CHAMPION GOLFER
∗ Born June 16, 1970 in San Diego; says he began playing golf as soon as he could stand up
∗ Won three consecutive American Junior Golf Association Player of the Year awards while in high school, earning him a golf scholarship to Arizona State University; earned psychology degree and graduated in 1992; met wife Amy, a former Phoenix Suns dancer, at ASU
∗ Won three NCAA individual championships and three Haskins Awards as the outstanding collegiate golfer in 1990, 1991 and 1992; became only the second collegiate golfer to earn first team All-American honors all four years
∗ Won the U.S. Amateur title in 1990; won his first Professional Golfing Association Tour event in 1991 at age 20 at the Tucson Open – only the sixth amateur to win a professional event in PGA history (and no one has done it since)
∗ Turned pro in 1992 following graduation; was often described as “the best golfer never to win a major” before finally winning the 2004 Masters Tournament; then won 22 PGA Tour events in less than 12 years, including three more majors – 2005 PGA Championship, 2006 Masters and 2010 Masters; has won 44 total PGA events
∗ Won the Waste Management Phoenix Open three times (1996, 2005, 2013)
∗ Nicknamed “Lefty” for his left-handed swing, even though he is right-handed otherwise
∗ Moved back to San Diego area in 2001
∗ Served briefly as a part-time off-season “assistant coach” to ASU golf team in 2014 under brother Tim, who hired him to help with recruiting
∗ Inducted into the World Golf Hall of Fame in 2012; one of golf’s wealthiest players, ranked #2 on the PGA’s all-time earnings list
∗ Coached since 2015 by Andrew Getson, who is based at Grayhawk Golf Club in Scottsdale
∗ Owns (with partners) several Arizona golf courses: McDowell Mountain Golf Club (Scottsdale), Palm Valley Golf Club (Goodyear), Golf Club at Chaparral Pines (Payson), Rim Golf Club (Payson), Stone Canyon Club (Oro Valley), and Ocotillo Golf Club in Chandler
∗ Designed the short-game area of ASU’s golf practice facility at Papago Park, which opened in 2018
∗ Ended a five-year PGA Tour winless streak in 2018 by taking the World Golf Championship in Mexico
∗ Picked as captain of Team USA in the 2018 Ryder Cup international tournament in Paris
∗ Won Capital One’s “The Match” in 2018, beating Tiger Woods in the made-for-TV pay-per-view face-off
∗ Won the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am for the fifth time in 2019, his 44th career PGA title
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