a golf tournament that was played in Sweden until 1990. Founded in 1983, it was a European Tour event from 1986, and in its final year it had a prize fund of £356,930, which was mid-range for a European Tour event at that time...
- 1991 Trophée Lancôme
The Trophée Lancôme was a professional golf tournament which was staged in France from 1970 to 2003.Gaëtan Mourgue D'Algue, a French golf enthusiast from Saint-Nom-la-Bretèche, hoped to popularize the then little-known sport of Golf in France during the early 1960s...
- 1993 Turespana Open Mediterrania
- 1995 BMW International Open
The BMW International Open is an annual men's professional golf tournament on the European Tour. Founded in 1989, it has always been held in and around BMW's home city of Munich, Germany, and since 1997 has been played at the Golfclub München Eichenried....
- 1996 Deutsche Bank Open TPC of Europe
PGA Tour wins (1)
| No. | Date | Tournament | Winning Score | Margin of Victory | Runner-up |
| 1 |
Apr 27, 1997 The 1997 PGA Tour season was played from January 9 to November 2. The season consisted of 45 official money events. Tiger Woods won the most tournaments, four, and there were six first-time winners. The tournament results, leaders, and award winners are listed below.-Tournament results:The...
|
Greater Greensboro Chrysler Classic |
-14 (69-69-69-67=274) |
Playoff |
 Brad FaxonBradford John Faxon, Jr. is an American professional golfer. He has won eight times on the PGA Tour.-Early years and amateur career:Faxon was born in Oceanport, New Jersey and raised in Barrington, Rhode Island...
|
Asian Tour wins (3)
- 1994 Sampoerna Indonesian Open
- 1997 Hong Kong Open
The Hong Kong Open is a golf tournament which is co-sanctioned by the Asian Tour and the European Tour. It was founded in 1959 and has been part of the European Tour's schedule since 2001...
, Indonesian Open
Other wins (5)
- 1985 Nissan/Mobil New Zealand PGA Championship
The New Zealand PGA Championship is a golf tournament on the PGA Tour of Australasia. It is currently known for sponsorship reasons as the HSBC New Zealand PGA Championship. It has been played since 1920, with some gap periods. It was originally a match play event and switched to stroke play in 1965...
- 1987 New Zealand PGA Championship
The New Zealand PGA Championship is a golf tournament on the PGA Tour of Australasia. It is currently known for sponsorship reasons as the HSBC New Zealand PGA Championship. It has been played since 1920, with some gap periods. It was originally a match play event and switched to stroke play in 1965...
- 1995 Sarazen World Open
The Sarazen World Open was an unofficial event on the PGA Tour from 1994 to 1999. It was played at Chateau Elan in Braselton, Georgia except for 1999 when it was played at PGA Catalunya in Barcelona, Spain. It was named in honor of golfer Gene Sarazen.Most of its field consisted of national open...
- 1996 Subaru Sarazen World Open
- 1997 Mexican Open
The Mexican Open or Abierto Mexicano de Golf is the national open golf tournament of Mexico. It was first played in 1944 at the Club de Golf Chapultepec. It was an event on the Tour de las Americas between 2003 and 2006, being co-sanctioned by the European Challenge Tour from 2004...
(Tour de las AmericasThe Tour de las Américas is the men's professional golf tour for Latin America.Top level tournament golf in Latin America has had an unstable history. Some of the national open championships in the region are long established, but they did not traditionally form a coherent tour...
