PLAYER PROFILE: Darren Clarke
| Country: | Northern Ireland |
| DoB: | 14 Aug 1968 |
| Height: | 6ft 2ins (1.88 meters) |
| Interests: | Fishing, cigars, fine wines, cars and Liverpool FC |
| Weblink: | darrenclarke.com |
| Family: | Sons, Tyrone and Conor. Fiancee, Alison. |
| Tours: | European Tour |
- Biography
- Stats
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One of the world’s most well known golfers, Darren Clarke has won many fans with his passionate play and dedicated approach to the game. A stalwart of The European Tour since 1991, the Ulsterman is no stranger to firsts.
In the 1999 Smurfit European Open he became the first player on The European Tour to shoot 60 for a second time, having achieved it first in the 1992 European Monte Carlo Open. In 2002 he became the first player to win the English Open three times and in 2003 became the first player outside Tiger Woods to capture more than one World Golf Championship title. Three weeks after the untimely death of wife Heather, who finally lost her brave battle against cancer in August 2006, Darren was picked as one of the wild cards for The Ryder Cup at K Club and in an emotionally charged week produced one of his most memorable performances, winning all three of his matches.
A dedicated worker for charity, he set up his own Darren Clarke Foundation, which not only helps further the development of junior golf in Ireland, but also now raises money for Breast Cancer Awareness.
Darren has assured his place in history by earning a place in the renowned ‘Who’s Who’ guide for 2008, and in 2005 he even appeared on an Irish postage stamp. A difficult 2007, where Darren juggled looking after his two sons with his golf regime, saw him slip down the rankings, but he began to find his form again in South Africa before the winter break.
2008 was a great year for Darren with wins in the BMW Asian Open in China and the KLM Open in The Netherlands where his sons Tyrone and Conor were there to witness Dad's victory.
In 2010 he beat a world class field in the JP McManus Invitational Pro-Am at Adare Manor in Ireland where he had a one shot victory over Luke Donald. He secured his spot in the 139th Open Championship at St Andrews by finishing 2nd in the Barclays Scottish Open. Darren finished 30th in the European Tour Race To Dubai assuring his place in the field for the 2011 Open Championship at Royal St Georges. He rounded off 2010 in great style with the announcement of his engagement to Alison Campbell.
2011 began well for Darren with a victory in the Iberdrola Open in Mallorca but he enjoyed his finest hour in July when he claimed his maiden major championship. Darren won the 140th Open Championship at Royal St George's in Kent by three shots from Phil Mickelson and Dustin Johnson.
If you wish to ask Darren a question please CLICK HERE to be taken to Contact The Players website.
| Current Status | |
|---|---|
| View Darren's European Tour profile HERE | |
| Career Victories | |
|---|---|
| 2011 | 140th Open Championship |
| 2011 | Iberdrola Open |
| 2010 | JP McManus Invitational Pro-Am |
| 2008 | The KLM Open |
| 2008 | BMW Asian Open |
| 2005 | Mitsui Sumitomo VISA Taiyeiho Masters |
| 2004 | Mitsui Sumitomo VISA Taiyeiho Masters |
| 2003 | Benmore Developments Northern Ireland Masters |
| 2003 | WGC - NEC Invitational |
| 2002 | Compass Group English Open |
| 2001 | Smurfit European Open |
| 2001 | Chunichi Crowns |
| 2001 | Dimension Data Pro-Am |
| 2000 | Compass Group English Open |
| 2000 | WGC - Andersen Consulting Match Play Championship |
| 1999 | Compass Group English Open |
| 1998 | Volvo Masters |
| 1998 | Benson & Hedges International Open |
| 1996 | Linde German Masters |
| 1993 | Alfred Dunhill Belgian Open |
| Best Performances 2012 | |
|---|---|
| Best Performances 2011 | |
|---|---|
| Commercialbank Qatar Masters | 12T |
| Volvo Golf Champions | 8T |
| Joburg Open | 20T |
| Africa Open | 26T |
| Best Performances 2010 | |
|---|---|
| UBS Hong Kong Open | 19T |
| KLM Open | 17T |
| Omega European Masters | 15T |
| 3 Irish Open | 12T |
| 139th Open Championship | 44T |
| Barclays Scottish Open | 2 |
| Estoril Open de Portugal | 6T |
| Avantha Masters | 8T |
| Joburg Open | 2T |
| Career History | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| 11th | 2011 | Race to Dubai | €1,590,415 |
| 30th | 2010 | Race To Dubai | €892,388 |
| 61st | 2009 | Race To Dubai | €534,733 |
| 13th | 2008 | European Tour Order of Merit | €1,151,038 |
| 138th | 2007 | European Tour Order of Merit | €172,110 |
| 43rd | 2006 | European Tour Order of Merit | €583,348 |
| 20th | 2005 | European Tour Order of Merit | €971,130 |
| 8th | 2004 | Volvo Order of Merit | €1,563,802 |
| 2nd | 2003 | Volvo Order of Merit | €2,210,051 |
| 22nd | 2002 | Volvo Order of Merit | €848,023 |
| 3rd | 2001 | Volvo Order of Merit | €1,988,055 |
| 2nd | 2000 | Volvo Order of Merit | €2,717,965 |
| 8th | 1999 | Volvo Order of Merit | €731,291 |
| 2nd | 1998 | Volvo Order of Merit | £902,867 |
| Amateur Career | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| 1990 | WON | Spanish Amateur Open Championship | |
| 1990 | WON | Irish Amateur Closed Championship | |
| Team Honours | |
|---|---|
| Ryder Cup representing Europe | 1997, 1999, 2001(2002), 2004, 2006, 2010 non-playing Vice Captain. |
| World Cup representing Ireland | 1994 - 1996 |
| Alfred Dunhill Cup representing Ireland | 1994 - 1999 |
| Vivendi Seve Trophy representing GB & Ireland | 2000, 2002, 2011 |



