Introduction
Desmond John Smyth (born 12 February 1953) is an Irish professional golfer.
Smyth was born in Drogheda, County Louth. He turned professional in 1974 and was a member of the European Tour for over a quarter of a century. His best finish on the European Tour Order of Merit was seventh in 1988. He won eight tournaments on the tour across four different decades, breaking Neil Coles' record as the oldest man to win a European Tour event when he claimed the 2001 Madeira Island Open at the age of 48 years and 34 days. This record was broken by Miguel Ángel Jiménez (48 years, 11 months, 13 days) at the 2012 UBS Hong Kong Open.
Smyth represented Europe in the Ryder Cup in 1979 and 1981, losing on both occasions to the United States. Smyth also represented his country in the World Cup and the Alfred Dunhill Cup many times and was a member of the Irish team (alongside Eamonn Darcy and Ronan Rafferty) which won the latter in 1988. At the 2006 Ryder Cup, he was one of Ian Woosnam's vice-captains.
Since turning fifty in 2003, Smyth has had a successful career in senior golf, winning tournaments on both the Champions Tour and the European Senior Tour.
Personal life
Smyth has a son, Greg, a horticultural student at IT Blanchardstown. Greg won Ireland's eighth largest lottery jackpot of €9,426,636 on 13 August 2008.
Amateur wins
- 1973 West of Ireland Amateur Open Championship
Professional wins (25)
European Tour wins (8)
| No. | Date | Tournament | Winning score | Margin of victory |
Runner(s)-up |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 5 Aug 1979 | Sun Alliance European Match Play Championship |  Nick Price |
||
| 2 | 8 Jun 1980 | Newcastle Brown "900" Open | −12 (67-70-70-69=276) | 1 stroke |  Graham Burroughs, Neil Coles, Greg Norman |
| 3 | 22 Jun 1980 | Cold Shield Greater Manchester Open | −7 (67-71-69-66=273) | Playoff | Brian Waites |
| 4 | 28 Jun 1981 | Coral Classic | −6 (67-72-70-73=282) | 2 strokes | Michael King,  Bernhard Langer, John O'Leary |
| 5 | 30 Oct 1983 | Sanyo Open | −9 (72-66-70-71=279) | 1 stroke |  Hugh Baiocchi, Mark James |
| 6 | 23 Oct 1988 | BNP Jersey Open | −15 (69-68-69-67=273) | Playoff | Roger Chapman |
| 7 | 31 Oct 1993 | Madrid Open | −16 (65-68-68-71=272) | 3 strokes |  Domingo Hospital, José Rivero, Mark Roe, Wayne Westner |
| 8 | 18 Mar 2001 | Madeira Island Open | −18 (66-70-68-66=270) | 2 strokes | John Bickerton |
European Tour playoff record (2–3)
| No. | Year | Tournament | Opponent(s) | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1980 | Cold Shield Greater Manchester Open | Brian Waites |
Won with birdie on sixth extra hole |
| 2 | 1982 | Jersey Open | Eamonn Darcy,  Bernard Gallacher |
Gallacher won with par on fifth extra hole Darcy eliminated by birdie on second hole |
| 3 | 1984 | Sanyo Open | Sam Torrance |
Lost to par on first extra hole |
| 4 | 1986 | Whyte & Mackay PGA Championship | Rodger Davis |
Lost to bogey on third extra hole |
| 5 | 1988 | BNP Jersey Open | Roger Chapman |
Won with birdie on fifth extra hole |
Other wins (8)
- 1979 Irish National PGA Championship
- 1985 Irish National PGA Championship
- 1986 Irish National PGA Championship
- 1988 Alfred Dunhill Cup (with Eamonn Darcy and Ronan Rafferty)
- 1990 Irish National PGA Championship
- 1995 Glen Dimplex Irish Match Play
- 1996 Irish National PGA Championship
- 2001 Irish National PGA Championship
Champions Tour wins (2)
| No. | Date | Tournament | Winning score | Margin of victory |
Runner(s)-up |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 13 Mar 2005 | SBC Classic | −5 (71-72-68=211) | 1 stroke | Mark McNulty,  D. A. Weibring |
| 2 | 24 Apr 2005 | Liberty Mutual Legends of Golf | −8 (66-71-71=208) | 2 strokes | Tom Jenkins |
Champions Tour playoff record (0–1)
| No. | Year | Tournament | Opponent | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2005 | Senior British Open | Tom Watson |
Lost to par on third extra hole |
European Senior Tour wins (5)
| No. | Date | Tournament | Winning score | Margin of victory |
Runner(s)-up |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 12 Nov 2005 | Arcapita Seniors Tour Championship | −10 (68-68-70=206) | 2 strokes | John Chillas |
| 2 | 5 Aug 2007 | Wentworth Senior Masters | −6 (70-71-69=210) | 2 strokes |  Bob Charles |
| 3 | 5 Sep 2010 | Travis Perkins plc Senior Masters | −10 (66-71-69=206) | 3 strokes | Carl Mason |
| 4 | 26 Jun 2011 | Van Lanschot Senior Open | −6 (71-74-65=210) | 2 strokes | Peter Fowler, Tim Thelen |
| 5 | 2 Sep 2012 | Travis Perkins plc Senior Masters (2) | −10 (72-66-68=206) | 1 stroke | Peter Fowler |
Other senior wins (2)
- 2011 Liberty Mutual Legends of Golf – Raphael Division (with Mark James)
- 2012 Liberty Mutual Legends of Golf – Raphael Division (with Mark James)
Results in major championships
Note: The only major Smyth played in was The Open Championship.
| Tournament | 1975 | 1976 | 1977 | 1978 | 1979 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| The Open Championship | CUT | CUT | CUT | DNP | DNP |
| Tournament | 1980 | 1981 | 1982 | 1983 | 1984 | 1985 | 1986 | 1987 | 1988 | 1989 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| The Open Championship | CUT | T31 | T4 | CUT | CUT | CUT | CUT | CUT | DNP | CUT |
| Tournament | 1990 | 1991 | 1992 | 1993 | 1994 | 1995 | 1996 | 1997 | 1998 | 1999 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| The Open Championship | CUT | T44 | CUT | T27 | CUT | DNP | DQ | DNP | T15 | CUT |
| Tournament | 2000 | 2001 | 2002 |
|---|---|---|---|
| The Open Championship | DNP | T13 | T28 |
DNP = Did not play
CUT = missed the half-way cut
DQ = Disqualified
"T" = tied
Yellow background for top-10.
Team appearances
- Ryder Cup (representing Europe): 1979, 1981
- World Cup (representing Ireland): 1979, 1980, 1982, 1988, 1989
- Hennessy Cognac Cup (representing Great Britain and Ireland): 1980 (winners), 1982 (winners), (representing Ireland) 1984
- Alfred Dunhill Cup (representing Ireland): 1985, 1986, 1987, 1988 (winners), 2000
- UBS Cup (representing the Rest of the World): 2001, 2003 (tie)