Fansided

The best golfer from every U.S. state

By Cody Williams

DUBLIN, OH - JUNE 3: Tiger Woods poses with tournament host Jack Nicklaus and the tournament trophy after winning the Memorial Tournament presented by Nationwide Insurance at Muirfield Village Golf Club on June 3, 2012 in Dublin, Ohio. (Photo by Chris Condon/PGA TOUR)
DUBLIN, OH - JUNE 3: Tiger Woods poses with tournament host Jack Nicklaus and the tournament trophy after winning the Memorial Tournament presented by Nationwide Insurance at Muirfield Village Golf Club on June 3, 2012 in Dublin, Ohio. (Photo by Chris Condon/PGA TOUR) /
facebooktwitterreddit
Prev
15 of 50
Next
ST ANDREWS, SCOTLAND – JULY 20: Zach Johnson of the United States celebrates with the Claret Jug after winning during the play off of the 144th Open Championship at The Old Course on July 20, 2015 in St Andrews, Scotland. (Photo by Ross Kinnaird/R&A/R&A via Getty Images)
ST ANDREWS, SCOTLAND – JULY 20: Zach Johnson of the United States celebrates with the Claret Jug after winning during the play off of the 144th Open Championship at The Old Course on July 20, 2015 in St Andrews, Scotland. (Photo by Ross Kinnaird/R&A/R&A via Getty Images) /

Iowa: Zach Johnson

Zach Johnson has Iowa in his veins considering his upbringing. The now-42-year old was born in Iowa City, moved to Cedar Rapids where he was raised throughout his young life and then went on to attend Drake University in Des Moines for his collegiate golfing career. That makes him an obvious candidate to be the best golfer from Iowa, but it’s his performance on the PGA Tour that undoubtedly solidifies him in that position.

Out of college, Johnson went to play on the tours such as the Buy.com Tour (now the Web.com Tour) to try and hone his game. He finally found his groove in the 2003 season, however, as he was able to finish first on the Nationwide Tour money list, which gave him qualification for the PGA Tour the following year in 2004.

Once up in the big leagues, Johnson did well for himself, notching his first-ever PGA Tour victory as a rookie at the 2004 BellSouth Classic. He wouldn’t win again for three years, but it was a big one when he did as he outlasted Retief Goosen, Rory Sabbatinit and some guy named Tiger Woods to win The Masters in 2007.

Over the next eight years, Johnson logged nine victories on the PGA Tour until he was able to capture his second major championship victory, winning The Open Championship in 2015 in playoff over Marc Leishman and Louis Oosthuizen. That was his last win to date on tour, but Johnson’s smooth and sure putting still makes him a threat to win in almost tournament that he plays.

Home/Golf