Chris Kirk (born May 8, 1985) is an American professional golfer who plays on the PGA Tour.
Video Chris Kirk
Early years
Born in Knoxville, Tennessee, Kirk was reared in Woodstock, Georgia. He played college golf at the University of Georgia in Athens and was a member of their 2005 NCAA championship team along with Kevin Kisner, Richard Scott, and Brendon Todd. He was the Ben Hogan Award winner as a senior in 2007.
Maps Chris Kirk
Nationwide Tour
Kirk turned professional in 2007 and played on the Nationwide Tour for three seasons from 2008 through 2010. In 2010, he won the Fort Smith Classic to earn his first Nationwide Tour title. He followed this up with his second win of the season at the Knoxville News Sentinel Open. Kirk finished second on the 2010 Nationwide Tour money list to earn his 2011 PGA Tour card, despite sitting out the last event of the season.
PGA Tour
As a PGA Tour rookie, Kirk finished second to Phil Mickelson at the Shell Houston Open in April 2011. Later that year, Kirk won his first tour event, the Viking Classic, an alternate event played the same weekend as The Open Championship. He finished a stroke ahead of runners-up George McNeill and Tom Pernice, Jr., and the victory automatically qualified him for the PGA Championship, where he finished in a tie for 34th place. In his debut season on the PGA Tour, Kirk had four top-10s and finished 42nd in the end of season FedEx Cup standings to retain his card for 2012.
In 2012, Kirk played in 27 events and only missed six cuts, including four top-10 finishes and best of T-4 at the RBC Canadian Open. He had a similarly very solid season in 2013, missing only four cuts, with three top-10 finishes. He finished runner-up at the AT&T Pebble Beach National Pro-Am, after shooting 64-66 on the weekend to finish two shots behind Brandt Snedeker.
Kirk earned his second PGA Tour win at the McGladrey Classic in November 2013, which was part of the new wrap-around season for 2014. He prevailed by one stroke over Briny Baird and Tim Clark. The win qualified Kirk for his first Masters; the Viking Classic, which was Kirk's first victory on tour, was an alternate event and did not include a Masters invitation. On September 1, 2014, Kirk won the second event of the FedEx Cup playoffs at the Deutsche Bank Championship in Boston for his third PGA Tour title, and jumped from 17th in FedEx Cup rankings to first. He finished tied for fourth in The Tour Championship, the first time he had qualified for the event to end the year second on the FedEx Cup standings behind Billy Horschel.
In 2015, Kirk won for the fourth time on the PGA Tour at the Crowne Plaza Invitational at Colonial. He shot 65-66 over the weekend to finish one stroke ahead of runners-up Jason Bohn, Brandt Snedeker and Jordan Spieth. Kirk holed a six-foot (1.8 m) putt for par on the final green to claim the victory.
Professional wins (6)
PGA Tour wins (4)
Nationwide Tour wins (2)
Results in major championships
CUT = missed the half-way cut
"T" indicates a tie for a place
Summary
- Most consecutive cuts made - 5 (2011 PGA - 2014 Open)
- Longest streak of top-10s - 0
U.S. national team appearances
Amateur
- Eisenhower Trophy: 2006
- Palmer Cup: 2006, 2007 (winners)
- Walker Cup: 2007 (winners)
Professional
- Presidents Cup: 2015 (winners)
See also
- 2010 Nationwide Tour graduates
References
External links
- Chris Kirk at the PGA Tour official site
- Chris Kirk at the Official World Golf Ranking official site
Source of article : Wikipedia