)
Results in major championships
| Tournament |
1986 |
1987 |
1988 |
1989 |
1990 |
| The Masters |
DNP |
DNP |
DNP |
DNP |
DNP |
U.S. OpenThe United States Open Championship, commonly known as the U.S. Open, is the annual open golf tournament of the United States. It is the second of the four major championships in golf, and is on the official schedule of both the PGA Tour and the European Tour...
|
DNP |
DNP |
DNP |
DNP |
DNP |
The Open ChampionshipThe Open Championship, or simply The Open , is the oldest of the four major championships in professional golf. It is the only "major" held outside the USA and is administered by The R&A, which is the governing body of golf outside the USA and Mexico...
|
T59 |
DNP |
DNP |
DNP |
T16 |
PGA ChampionshipThe PGA Championship is an annual golf tournament conducted by the PGA of America as part of the PGA Tour. It is one of the four major championships in men's professional golf, and is the golf season's final major, usually played in mid-August, customarily four weeks after The Open Championship...
|
DNP |
DNP |
DNP |
DNP |
DNP |
| Tournament |
1991 |
1992 |
1993 |
1994 |
1995 |
1996 |
1997 |
1998 |
1999 |
2000 |
| The Masters |
DNP |
DNP |
DNP |
DNP |
CUT |
4 |
46 |
CUT |
DNP |
DNP |
U.S. OpenThe United States Open Championship, commonly known as the U.S. Open, is the annual open golf tournament of the United States. It is the second of the four major championships in golf, and is on the official schedule of both the PGA Tour and the European Tour...
|
DNP |
DNP |
DNP |
T9 |
T10 |
T13 |
T36 |
T40 |
DNP |
CUT |
The Open ChampionshipThe Open Championship, or simply The Open , is the oldest of the four major championships in professional golf. It is the only "major" held outside the USA and is administered by The R&A, which is the governing body of golf outside the USA and Mexico...
|
T73 |
T33 |
T51 |
T11 |
T68 |
T26 |
T10 |
CUT |
T18 |
DNP |
PGA ChampionshipThe PGA Championship is an annual golf tournament conducted by the PGA of America as part of the PGA Tour. It is one of the four major championships in men's professional golf, and is the golf season's final major, usually played in mid-August, customarily four weeks after The Open Championship...
|
DNP |
DNP |
T22 |
T47 |
CUT |
T8 |
T29 |
CUT |
DNP |
DNP |
DNP = Did not play
CUT = missed the half-way cut
"T" = tied
Green background for wins. Yellow background for top-10.
Team appearances
Amateur
- Eisenhower Trophy
The Eisenhower Trophy is a biennial world amateur team golf championship for men organized by the International Golf Federation. It is named for Dwight D. Eisenhower, the President of the United States when the tournament was first played, who was a keen amateur golfer. Recent tournaments have...
(representing New Zealand): 1978
Professional
- World Cup (representing New Zealand): 1982, 1987, 1988, 1990, 1991, 1992, 1993, 1994, 1995, 1999, 2000
- Dunhill Cup (representing New Zealand): 1985, 1986, 1987, 1989, 1990, 1992, 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 1997
- Presidents Cup
The Presidents Cup is a series of men's golf matches between a team representing the United States and an International Team representing the rest of the world less Europe. Europe competes against the U.S. in a similar but considerably older event, the Ryder Cup. The Presidents Cup is held biennially...
(International team): 199420 United States – 12 InternationalThe 1st Presidents Cup Matches were held in 1994 between September 16 and September 18. They were played at the Robert Trent Jones Golf Club in Gainesville, Virginia, USA. The United States team won the competition by a margin of 20–12. The honorary chairman was...
, 199616½ United States – 15½ InternationalThe 2nd Presidents Cup Matches were held in 1996 between September 13 and September 15. They were played at the Robert Trent Jones Golf Club in Gainesville, Virginia, USA. The United States team won the competition by a margin of 16½–15½. The honorary chairmen...
, 1998International 20½ - United States 11½The 3rd Presidents Cup Matches were held in 1998 on December 11-13. They were played at the Royal Melbourne Golf Club in Melbourne, Australia. The International team won the competition by a margin of 20½–11½. This was the first time the International team won...
(winners)
See also
- 2000 PGA Tour Qualifying School graduates
This is a list of the 36 players who earned their 2001 PGA Tour card through Q School in 2000.*Players in yellow were 2001 PGA Tour rookies.-2001 Results:T = Tied...
- List of alumni of St Peter's College, Auckland
External links