Gary Woodland

Gary Woodland's Early Life and Background

Gary Woodland, Dan and Linda Woodland's son, was born on May 21, 1984, in Topeka, Kansas. However, not much is known about his earlier life or background.

Gary Woodland's Amateur Career

Woodland went to the Tecumseh suburb's Shawnee Heights High School. After that, he received a basketball scholarship to Washburn University in Topeka. However, he dropped out after his first year to accept a golf scholarship to the University of Kansas in Lawrence, and he pursued a sociology degree.

His basketball career came to an end following his game against Kansas University. He told Taylor Made that he could have played internationally, but that was not what he preferred for his future career. He also said that he knew he was not made to play basketball professionally because the other players were faster and bigger than him.

Gary Woodland’s amateur wins are as follows:

• 2005 Cleveland State Invitational, Kansas Amateur

• 2006 Kansas Invitational

• 2007 All-American Golf Classic

• 2007 Louisiana Classics

• 2007 Kansas Amateur

Gary Woodland's Professional Career

Woodland turned professional in 2007 and played at the Nationwide Tour (now Korrn Ferry Tour) for a season, and then by the end of 2008, he finished tied for 11th place at the PGA Q School, earning a card for the 2009 season. He made just eight cuts in 18 matches during his rookie year, though, and his golfing career was cut short by nine months due to a shoulder injury.

Woodland split his 2010 schedule between the Nationwide and PGA Tours. But he never managed to place in the top 10 on either tour and struggled to find his form. He did show sufficient consistency to rank 92nd on the Nationwide Tour earnings list. He qualified for the season-ending qualifying school once more, and this time, he finished T-11 to regain full PGA Tour status.

In the Bob Hope Classic, Woodland's second tournament of 2011, he and Jhonattan Vegas tied for first place at 27-under-par; Vegas defeated Woodland in a playoff to win the title. However, it was Woodland's first top-10 finish on either of the tours.

Woodland defeated Webb Simpson by one stroke to win his first PGA Tour title in March 2011 at the Transitions Championship, when Simpson missed a par putt on the last hole. Shortly before, after sending his second shot over the back of the green, Woodland had scrambled a brilliant par from the identical position as Simpson on the last.

Woodland reached a career-high of 53rd in the Official World Golf Ranking (OWGR) after this victory. This also guaranteed him a spot in the 2011 Masters Tournament (T24). Later, after breaking into the Top 50, he was invited to the U.S. Open (T23). At the end of 2011, he ranked 51st in the OWGR and 17th on the PGA Tour money list. By the end of 2009, he was ranked 962; by the end of 2010, he was ranked 591; and as of March 2024, he was ranked 127.

At the 2018 WM Phoenix Open, Woodland defeated Chez Reavie in a sudden-death playoff to win his third PGA Tour tournament. Woodland ended a five-year tour drought with a par on the first extra hole after finishing tied at 18 under.

After two rounds at the 2018 PGA Championship, Woodland had a tournament record of 130, which put him in the lead after 36 holes. At the halfway point, he was ahead of Kevin Kisner by a stroke. At nine under par going into the final round, he was three strokes behind leader Brooks Koepka. At six strokes behind the winner, Koepka, he tied for sixth place with a score of 10 under par.

At the winners-only 2019 Sentry Tournament of Champions, Woodland was leading going into the final round; however, Xander Schauffele shot a course record-tying 62, but he lost by shooting a five-under-par 68, Schauffele won the event.

During a Tuesday practice round at the 2019 Waste Management Phoenix Open, Woodland played with Amy Bockerstette, a collegiate golfer with Down syndrome, to play the par-3 16th hole at TPC Scottsdale. Bockerstette shocked Woodland by parring the hole in front of an enthusiastic audience after hitting her tee ball into a greenside bunker and 43 million people saw the PGA Tour's momentous video on social media after it went viral.

Woodland had the 54-hole lead at the 2019 U.S. Open; he scored a 2-under-par 69 on Sunday to finish at 271, under 13, three shots ahead of the runner-up and two-time reigning champion, Brooks Koepka.

At double digits under par, he became the fourth winner in the history of the U.S. Open. It was his sixth career triumph and his first major. Woodland had only recorded two top-ten finishes in his thirty major championship starts prior, both at the PGA Championship in 2018 and 2019. He went from 25th to 12th in the Official World Golf Ranking following his victory at the U.S. Open.

