David K. Oakley was an American professional golfer

Professional golfer

In golf the distinction between amateurs and professionals is rigorously maintained. An amateur who breaches the rules of amateur status may lose his or her amateur status. A golfer who has lost his or her amateur status may not play in amateur competitions until amateur status has been reinstated;...

 whose greatest success came on the European Seniors Tour

European Seniors Tour

The European Seniors Tour is a professional tour for male golfers aged 50 and over run by the PGA European Tour.The Tour was founded in 1992. In 2008 it had a total prize fund of €7,729,284, so it is much further behind the U.S.-based Champions Tour in relative prize money than the main European...

.

Oakley was born in New York

New York

New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...

, but grew up in Panama City, Florida

Panama City, Florida

-Personal income:The median income for a household in the city was $31,572, and the median income for a family was $40,890. Males had a median income of $30,401 versus $21,431 for females. The per capita income for the city was $17,830...

. He got started in golf

Golf

Golf is a precision club and ball sport, in which competing players use many types of clubs to hit balls into a series of holes on a golf course using the fewest number of strokes....

 by his mother who thought a nine-hole course near their home would make a fine babysitter for Oakley and his brother. Oakley was the older brother of American professional golfer Pete Oakley

Pete Oakley

Peter H. Oakley is an American professional golfer best known for winning the 2004 Senior British Open, one of the major championships in senior men's professional golf. He is the younger brother of golfer David Oakley....

.

Oakley attended the University of Florida

University of Florida

The University of Florida is an American public land-grant, sea-grant, and space-grant research university located on a campus in Gainesville, Florida. The university traces its historical origins to 1853, and has operated continuously on its present Gainesville campus since September 1906...

 in Gainesville, Florida

Gainesville, Florida

Gainesville is the largest city in, and the county seat of, Alachua County, Florida, United States as well as the principal city of the Gainesville, Florida Metropolitan Statistical Area . The preliminary 2010 Census population count for Gainesville is 124,354. Gainesville is home to the sixth...

, where he was a walk-on member of coach Buster Bishop

Buster Bishop

Bernays Emery "Buster" Bishop was an American college golf coach. Bishop was best known for leading the Florida Gators men's golf team of the University of Florida to National Collegiate Athletic Association Division I championships in 1968 and 1973.- Early life and education :Bishop was born in...

's Florida Gators men's golf team from 1965 to 1967. As a Gator golfer, he was a member of teams that won Southeastern Conference

Southeastern Conference

The Southeastern Conference is an American college athletic conference that operates in the southeastern part of the United States. It is headquartered in Birmingham, Alabama...

 (SEC) championships in 1965 and 1967. He graduated from the University of Florida with a bachelor's degree

Bachelor's degree

A bachelor's degree is usually an academic degree awarded for an undergraduate course or major that generally lasts for three or four years, but can range anywhere from two to six years depending on the region of the world...

 in business administration in 1967.

Oakley turned pro in 1970 and toured Europe, Asia, Canada and the United States before hanging up his clubs in 1976 to concentrate on a business career unrelated to golf. He spent ten years as a hotel liquidator and nine as a furniture store manager and regained his amateur status. He returned to professional golf in 1996 and played on various senior circuits.

Oakley died in Orlando, Florida

Orlando, Florida

Orlando is a city in the central region of the U.S. state of Florida. It is the county seat of Orange County, and the center of the Greater Orlando metropolitan area. According to the 2010 US Census, the city had a population of 238,300, making Orlando the 79th largest city in the United States...

 from prostate cancer

Prostate cancer

Prostate cancer is a form of cancer that develops in the prostate, a gland in the male reproductive system. Most prostate cancers are slow growing; however, there are cases of aggressive prostate cancers. The cancer cells may metastasize from the prostate to other parts of the body, particularly...

 at the age of 61. He was survived by his wife Doris and sons James and Christopher. At the time of his death, he was fifth on the European Seniors Tour career money list.

European Seniors Tour wins

• 1999 (1) MDIS & Partners Festival of Golf
• 2000 (1) DeVere Hotels Senior Classic
• 2001 (2) Energis Senior Masters, Scottish Seniors Open

See also

• Florida Gators
  Florida Gators
  The Florida Gators are the intercollegiate sports teams that represent the University of Florida located in Gainesville, Florida. The "Lady Gators" is an alternative nickname sometimes used by the Gators women's teams...
  
  
• List of Florida Gators golfers
• List of University of Florida alumni

External links