Brandt Snedeker

Brandt Newell Snedeker was born on December 8, 1980, in Nashville, Tennessee, to Larry and Candice Snedeker. His maternal grandmother, who managed a golf course in West Plains, Missouri, introduced him to the sport. He attended Harding Academy and Montgomery Bell Academy for high school before graduating from Vanderbilt University, where he joined the Chi Chapter of Kappa Alpha Order. In 2003, he won the U.S. Amateur Public Links and turned professional the following year.

Snedeker played on the Nationwide Tour from 2004 to 2006. He won the Showdown at Somerby and the Permian Basin Charity Golf Classic, finished ninth on the money list with $549,564, and earned a PGA Tour card for 2007. That season, he made 23 cuts in 29 events, including a win at the Wyndham Championship, a third-place finish, six top-10s, and 13 top-25s. He earned $2,836,643, finished 17th on the money list, and was named PGA Tour Rookie of the Year. His world ranking ended the year at 47th.

From 2008 to 2010, Snedeker played steadily. In 2008, he tied for third at the Masters and tied for ninth at the U.S. Open, reaching a career-high world ranking of 32nd. He made 19 of 26 cuts, recorded five top-10s, and earned $1,531,442. In 2009, he struggled with a rib injury that caused him to miss seven straight tournaments, but he still posted two top-5 finishes and two more top-5s later in the summer, finishing 55th on the money list. In 2010, he started with a top-10 at the Bob Hope Classic and a runner-up at the Farmers Insurance Open, then tied for eighth at the U.S. Open. He added two more top-10s at the Wyndham Championship and the Deutsche Bank Championship, ending the year 48th on the money list.

His biggest breakthrough came in 2012, when he won the FedEx Cup by taking the Tour Championship at East Lake Golf Club. That victory lifted him into the top 10 of the Official World Golf Ranking for the first time. In February 2013, after winning the AT&T Pebble Beach National Pro-Am, he climbed to a career-best No. 4 in the world. On August 16, 2018, he shot the tenth sub-60 round in PGA Tour history, an opening 59 at the Wyndham Championship.