Champ from the Pampas

Who has won more golf tournaments than any other pro in history?

Not Walter Hagen, or Byron Nelson, or Ben Hogan, or Sam Snead, or Arnold Palmer -- or any other American for that matter. The alltime champion is Roberto de Vicenzo, a balding, 44-year-old Argentine of Italian peasant stock who turned pro at 14 and posted his first victory three years later -- shooting a 277 for 72 holes that still stands as the course record at the Rosario Golf Club.

In 20-odd years of carting his clubs around the world, De Vicenzo since has won upwards of 120 tournaments, including the national open championships of Argentina (six times), Brazil (three times), Chile (three times), Jamaica (three times), Panama (twice), Uruguay (twice), Mexico (twice), France (three times), Germany, Holland, Belgium and Spain. On Britain's wind swept par-72 Royal Liverpool Golf Club course two weeks ago, Roberto fired rounds of 70, 71, 67 and 70 to beat Defending Champion Jack Nicklaus by two strokes and add the prestigious British Open title to his collection.

Although some experts rate De Vicenzo "the best striker of a golf ball in the world" for his smooth, powerful, self-taught swing, Roberto is virtually unknown in the U.S. -- because he pre fers competition abroad to the pres sures of the U.S. tour. Not that U.S. courses or U.S. pros hold any particular terror for him. Last year De Vicenzo stopped off in Dallas to see friends, stayed long enough to win the Dallas Open and $15,000; this year, playing in only seven U.S. tournaments, he has earned a tidy $23,000.

That, plus the $5,880 that his British Open victory earned him, is enough to keep De Vicenzo comfortable in his suburban villa in Ranelagh, 15 miles south of Buenos Aires. "I work for the money I need," he says, "but other money I don't care much about. I am old, and I just like to sit."

This file is automatically generated by a robot program, so reader's discretion is required.