The best golfer from every U.S. state

Wyoming: Jim Benepe

While Jim Benepe may have gone to college at Northwestern, there’s no questioning where he’s from. The Sheridan native has strong ties to the state of Wyoming and, despite just moderate success throughout his career on the PGA Tour, there’s no doubt that he holds the title as the best to ever come out of the state in the sport.

After earning a nod as a first-team All-American at Northwestern and winning the 1986 Big Ten Championship, Benepe made the decision to turn professional and played on the Canadian Tour and the Australian Tour, in addition to playing a bit in Asia. He won on the Canadian Tour at the British Columbia Open in 1987 and then captured the 1988 Victorian Open in Australia before making his way onto the PGA Tour.

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If you just looked at what Benepe accomplished right away, you might think that he was on his way to massive things in the golfing world. When he joined in 1988, he won the first event that he played in on the PGA Tour, capturing the victory at the Beatrice Western Open. However, that wasn’t the start to many wins, but rather the only time that he would win on tour throughout his career.

Even still, Benepe was successful to varying degrees and stayed in the mix. He finished in the top 30 in both the U.S. Open and The Open Championship throughout his career. What’s more, the Wyoming native could’ve won more had he not had to cut his career short — or at least limit it — due to back problems. As a result, he’s still the best from the state, but perhaps could’ve been even better.