Davis Riley (born December 17, 1996) is an American professional golfer who plays on the PGA Tour.

Davis Riley
Personal information
Born (1996-12-17) December 17, 1996 (age 27)
Hattiesburg, Mississippi, U.S.
Height6 ft 0 in (1.83 m)
Weight175 lb (79 kg; 12.5 st)
Sporting nationality United States
ResidenceHattiesburg, Mississippi, U.S.
Career
CollegeAlabama
Turned professional2019
Current tour(s)PGA Tour
Former tour(s)Korn Ferry Tour
Professional wins4
Highest ranking61 (March 5, 2023)[1]
(as of November 24, 2024)
Number of wins by tour
PGA Tour2
Korn Ferry Tour2
Best results in major championships
Masters TournamentDNP
PGA ChampionshipT13: 2022
U.S. OpenT31: 2022
The Open ChampionshipCUT: 2023

Amateur career

edit

Riley was born in Hattiesburg, Mississippi. He attended Presbyterian Christian School in Hattiesburg, winning the Mississippi state title four straight years.[2] In 2015, he was named All-USA Boys Golf Player of the Year by USA Today.[3] Riley made the final of the U.S. Junior Amateur two years in a row, joining Tiger Woods and Jordan Spieth as the only players to appear in the championship match twice.[4] In 2013, he lost the final to Scottie Scheffler when he called a penalty on himself on the last hole.[5] He was a member of the American team at the 2014 Junior Ryder Cup that defeated the European team 16–8 in Perthshire, Scotland.

Riley enrolled at Alabama in 2015. He was a Second Team All-SEC as a sophomore and was ranked as the best collegiate player in the country entering his junior year.[6] He played in the Palmer Cup in 2018, compiling a 2–2 record in the American win over the International team.[7]

Riley turned professional in 2019.[8]

Professional career

edit

Riley joined the Korn Ferry Tour in 2020, earning his first win at the Panama Championship in February.[9] He added a second title at the TPC San Antonio Championship in July, finishing the combined 2020-21 Korn Ferry Tour season ninth on the points list to earn his PGA Tour card.[10] While playing the Korn Ferry Tour, Riley was roommates with Will Zalatoris, who had defeated him in the U.S. Junior Amateur final in 2014.[11]

In March 2022, Riley took a two-shot lead into the final round of the Valspar Championship before losing on the second playoff hole to Sam Burns.[12] He finished fourth in the Zurich Classic of New Orleans while partnering with Zalatoris.[13] The following week, he finished in 5th place at the Mexico Open.

Riley has qualified for the U.S. Open three times, missing the cut in 2015 and 2020, but finishing tied-31st in 2023.[14]

In April 2023, Riley earned his first PGA Tour title when he won the Zurich Classic of New Orleans with partner Nick Hardy.[15]

In May 2024, Riley won the Charles Schwab Challenge for his first individual victory on the PGA Tour.[16][17]

Professional wins (4)

edit

PGA Tour wins (2)

edit
No. Date Tournament Winning score To par Margin of
victory
Runners-up
1 Apr 23, 2023 Zurich Classic of New Orleans
(with   Nick Hardy)
64-66-63-65=258 −30 2 strokes   Adam Hadwin and   Nick Taylor
2 May 26, 2024 Charles Schwab Challenge 66-64-66-70=266 −14 5 strokes   Keegan Bradley,   Scottie Scheffler

PGA Tour playoff record (0–1)

No. Year Tournament Opponent Result
1 2022 Valspar Championship   Sam Burns Lost to birdie on second extra hole

Korn Ferry Tour wins (2)

edit
No. Date Tournament Winning score Margin of
victory
Runner(s)-up
1 Feb 2, 2020 Panama Championship −10 (67-70-64-69=270) 1 stroke   Roberto Díaz
2 Jul 18, 2020 TPC San Antonio Championship −16 (70-69-66-67=272) 2 strokes   Paul Barjon,   Taylor Pendrith

Results in major championships

edit

Results not in chronological order before 2020.

Tournament 2015 2016 2017 2018
Masters Tournament
U.S. Open CUT
The Open Championship
PGA Championship
Tournament 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023
Masters Tournament
PGA Championship T13 CUT
U.S. Open CUT T31
The Open Championship NT CUT
  Did not play

CUT = missed the half-way cut
"T" = tied
NT = No tournament due to COVID-19 pandemic

Results in The Players Championship

edit
Tournament 2023 2024
The Players Championship CUT CUT

CUT = missed the halfway cut

Results in World Golf Championships

edit
Tournament 2023
Match Play T28

"T" = Tied

U.S. national team appearances

edit

Amateur

References

edit
  1. ^ "Week 9 2023 Ending 5 Mar 2023" (pdf). OWGR. Retrieved March 6, 2023.
  2. ^ "Alabama-bound Davis Riley transitions from junior to amateur". Golfweek. July 2, 2015. Retrieved May 20, 2022.
  3. ^ "All-USA Boys Golf Player of the Year: Davis Riley". USA Today. June 16, 2015. Retrieved May 20, 2022.
  4. ^ "Hattiesburg's Riley places second at U.S. Junior Amateur". The Clarion Ledger. July 26, 2014. Retrieved May 20, 2022.
  5. ^ "Mississippi teen falls on final hole of prestigious U.S. Junior Amateur Golf Championship by self reporting one-shot penalty". Yahoo Sports. July 30, 2013. Retrieved May 20, 2022.
  6. ^ "2017–18 Men's Golf Roster – Davis Riley". University of Alabama. Retrieved May 20, 2022.
  7. ^ "Alabama golfers earn wins at Palmer Cup". The Tuscaloosa News. July 7, 2018. Retrieved May 20, 2022.
  8. ^ Casey, Kevin (December 6, 2018). "Alabama's Davis Riley to turn pro, skip final semester". Golfweek.com. Retrieved May 20, 2022.
  9. ^ Wildhack, Sean (February 2, 2020). "Riley wins Panama Championship, moves atop The 25". PGA Tour. Retrieved May 20, 2022.
  10. ^ Kelly, Todd (July 18, 2020). "Davis Riley wins the KFT's TPC San Antonio Championship at the Oaks". Golfweek. Retrieved May 20, 2022.
  11. ^ Wildhack, Sean (April 3, 2020). "Zalatoris, Riley progress from U.S. Junior finalists to roommates". PGA Tour. Retrieved May 20, 2022.
  12. ^ Harig, Bob (March 20, 2022). "Davis Riley Falls Short in Valspar Playoff But Finds Much to Build On". Sports Illustrated. Retrieved May 20, 2022.
  13. ^ Duncan, Jeff (April 8, 2022). "Zurich Classic adds rising stars Will Zalatoris and Davis Riley to 2022 field". NOLA.com. Retrieved May 20, 2022.
  14. ^ "Future Alabama Golfer Davis Riley Qualifies for 2015 U.S. Open". Tide1009.com. June 9, 2015. Retrieved May 20, 2022.
  15. ^ Martel, Brett (April 23, 2023). "Riley, Hardy capture first PGA Tour wins at Zurich Classic". Associated Press News. Retrieved April 23, 2023.
  16. ^ Hawkins, Stephen (May 26, 2024). "Davis Riley gets 1st individual PGA Tour win by 5 at Colonial in final group with Scheffler". Associated Press News. Retrieved May 26, 2024.
  17. ^ "Davis Riley captures first individual Tour win by five-stroke margin at Charles Schwab Challenge". PGA Tour. Associated Press. May 27, 2024. Retrieved May 27, 2024.
edit