John Maxwell Homa (born November 19, 1990) is an American professional golfer who plays on the PGA Tour. In college, he won the individual 2013 NCAA Division I Men's Golf Championship. As a professional, he has won six times on the PGA Tour.
| Max Homa | |
|---|---|
 Homa in 2023 | |
| Personal information | |
| Full name | John Maxwell Homa |
| Born | November 19, 1990 Burbank, California, U.S. |
| Height | 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) |
| Weight | 180 lb (82 kg; 13 st) |
| Sporting nationality |  United States |
| Residence | Scottsdale, Arizona, U.S. |
| Spouse |
Lacey Croom (m. 2019) |
| Children | 1 |
| Career | |
| College | University of California, Berkeley |
| Turned professional | 2013 |
| Current tour(s) | PGA Tour |
| Former tour(s) | Web.com Tour |
| Professional wins | 9 |
| Highest ranking | 5 (April 2, 2023)[1] (as of November 17, 2024) |
| Number of wins by tour | |
| PGA Tour | 6 |
| European Tour | 1 |
| Korn Ferry Tour | 2 |
| Best results in major championships | |
| Masters Tournament | T3: 2024 |
| PGA Championship | T13: 2022 |
| U.S. Open | T47: 2022 |
| The Open Championship | T10: 2023 |
Early and personal life
editHoma was born in Burbank, California on November 19, 1990.[2][3] He is Jewish, and attended six years of Hebrew school and had a bar mitzvah, but has stated he is not religious. He said in 2018: "The most Jewish I’ve ever felt came after looking at a home with extravagant Christmas lights and immediately thinking 'that electric bill must be brutal'."[4][5] In November 2019, he married Lacey Croom. The couple live in Scottsdale, Arizona and had a son in October 2022.[6][7][8]
High school and college
editHoma attended Valencia High School in the Santa Clarita Valley.[9] There, he was a four-time first-team All-Foothill League selection, and 2009 Foothill League MVP, graduating in 2009.[10]
He then played college golf at University of California, Berkeley on scholarship, earning a degree in Consumer Behavior.[11][12][3][10] There, as a junior in 2011-12 Homa was a third-team PING Division I All-American and second-team All-Pac-12 and PING Division I All-West Region.[10] As a senior in 2012-13 he was ranked No. 19 nationally by Golfweek (5/19) and No. 22 according by Golfstat (5/21), was first-team All-Pac-12, ranked No. 17 on the final Palmer Cup Ranking, and won the Pac-12 Championship with an opening-round nine-under par 61 breaking the course record at the North Course at Los Angeles Country Club and tying for the lowest round posted in the U.S.[10] He was named a first-team All-American and to the All-Nicklaus Team by the Golf Coaches Association of America.[13]
Amateur career
editIn 2008, Homa was selected to represent Southern California on the Junior America's Cup team.[10] In 2009, he won the Ventura County Junior Golf Association at River Ridge in Oxnard (72-73=145).[10]
In 2010, he reached the quarterfinals of the U.S. Amateur before losing to reigning champion and Cal teammate An Byeong-hun.[10] Homa ended the year ranked 4th in California, 33rd in the U.S., and 78th in world according to amateurgolf.com.[10]
In 2011, Homa won the amateurgolf.com Silicon Valley Amateur (63-70=133).[10] He ended the year ranked 8th in California, 36th in the U.S., and 89th in the world according to amateurgolf.com.[10] In 2012, he ended the year ranked 5th in California, 18th in the U.S., and 50th in the world according to amateurgolf.com.[10]
Homa competed as an amateur at the 2013 U.S. Open, and won the individual 2013 NCAA Division I Men's Golf Championship.[3] He was selected to the 2013 Walker Cup squad, and turned pro after the event.[14][15]
Professional career
editIn October 2013, Homa finished T-9 at the Frys.com Open, his first PGA Tour event as a pro.[16] In December 2013, he tied for 6th place in the Web.com Tour qualifying school. In May 2014, he earned his first professional win at the Web.com Tour's BMW Charity Pro-Am, defeating fellow rookie Jonathan Randolph by one stroke, earning $117,000.[17][18] He finished 17th on the Web.com Tour regular-season money list, to earn his PGA Tour card for the 2014–15 season.[18]
In the 2015 PGA Tour season, Homa entered 27 events. He made 12 cuts and won $380,339. He finished 163rd in the FedEx Cup standings and lost his tour card.[15] In the 2016 Web.com Tour season, Homa won the Rust-Oleum Championship in Ivanhoe, Illinois, coming from seven shots back, and ultimately regained his PGA Tour Card for the 2016–17 season.[18]
In the 2017 PGA Tour season, Homa made only two cuts in 17 events and lost his card.[18] That year he made just $18,008.[15] In 2017 he tweeted: "Had a few caddies hit me up recently hoping to team up. They heard they usually get weekends off which is apparently a great selling point."[4]
In the 2018 Web.com Tour season, Homa regained his PGA Tour card for the 2019 PGA Tour season.[18]
On May 5, 2019, Homa won the Wells Fargo Championship for his first PGA Tour victory, with a three-shot victory over Joel Dahmen.[19][20] Homa received $1.422 million for his win, a two-year extension of his PGA Tour card, as well as spots in the PGA Championship and in the 2020 Masters Tournament.[20][21]
On February 21, 2021, Homa earned his second PGA Tour victory at the Genesis Invitational in a playoff over Tony Finau.[22]
In September 2021, Homa won his third PGA Tour title at the Fortinet Championship, the opening event of the 2021–22 season.[23] In May 2022, Homa won the Wells Fargo Championship for a second time.[24] He ended the season finishing in a tie for 5th at the Tour Championship.
