Matt Jones (golfer)
Matt Jones | |
---|---|
— Golfer — | |
Personal information | |
Full name | Matthew Jones |
Born |
Sydney, Australia | 19 April 1980
Height | 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) |
Weight | 170 lb (77 kg; 12 st) |
Nationality | Australia |
Residence | Sydney, Australia |
Spouse | Melissa Weber (m. 2010) |
Children | Saber Victoria, Savannah |
Career | |
College | Arizona State University |
Turned professional | 2001 |
Current tour(s) |
PGA Tour PGA Tour of Australasia |
Former tour(s) | Nationwide Tour |
Professional wins | 2 |
Number of wins by tour | |
PGA Tour | 1 |
PGA Tour of Australasia | 1 |
Best results in major championships | |
Masters Tournament | CUT: 2014 |
U.S. Open | CUT: 2014 |
The Open Championship | T30: 2015 |
PGA Championship | T21: 2015 |
Matthew Jones (born 19 April 1980) is an Australian professional golfer who has played on the Nationwide Tour, the PGA Tour of Australasia and the PGA Tour. Jones was born in Sydney. He later moved to the United States to attend Arizona State University where he was a first-team All-American. He turned professional in 2001.
Jones joined the Nationwide Tour in 2004, but did not have a break-out year until 2007. After having only a combined 8 top-10 finishes in his first three seasons between 2004 and 2006, he almost matched that in one season. He had 6 top-10s in 2007, finishing second four times and losing in two playoffs. He finished 7th on the money list and qualified to play his rookie season on the PGA Tour in 2008.
In his rookie season on the PGA Tour in 2008, Jones found limited success. His best finish of the season was a tie for 4th at the Honda Classic and the Buick Open. He finished the season with $775,899, but did not finish inside the top 125 on the money list, leaving him with conditional status for the 2009 season. In 2009 Jones had two top-10s, both 5th place finishes at the Buick Invitational and at the John Deere Classic. At the six-round PGA Tour Qualifying Tournament in December 2009, where the top 25 finishers obtained their 2010 PGA Tour cards, Jones finished 3rd.
He finished fifth at the 2010 John Deere Classic and seventh at the Quail Hollow Championship. Also, he finished second at the Australian Open. His best result in 2011 was sixth at the Zurich Classic of New Orleans.
Jones improved in the 2013 PGA Tour season. He resulted second at the Greenbrier Classic, fifth at the Wyndham Championship, sixth at the Memorial Tournament, seventh at the John Deere Classic and eighth at the BMW Championship. Later he finished sixth at the Australian Open.
In his 156th PGA Tour start, Jones got his first PGA Tour win at the 2014 Shell Houston Open, beating Matt Kuchar on the first playoff hole when he made a 42-yard chip in for a birdie. He had previously made a 46-foot putt on the 18th hole to take the match to a playoff.[1] The win also made Jones the last guaranteed entrant to the Masters and moved him to 41st in the Official World Golf Ranking. In May he finished 17th at The Players Championship.
In the 2015 PGA season, Jones finished 11th at the Hyundai Tournament of Champions. At the 2015 PGA Championship, Jones led the tournament by two strokes over Jason Day at the 36-hole stage. He shot rounds of 68-65 over the first two days for a total of 11-under-par. He started the third round strongly and extended his lead to three strokes midway through the round, but ended the round poorly, dropping four strokes in his last four holes to finish five behind the 54-hole leader, Jason Day. He would end the tournament T-21.
On 29 November 2015, Jones won his first title on his home PGA Tour of Australasia, with a victory in the Emirates Australian Open, one of the three Australian majors. He held off challenges by the world number one Jordan Spieth and Adam Scott to prevail by one stroke. Jones had led by three going into the final round, but dropped three shots in his opening two holes and also carded a triple bogey on the ninth hole. But he recovered by shooting two under on the back nine for a 73 to claim victory by one stroke. The win qualified Jones for the 2016 Open Championship.
Personal
Jones is married to the former Melissa Weber, who represented Idaho in Miss USA 2009 and has two daughters. His brother Brett is the head club professional of Due Process Stable Golf Club in Colts Neck, New Jersey. Brett played in the 2015 PGA Championship.
Professional wins (2)
PGA Tour wins (1)
No. | Date | Tournament | Winning score | To par | Margin of victory | Runner-up |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | 6 Apr 2014 | Shell Houston Open | 68-68-71-66=273 | −15 | Playoff | Matt Kuchar |
PGA Tour playoff record (1–0)
No. | Year | Tournament | Opponent | Result |
---|---|---|---|---|
1 | 2014 | Shell Houston Open | Matt Kuchar | Won with birdie on first extra hole |
PGA Tour of Australasia wins (1)
No. | Date | Tournament | Winning score | To par | Margin of victory | Runner-up |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | 29 Nov 2015 | Emirates Australian Open | 67-68-68-73=276 | −8 | 1 stroke | Adam Scott, Jordan Spieth |
Results in major championships
Tournament | 2009 | 2010 | 2011 | 2012 | 2013 | 2014 | 2015 | 2016 |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Masters Tournament | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP | CUT | DNP | DNP |
U.S. Open | WD | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP | CUT | DNP | DNP |
The Open Championship | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP | T54 | T30 | T39 |
PGA Championship | DNP | CUT | DNP | DNP | T40 | T46 | T21 | T79 |
DNP = Did not play
CUT = missed the half-way cut
"T" indicates a tie for a place
Yellow background for top-10
Results in World Golf Championships
Results not in chronological order prior to 2015.
Tournament | 2014 | 2015 | 2016 |
---|---|---|---|
Cadillac Championship | DNP | DNP | DNP |
Dell Match Play | DNP | T34 | T51 |
Bridgestone Invitational | T31 | DNP | T16 |
HSBC Champions | T53 | T40 | DNP |
DNP = Did not play
QF, R16, R32, R64 = Round in which player lost in match play
CUT = missed the half-way cut
"T" = tied
Yellow background for top-10.
See also
- 2007 Nationwide Tour graduates
- 2009 PGA Tour Qualifying School graduates
- 2012 PGA Tour Qualifying School graduates
References
- ↑ "Matt Jones wins Houston Open on playoff chip-in". CBC Sports. Associated Press. 6 April 2014.
External links
- Official website
- Matt Jones at the PGA Tour official site
- Profile, Australasia PGA Tour; accessed 10 April 2014.
- Matt Jones at the Official World Golf Ranking official site
- Matt Jones profile, Golf Australia website; accessed 10 April 2014.