J B Holmes

Early life

Holmes, born in Campbellsville, Kentucky, began to play on the varsity golf team at Taylor County High School in Campbellsville when he was in the third grade. He suffered a mild form of dyslexia when in school. Holmes' childhood friend, Brandon Parsons, is his caddy. While in high school he played on the Pepsi Junior Golf Tour. He attended the University of Kentucky in Lexington, helping to achieve SEC Title while there, and represented the United States in the 2005 Walker Cup before turning professional later that year.

Professional career

Holmes was medalist at the 2005 PGA Tour Qualifying Tournament. He tied for tenth in his first PGA Tour start at the 2006 Sony Open in Hawaii and in February that year he won the FBR Open, making him the fastest golfer to reach $1,000,000 in career earnings on the PGA Tour. It was his fifth tournament as a professional and his fourth on the PGA Tour.

After this victory his form fell away, and this continued in 2007 when he made only 2 top ten finishes and ended the year in 118th place on the money list.

On February 3, 2008, Holmes won the FBR Open for the second Tour win of his career and also captured the tournament title for the second time in three years. Starting the final round with a four shot lead, on the 18th tee he was one shot behind Phil Mickelson. Holmes birdied the 18th to force a play-off and then defeated Mickelson on the first playoff hole (the 18th) by making a six-foot birdie putt after a 359-yard drive. This victory took Holmes to 62nd in the Official World Golf Ranking. In 2008, Holmes reached a career-high 42nd in the OWGR.

Style of play

Holmes, along with fellow 2006 rookies such as Camilo Villegas and Bubba Watson, is known for hitting the ball long distances, in excess of 300 yards (312.7 yards, ranking him number 2 in driving distance, only 6 yards behind the leader, Watson). As such, he plays courses by routinely hitting his driver as far as he can, reminiscent of John Daly's "Grip it and Rip It" philosophy, and using his distance advantage to put him closer to the green and in position for a wedge or short iron to the green. While the style of play is not new, many critics have complained that J.B. Holmes's style has ushered in a new wave of golfers dedicated to smashing the ball as far as they can, assisted by the newer golf equipment offered by golf club companies and hacking the ball out of the rough onto the green, effectively eliminating the equalizing effect that the sport of golf usually affords shorter, accurate hitters.

2008 Ryder Cup

In the 2008 Ryder Cup, Holmes defeated Europe's Søren Hansen 2&1 during Sunday's singles matches to bring the United States within one point of clinching the Ryder Cup. Jim Furyk would later defeat Miguel Ángel Jiménez on the 17th hole to clinch the Ryder Cup. Holmes and another Ryder Cup teammate, Kenny Perry, were named Kentuckians of the Year for 2008 by Kentucky Monthly magazine.

Brain surgery

After shooting an 80 in the first round, Holmes withdrew from the 2011 PGA Championship in August. He had been dealing with vertigo symptoms for several months and eventually was diagnosed with structural defects in the cerebellum known as Chiari malformations. He underwent brain surgery on September 1, 2011, and about a month later, doctors discovered later that Holmes was allergic to the adhesive used on the webbed titanium plate at the base of his skull. He was airlifted from his home in Kentucky to Johns Hopkins in Baltimore for another surgery. Holmes returned to the PGA Tour in late January 2012 at the Farmers Insurance Open.

2012–15: Recovery and comeback

After brain surgery, Holmes played in 26 events in 2012. Elbow and ankle injuries limited him to six PGA Tour events in 2013 and did not play again until the Dunlop Phoenix Tournament on the Japan Golf Tour. Holmes satisfied his medical extension through earnings at the 2014 Zurich Classic of New Orleans, finishing T11. He would need a T63 at the Wells Fargo Championship to earn entry into the 2014 Players Championship via FedEx Cup points. Holmes would get his first win in six years, regained his Tour status through the 2015-2016 season, and moved from 242nd to 68th in the Official World Golf Ranking. The win also earned Holmes entry into the 2014 PGA Championship at Valhalla Golf Club in Louisville, Kentucky.

In February 2015, Holmes lost in a four-man sudden-death playoff at the Farmers Insurance Open. He held a co-lead after the 54-hole stage with Harris English, but could only shoot a level-par final round to enter the playoff. At the first playoff hole, Holmes made a birdie to move on to the second playoff hole with Jason Day, after English and Scott Stallings were eliminated with pars. On the par-three second playoff hole, Holmes flew the green and could not get down in two from the back rough, leaving Day with two putts from 15 feet for the victory.

In the first round of the WGC-Cadillac Championship, Holmes shot a 62 for a total of 10-under-par to lead by four strokes after the first day. His round included eight birdies and an eagle to tie the tournament record. Holmes retained his lead after the second round, despite a one-over-par 73. He led by two shots going into the weekend and opened up a five-shot lead following a 70 in the third round, which included a hole-in-one at the par-3 fourth hole. However his lead had gone by the sixth hole in the final round, after he bogeyed three of his opening six holes. Holmes played the rest of his round in even-par and would go on to shoot a 75 to finish one behind winner Dustin Johnson. His runner-up finish moved Holmes to 19th in the world rankings, his highest ever placing to date.

PGA Tour wins (4)

Other wins (3)

Results in major championships

WD = Withdrew
CUT = missed the half-way cut
"T" = tied

Summary

Results in World Golf Championships

Results not in chronological order prior to 2015.

The HSBC Champions did not become a WGC event until 2009.
DNP = Did not play
QF, R16, R32, R64 = Round in which player lost in match play
"T" = tied
Yellow background for top-10.

U.S. national team appearances