Since then, he hasn't won yet; as of March 2024, he played in six events, making a cut in only two. At the 2024 Genesis Invitational, he finished tied for 39th place with a score of 283, under 1, and at the 2024 Players Championship, he finished in 72nd place with a score of 291, over 3.

In August 2023, Woodland declared that he had been attempting to treat his brain lesion with medication since receiving the diagnosis months earlier. After speaking with experts, he decided to have surgery, which went well in September and was announced on Twitter by his team.

Gary Woodland's Playing Style

There is no information available regarding the playing style of Gary Woodland.

Gary Woodland's Caddie

Brennan Little is Woodland's looper at the moment. Little has been caddying since 1999, and he has partnered with Mike Weir, Sean O'Hair, and Camillo Villegas, among other professionals.

His victories with Mike Weir in the 2003 Masters and Woodland in the 2019 US Open at Pebble Beach rank among his best career moments to date. According to him, he has a handicap of two and was a collegiate golf player at New Mexico State.

His favorite golfer as a child was Greg Norman, and Augusta National is currently his favorite course to caddie at. Having said that, he adds that Colonial is his favorite tour stop since he has a lot of familiarity with the golf course and it's near his house.

Little enjoys playing and watching ice hockey and claims that managing a hockey team as general manager would be his ideal side gig. He states that his ideal four-ball team would include NHL player Jamie Benn, MLB player Josh Donaldson, and his father, as per Caddie Network.

Gary Woodland's Golf Journey

Woodland, born in Topeka, Kansas, on May 21, 1984, pursued a golf career after initially receiving a basketball scholarship to Washburn University. He turned professional in 2007 and played on the Nationwide Tour before earning his PGA Tour card for the 2009 season.

Woodland's breakthrough came in 2011 when he won his first PGA Tour title at the Transitions Championship. Subsequently, he achieved significant success, including winning the 2019 U.S. Open, his first major championship. Having suffered a recent downturn in form and undergoing surgery for a brain lesion in September 2023, Woodland remains a prominent figure in professional golf.

Gary Woodland's Achievements

As per Woodland's PGA Tour profile, he joined the tour in 2009 and has made cuts in 253 or 346 events. He won four tournaments, with ten runner-ups, two third-place finishes, 29 top-5 and 54 top-10 finishes.

Gary Woodland's Majors

Gary Woodland's Awards and Honors

Gary Woodland hasn’t won any awards or honors yet.

Gary Woodland's Net Worth

As of March 2024, Gary Woodland's net worth is estimated to be $14 million. According to Spotrac, he has earned $33 million on the PGA Tour and $36.4 million in his career total. He won the U.S. Open and took home $2.5 million in prize money in 2019, making it his finest season to date, earning $6.4 million.

Gary Woodland's Ventures

Gary Woodland has endorsement deals with Cobra-Puma Golf, Breitling USA, Security Benefit, Titlesit and Volition, but his income from such endorsements is not yet known.

Gary Woodland's Assets

Gary Woodland resides in Delray Beach, Florida, with his family. However, a precise address for the golfer is not available.

Gary Woodland's Family

Woodland's parents are Dan Woodland and Linda Woodland. Reportedly, his father, Dan, is an ardent baseball fan. Gary Woodland once invited the legendary MLB player George Brett to a Superbowl party, and Dan, being an avid fan of the Royals, enjoyed meeting Brett in person.

There is no information available about the personal or professional lives of Dan and Linda; however, they both attended his win at the 2019 U.S. Open.

Dan Woodland had a heart attack on Father's Day, June 16, 2019, one week before the 2019 U.S. Open in Scottsdale, Arizona, while playing golf with pals. There, he had triple bypass surgery, and when he went code blue, hospital personnel performed his CPR. Gary reported that his father's heart stopped for four minutes, but Linda, Woodland's mother, was afraid they might have lost Dan that day.

Gary Woodland's Wife

In 2016, Gabby Woodland (Granado) and Gary Woodland tied the knot on a beach in the Turks and Caicos Islands.

Sadly, the couple faced tragedy a year after their wedding when one of their twins passed away in utero. Even though Jaxson, the other twin, was born prematurely, he has grown over the past few years.

The couple was once again gifted with twins in the middle of 2019. Woodland announced the news on Instagram by sharing a photo of his wife, son Jax, and newborn daughters, Maddox and Lennox.

Gary Woodland's Cars

There is no information available about the car collection of Gary Woodland.