Profile of Golfer and Broadcaster Roger Maltbie
Full name: Roger Lin Maltbie
Date and place of birth: June 30, 1951, Modesto, California
Significant Pro Wins
1975 Quad Cities Open
1975 Pleasant Valley Classic
1976 Memorial Tournament
1985 Westchester Classic
1985 NEC World Series of Golf
These five victories represent all of Maltbie's PGA Tour wins. He never won on the Champions Tour, but played only sparingly since his career was focused on broadcasting by that time.
In the Majors
Roger Maltbie's appearances in majors were largely indistinguished - he had only two Top 10 finishes. His best showing was a tie for fourth place at the 1987 Masters, where he missed a playoff by one stroke.
Notable Notes: Roger Maltbie is one of those many golfers who burst onto the scene, then never quite lived up to that early promise. Maltbie won back-to-back tournaments in his rookie year of 1975, won again at the inaugural Memorial Tournament in 1976, then won only twice more. Still, he had a long PGA Tour career, playing from 1975-1996. ... After one of his rookie year wins, Maltbie spent some quality time in a bar that evening - and left behind his winner's check of $40,000.
Maltbie played in 500 PGA Tour events, with five wins, six seconds, four thirds and 55 total Top 10 finishes. ... When Maltbie won Jack Nicklaus' inaugural Memorial Tournament in 1976, it was in a playoff over Hale Irwin. On the third playoff hole, Maltbie pulled his approach well left of the green, but the ball hit a gallery-rope stake and bounced onto the green. Maltbie won it on the next hole. In the post-round press conference, a marshal presented that stake to Maltbie. Maltbie held it up to show Irwin, who replied, "No thanks, I've already had the shaft once today." Irwin refused to speak to Maltbie for more than six months.
Maltbie's final two wins both came in 1985, and he had his highest money-list finish — eighth — that year. ... While Maltbie never achieved an "offical win" on the Champions Tour, he did team with NBC Sports colleague Gary Koch three times in the 2000-aughts to win the Raphael Division at the Liberty Mutual Legends of Golf. ... Maltbie is sometimes remembered for sporting some of the most garish golf clothes worn during the fashion-challenged 1970s. ... In high school, Maltbie was teammates on the golf team with another future PGA Tour player, Forrest Fezler.
Maltbie began covering golf as a broadcaster beginning in 1990, and 1991 was his first full-time year working for NBC Sports. He has been part of the NBC golf team since. Maltbie is primarily an on-course walking reporter, but has also spent time in the booth.
