Ben Arda
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Ben Arda (13 June 1929 – 20 December 2006) was a Filipino professional golfer.
Professional career
Arda, known as Bantam Ben and the Toy Tiger because of his small stature, was one of Asia's leading golfers during the 1960s and 1970s. He was the first Filipino to qualify for the Masters Tournament and The Open Championship. He won nine tournaments on the Asia Golf Circuit, including the Philippine Open three times, and headed the points list in 1970. He also won four times on the Japan Golf Tour and played in the World Cup 16 times, recording a best finish of 2nd place in 1977 with playing partner Rudy Lavares.
Professional wins (15)
PGA of Japan Tour wins (4)
| No. | Date | Tournament | Winning score | Margin of victory | Runner(s)-up |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 27 May 1973 | Dunlop Tournament | −8 (71-69-70-70=280) | 4 strokes | Japan Masashi Ozaki |
| 2 | 30 Sep 1973 | Japan Open Golf Championship | −11 (68-74-69-66=277) | 2 strokes | Japan Isao Aoki |
| 3 | 25 Apr 1976 | Sobu International Open1 | −11 (69-68-70-70=277) | 4 strokes | Taiwan Chen Chien-chung |
| 4 | 24 Apr 1977 | Dunlop International Open1 (2) | −6 (72-71-67-72=282) | 2 strokes | New Zealand Terry Kendall, Japan Tsuneyuki Nakajima |
1Co-sanctioned by the Asia Golf Circuit
Asia Golf Circuit wins (8)
| No. | Date | Tournament | Winning score | Margin of victory | Runner(s)-up |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 17 Feb 1963 | Philippine Open | +1 (71-74-74-70=289) | 3 strokes | Japan Teruo Sugihara |
| 2 | 5 Mar 1967 | Singapore Open | −2 (70-69-71-72=282) | Playoff | Japan Hideyo Sugimoto |
| 3 | 8 Mar 1970 | Malaysian Open | −15 (69-68-68-68=273) | 1 stroke | Australia Tim Woolbank |
| 4 | 11 Mar 1973 | Singapore Open (2) | E (71-68-72-73=284) | Playoff | Scotland Norman Wood |
| 5 | 17 Mar 1974 | Indonesia Open | −5 (73-71-70-69=283) | Playoff | Taiwan Hsu Chi-san, Australia Graham Marsh |
| 6 | 7 Mar 1976 | Thailand Open | −18 (66-70-65-69=270) | 4 strokes | Thailand Sukree Onsham |
| 7 | 25 Apr 1976 | Sobu International Open1 | −11 (69-68-70-70=277) | 4 strokes | Taiwan Chen Chien-chung |
| 8 | 24 Apr 1977 | Dunlop International Open1 (2) | −6 (72-71-67-72=282) | 2 strokes | New Zealand Terry Kendall, Japan Tsuneyuki Nakajima |
1Co-sanctioned by the PGA of Japan Tour
Asia Golf Circuit playoff record (3–1)
| No. | Year | Tournament | Opponent(s) | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1967 | Singapore Open | Japan Hideyo Sugimoto | Won with par on second extra hole |
| 2 | 1973 | Singapore Open | Scotland Norman Wood | Won with par on third extra hole |
| 3 | 1974 | Indonesia Open | Taiwan Hsu Chi-san, Australia Graham Marsh | Won with par on sixth extra hole Hsu eliminated by par on first hole |
| 4 | 1975 | Taiwan Open | Taiwan Hsieh Min-Nan, Taiwan Kuo Chie-Hsiung | Kuo won with birdie on fourth extra hole |
Other wins (5)
This list may be incomplete
- 1961 Philippine Open
- 1969 Indian Open
- 1976 Philippine Masters
- 1977 Philippine Masters
- 1979 Philippine Open
Results in major championships
| Tournament | 1962 | 1963 | 1964 | 1965 | 1966 | 1967 | 1968 | 1969 | 1970 | 1971 | 1972 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Masters Tournament | CUT | ||||||||||
| The Open Championship | CUT |
CUT = missed the half-way cut (3rd round cut in 1972 Open Championship) Note: Arda never played in the U.S. Open or the PGA Championship.
Team appearances
This list is incomplete
- World Cup (representing the Philippines): 1956, 1958, 1960, 1961, 1962, 1963, 1964, 1965, 1966, 1967, 1969, 1970, 1971, 1972, 1975, 1977
External links
- at the Japan Golf Tour official site