Meet the Internationals: Retief Goosen

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South Africa's Retief Goosen is making his fifth Presidents Cup appearance.

Oct. 1, 2009

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It is difficult to make the case that South Africa's Retief Goosen is sneaky good since the record books show just how good he really is. Coming into this year's Presidents Cup he has seven PGA TOUR victories including two U.S. Open titles to go along with his 22 international victories. Perhaps it is more accurate to say that like his fellow countryman and teammate Ernie Els, he just makes the game look too easy. Both have beautiful, aesthetically pleasing swings, sublime short games and tranquil yet competitive personalities. And to get some sense of just how consistent Goosen is, it's worth noting that from 2002 through 2006 he never finished outside the top 10 on the TOUR's official money list. And since his first full season (2001) he's never been out of the top 100. He brings an 11-7-2 overall record to this year's Matches, along with a win at this year's Transitions Championship in March, making him a player to keep track of at Harding Park.

The Goosen file

FULL NAME: Retief Goosen

HEIGHT: 5-11

WEIGHT: 185

BIRTHDATE: Feb. 3, 1969

BIRTHPLACE: Pietersburg, South Africa

RESIDENCE: Pietersburg, South Africa; South Ascot, London, England; Orlando, Fla.

FAMILY: Wife, Tracy; Leo (3/8/03), Ella Ann (11/18/04)

SPECIAL INTERESTS: Water skiing, all sports

TURNED PROFESSIONAL: 1990

JOINED TOUR: 2001

Personal info

Retief Goosen was introduced to golf at age 9 by his estate agent father, a 10-handicapper. As a junior golfer, he was considered one of South Africas brightest young prospects until he was struck by lightning and had to work hard to get himself and his game back to his pre-lightning strike form.

Playing record

PGA TOUR VICTORIES: (7) 2001 U.S. Open. 2002 BellSouth Classic. 2003 Chrysler Championship. 2004 U.S. Open, THE TOUR Championship presented by Coca-Cola. 2005 The INTERNATIONAL. 2009 Transitions Championship.

2009 PGA TOUR HIGHLIGHTS: Goosen holed a five-foot, par-saving putt on the final hole to win the Transitions Championship, his first TOUR victory in almost four years. He trailed former British Open champion Tom Lehman by one stroke entering the final round at Innisbrook but jumped into the lead for good with an eagle at the par-5 11th hole. His final round, 1-under 70 allowed him to avoid a playoff with Brett Quigley and Charles Howell III. The victory was his seventh on the PGA TOUR and moved him to fifth in the FedExCup points race. It was his second victory at Innisbrook, having won in 2003 when it was played in the fall, and it allowed him to join South Koreas K.J. Choi as a multiple winner at Innisbrook. Earlier in the season he finished third at the AT&T Pebble Beach National Pro-Am and fired a final-round 65 to win the Africa Open at East London Golf Club on the Sunshine (South African) Tour. He was in contention all week at the British Open after a 3-under 67 in the first round but a final-round 72 led to a tie for a fifth-place finish. The following week he lost on the second extra hole of a playoff with Nathan Green at the RBC Canadian Open.

NATIONAL TEAMS: The Presidents Cup (5), 2000, 2003, 2005, 2007, 2009; Dunhill Cup (6), 1995, 1996, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000; World Cup (5), 1993, 1995, 2000, 2001, 2007

PRESIDENTS CUP RECORD: 11-7-2

All-time playing partners

Stuart Appleby (2 Foursomes)

Angel Cabrera (1 Four-ball)

Michael Campbell (1 Four-ball, 1 Foursomes)

K.J. Choi (1 Four-ball)

Tim Clark (1 Foursomes)

Adam Scott (3 Foursomes, 3 Four-ball)

Vijay Singh (1 Foursomes, 2 Four-ball)

Mike Weir (1 Foursomes)