Who Is Gary Woodland? Get To Know The Texas Children's Houston Open Leader

Gary Woodland is chasing his fourth outright PGA Tour title at the Texas Children's Houston Open, and should he land the trophy, it would complete a remarkable comeback of sorts for the immensely popular golfer.

Woodland has enjoyed a long and successful pro golf career so far, but his brightest moment arrived when he held off Brooks Koepka and co. to win the 2019 US Open.

However, since then, the man born in Topeka, Kansas has endured more than his fair share of bad luck and trauma.

Woodland underwent brain surgery to remove a benign tumor in September 2023 and has subsequently revealed he was diagnosed with PTSD as a result of the ordeal.

Even leading up to the surgery, Woodland shared he suffered with anxiety and was worried about death.

Thankfully, the former World No.12 has since admitted that he feels much better for revealing his issues and is back contending for PGA Tour titles once more.

Woodland's first PGA Tour win arrived at the 2011 Transitions Championship, four years after he turned pro and just a few weeks after he lost to Jhonattan Vegas in a playoff at the Bob Hope Classic.

His college career was a fascinating period in his life, too, as he spent a year at Washburn University on a basketball scholarship before transferring to Kansas University and continuing college life as a golfer.

Speaking to TaylorMade about the decision, Woodland said that he gave up on basketball after playing in a game against the University of Kansas.

He said: "They were so much bigger and faster then we were. I quickly realized I wasn't going to be able to play basketball as a professional - I probably could've gone overseas and played, but I wasn't going to be able to do it as a career."

During his time in education, Woodland studied sociology and won four college golf events. Since that time, Kansas University made the decision to name its golf complex after Woodland and he was inducted into the Topeka Sports Hall of Fame in June 2017.

And Woodland's Alma Mater still means a lot to him with his favorite college team being the Kansas Jayhawks. On a similar theme, the professional football team he supports is the Kansas City Chiefs.

Woodland took his immense talent from school out on tour and has collected multiple achievements over the years, including wins at the Reno-Tahoe Open, the 2018 WM Phoenix Open and - of course - the 2019 US Open.

He also landed the World Cup of Golf alongside Matt Kuchar back in 2011, won the Presidents Cup with Team USA in 2019 and has two career aces. Woodland, to date, has earned more than $36.5 million in prize money on the PGA Tour.

For much of that time, Woodland's caddie has been Brennan Little - an extremely experienced looper who has helped the American maintain his place at the highest level.

Away from the golf course, Woodland, his wife Gabby and their children Jaxson, Maddox and Lennox live in Delray Beach, Florida. Woodland is a member of Pine Tree Golf Club. His home club as a junior was Topeka Country Club in Kansas.

One of his favorite past times is playing table tennis. After injuring his shoulder during his rookie season on the PGA Tour, Woodland had nine months out and couldn't really move his left shoulder, so he took to table-tennis to keep busy.

GARY WOODLAND FACTS

1. During the 2019 Waste Management Phoenix Open, Woodland surprised Amy Bockerstette from Special Olympics Arizona to play the iconic 16th hole with him. The moment went viral online and in the world of sport, and the two have remained in touch since.

2. He marks his ball with a 1984 half-dollar coin given to him by his mother. The year 1984 signifies the year he was born.

3. He was presented with the PGA Tour's Courage Award back in 2025 and was given the Ben Hogan Award in 2023.

4. He made a hole-in-one on the 14th hole in round two of the 2015 AT&T Byron Nelson. He also made an ace at the 2018 QBE Shootout and in The Masters Par 3 Contest in 2024.

Gary Woodland’s first career hole-in-one at the Par 3 Contest. #themasters - YouTube

Watch On

5. He has previously worked with Butch Harman. His current coach is Mark Blackburn, while he also works putting guru Phil Kenyon.

6. Woodland was the star of an episode of Netflix docuseries 'Full Swing'.

7. Back in 2017, Woodland and his partner Gabby had their son Jaxson who was born 10 weeks prematurely. They were expecting twins but sadly their daughter was lost during the pregnancy. They then had two twin girls together in 2019 after two miscarriages.

GARY WOODLAND BIO

GARY WOODLAND PRO WINS

Gary Woodland earnings

Gary Woodland has earned over $36.5m on the PGA Tour. His biggest check came after his 2019 US Open win, where he earned $2.5m.

He also has sponsorship deals with Cobra-Puma Golf, Titleist, Security Benefit, NetJets and Troon Golf.

Gary Woodland driving distance

Woodland is a powerful player and has averaged over 300 yards in every season he's played on the PGA Tour. His longest hitting season was 2022-23, where he had an average drive of 313.8 yards.

Gary Woodland brain tumor

Woodland underwent surgery in September 2023 for a benign brain tumor. It led to him taking four months away from the game, returning in January 2024.

He opened up about the anxiety and fear of death he experienced leading up to the surgery.

"The doctors kept telling me I was OK, but this thing which was pushing on the part of my brain which controls fear and anxiety... it didn't matter if I was driving a car or on an airplane - I'd be thinking the bin is going to fall on me - I just thought everything was going to kill me," he said.

"So, you can imagine - leading up to surgery - what I felt like about the thought of having my head cut open and my brain operated on. The fear going into that was awful.

"When I woke up and realized I was OK, I was filled with thankfulness and love, and that replaced the fear. It was emotional, very emotional, because I'd gone four-and-a-half months of every day really thinking I was going to die."

More recently, Woodland shared how he had been diagnosed with PTSD following his recovery from the surgery.