Zach Johnson

Updated December 9, 2022
Zach Johnson official PGA Tour Headshot
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    Zach Johnson official PGA Tour Headshot
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    Jennifer Perez
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    getty image license

Zach Johnson is a professional golfer from Cedar Rapids, Iowa. He graduated from Drake University and turned pro in 1998. He has 12 wins on the PGA Tour and 26 career wins. His most notable victories are his two major championship wins at the 2007 Masters and the 2015 British Open.

Zach Johnson Quick Facts

Born February 24, 1976
Hometown Cedar Rapids, Iowa
College Drake University
Turned Pro 1998
Major Championship Wins 2
PGA Tour Wins 12
Total Professional Wins 26
Career Earnings $45,896,899
Spouse Kim Barclay (2003)

*wins and career earnings current through December, 2022

Zach Johnson Career Highlights

Zach Johnson won the 2007 Masters
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    Zach Johnson won the 2007 Masters
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    Hunter Martin
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    Getty Image license

Despite having 12 PGA Tour wins, Zach Johnson’s success did not come right away. From 1998-2003 Johnson played on several developmental tours including the Prairie Golf Tour, Hooters Tour, and Buy.com Tour (now Korn Ferry Tour). After being the top money winner on the Nationwide Tour in 2003, Johnson earned his full-time PGA Tour card.

His first PGA Tour victory came at the 2004 BellSouth Classic where he won by a single stroke over Mark Hensby. In 2006, Johnson had a pair of runner-up finishes and a third-place finish at the WGC-Accenture Match Play Championship, all of which catapulted him onto the U.S. Ryder Cup team that year

Zach Johnson, however, became a household name after his Masters win in 2007. His final round score of 69 was enough to hold off Tiger Woods, Retief Goosen, and Rory Sabbatini who all finished tied for second. His total score of +1 for the week tied for the highest winning score ever at The Masters. Johnson won once more in 2007 to cap off a monumental year.

He had other notable wins including the 2012 John Deere Classic in his hometown area in the Quad Cities. He also won a FedEx Cup Playoff event at the 2013 BMW Championship. It was in 2015 though when Johnson won his second major at the British Open. Johnson defeated Louis Oosthuizen and Marc Leishman after four playoff holes at St. Andrews.

Johnson was named the captain of the 2023 U.S. Ryder Cup team which will play the Europeans in Rome, Italy. Johnson competed in five Ryder Cup matches as a player (2006, 2010, 2014, 2016, 2018) and earned 9 career points over that time. He also played on the 2007, 2009, 2013, and 2015 U.S. Presidents Cup teams.

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Johnson has steered clear of any controversies in his playing career, but he is notorious for accidentally knocking his golf ball off of the tee with practice swings in tournament play. He did so at the 2019 Masters, afterwards stating there's "a first time for everything." It wasn't the last. Johnson did it again at the 2022 Waste Management Phoenix Open and again at the 2022 Players Championship.

Videos on social media highlight the strange occurrences, which are quite funny.

Zach Johnson is known for having a very flat, body-controlled swing where his right arm remains straight and locked in his backswing.

In his career, Zach Johnson has earned $45,896,899.

About Zach Johnson

Zach Johnson was raised in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, and is the son of Dave and Julie Johnson. He took up the game of golf at age 10 and played at Regis High School where, as a sophomore, he led the team to a state championship in 1992. He then played at Drake University where he led the Bulldogs to two Missouri Valley championships before graduating in 1998.

Johnson married Kim Barclay in 2003 and the couple has two sons, Will and Wyatt, and one daughter, Abby Jane. Johnson and his family live in St. Simons Island, Georgia. He and his wife created the Zach Johnson Foundation which helps children in need who live in his hometown of Cedar Rapids, Iowa.