About John Merrick

Merrick was born on March 20, 1982, in Long Beach, California, where he still resides (as of 2009). He graduated from UCLA in 2004 with a degree in sociology. While at UCLA he led the Bruins to their first Pac-10 Conference men's golf championship in 18 years and earned All-America honors. Merrick also won the Southern California Golf Association Amateur Championship in 2001.

Merrick turned professional in 2004 and joined the Nationwide Tour in 2006. He finished that year ranked 21st and also gained his first win as a pro at the Peek'n Peak Classic in Findley Lake, New York, earning a purse of $100,800. These accomplishments earned Merrick a PGA Tour Card and he also attended Q-School, where he finished in a tie for fourth place.

Merrick officially joined the PGA Tour in 2007 and made the cut in more than half the tournaments in which he participated. However, after finishing 135th on the money list for the year, he returned to Q-School to regain his tour card for the 2008 season, which he was able to accomplish.

In 2008 Merrick participated in 28 PGA tour events, making the cut 22 times. He finished the year ranked 40th, finishing in the top 10 four times, including a third-place tie at the Mayakoba Golf Classic. He also topped one million dollars in earnings for the year, finishing with $1,312,005. His performance enabled him to retain his PGA Tour card for the 2009 season.

As of August 2009, Merrick had made the cut in 71 percent of the tournaments he entered. He had earned $1,269,759 as of that time, ranking him in 47th place in the FedEx Cup standings. He finished in second place at the 50th Bob Hope Classic, earning $550,800. He also finished tied for sixth place at the Masters and at the Puerto Rico Open.