About Danny Willett

Born in Sheffield, England, in 1988, Willett learned golf in his hometown and began playing out of Rotherham Golf Club, just minutes outside of Sheffield. He played throughout his teenage years and high school and began his amateur career in earnest in 2006 as a 19-year-old at Jacksonville State (Alabama).

His first amateur successes came in the United States playing for Jacksonville State, where he won the 2006 Troy Invitational, the 2007 Mission Inn Collegiate Classic and the 2007 Ohio Valley conference championship. He also finished third in the Turkish Amateur and fourth in the World Boys in Japan.

With top finishes at the top tournaments in countries throughout Europe and the United States, Willett was quickly climbing his way up the amateur charts. He won the 2007 Yorkshire Amateur Championship, then the South of England Championship, the English Amateur Championship and the Sprint International Tournament. In 2008 he was named the world's No. 1 amateur, a spot he held for 12 weeks.

By the end of his amateur career, he had moved his handicap up to +5 and left for the European Tour at the end of the 2008 season. In 2008, he finished fifth at the Riverwood Open in Holland, 10th at the Spanish Open, 13th in the French Open and 12th at the Russian Open in his first events as a pro. These results were not enough to earn his tour card, but he went on to fourth place at Qualifying School, finally earning himself full playing privileges for the 2009 season. He finished inside of the top 10 in four events in his first eight months on tour.

Willett won nearly $500,000 in his first season on the European Tour (as of August 2009). He won $123,000 after finishing fourth at the 2009 Celtic Manor Wales Open. As an amateur, he also represented England in the the 2005 Boys Home International, the 2005 European Boys Championship, the 2007 Walker Cup and the 2007 England Elite Squad.