In September 2022, he successfully defended the Fortinet Championship, chipping-in for a birdie on the final hole to beat Danny Willett by one stroke.[25] He was selected to play on the U.S. team in the 2022 Presidents Cup; he won all four of the matches he played.[26]
In January 2023, Homa won the Farmers Insurance Open. He came from behind with a final round six-under par 66 for a two shot victory over Keegan Bradley.[27] In September 2023, Homa played on the U.S. team in the 2023 Ryder Cup at Marco Simone Golf and Country Club in Guidonia, Rome, Italy. The European team won 16.5–11.5 and Homa went 3–1–1 including a win in his Sunday singles match against Matt Fitzpatrick. In November 2023, won the Nedbank Golf Challenge in South Africa, shooting 19-under-par to claim his first victory outside of the United States.[28]
In January 2024, Homa hit a 477-yard drive during the third round of The Sentry, the longest drive in the PGA Tour's ShotLink era (since 2003).[29] In April 2024, Homa tied for third place in the 2024 Masters Tournament at −4, winning $1,040,000 and marking the first top-5 finish in a major of his career.[30]
Amateur wins
editProfessional wins (9)
editPGA Tour wins (6)
edit| No. | Date | Tournament | Winning score | Margin of victory |
Runner(s)-up |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | May 5, 2019 | Wells Fargo Championship | −15 (69-63-70-67=269) | 3 strokes |  Joel Dahmen
|
| 2 | Feb 21, 2021 | Genesis Invitational | −12 (66-70-70-66=272) | Playoff | Tony Finau
|
| 3 | Sep 19, 2021 | Fortinet Championship | −19 (67-72-65-65=269) | 1 stroke | Maverick McNealy
|
| 4 | May 8, 2022 | Wells Fargo Championship (2) | −8 (67-66-71-68=272) | 2 strokes | Keegan Bradley,  Matt Fitzpatrick, Cameron Young
|
| 5 | Sep 18, 2022 | Fortinet Championship (2) | −16 (65-67-72-68=272) | 1 stroke | Danny Willett
|
| 6 | Jan 28, 2023 | Farmers Insurance Open | −13 (68-70-71-66=275) | 2 strokes | Keegan Bradley
|
PGA Tour playoff record (1–0)
| No. | Year | Tournament | Opponent | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2021 | Genesis Invitational | Tony Finau
|
Won with par on second extra hole |
European Tour wins (1)
edit| No. | Date | Tournament | Winning score | Margin of victory |
Runner-up |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Nov 12, 2023 | Nedbank Golf Challenge | −19 (66-68-69-66=269) | 4 strokes |  Nicolai Højgaard
|
Web.com Tour wins (2)
edit| No. | Date | Tournament | Winning score | Margin of victory |
Runner-up |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | May 18, 2014 | BMW Charity Pro-Am | −20 (68-65-70-63=266) | 1 stroke | Jonathan Randolph
|
| 2 | Jun 12, 2016 | Rust-Oleum Championship | −13 (71-69-68-67=275) | 1 stroke | John Mallinger
|
Results in major championships
editResults not in chronological order in 2020.
| Tournament | 2013 | 2014 | 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Masters Tournament | ||||||
| U.S. Open | CUT | |||||
| The Open Championship | ||||||
| PGA Championship |
| Tournament | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Masters Tournament | CUT | CUT | T48 | T43 | T3 | |
| PGA Championship | T64 | CUT | CUT | T13 | T55 | T35 |
| U.S. Open | CUT | CUT | T47 | CUT | CUT | |
| The Open Championship | NT | T40 | CUT | T10 | T43 |
CUT = missed the half-way cut
"T" = tied for place
NT = no tournament due to COVID-19 pandemic
Summary
edit| Tournament | Wins | 2nd | 3rd | Top-5 | Top-10 | Top-25 | Events | Cuts made |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Masters Tournament | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 5 | 3 |
| PGA Championship | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 6 | 4 |
| U.S. Open | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 1 |
| The Open Championship | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 3 |
| Totals | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 21 | 11 |
- Most consecutive cuts made – 4 (2021 Open – 2022 U.S. Open)
- Longest streak of top-10s – 2 (2023 Open Championship – 2024 Masters)
Results in The Players Championship
edit| Tournament | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| The Players Championship | CUT | T13 | T6 | T64 |
CUT = missed the halfway cut
"T" indicates a tie for a place
Results in World Golf Championships
edit| Tournament | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Championship | T22 | ||||
| Match Play | NT1 | T18 | T35 | R16 | |
| Invitational | T61 | T52 | T51 | ||
| Champions | NT1 | NT1 | NT1 | ||
1Cancelled due to COVID-19 pandemic
NT = No tournament
"T" = Tied
QF, R16, R32, R64 = Round in which player lost in match play
Note that the Championship and Invitational were discontinued from 2022. The Champions was discontinued from 2023.
U.S. national team appearances
editAmateur
- Walker Cup: 2013 (winners)
Professional
- Presidents Cup: 2022 (winners), 2024 (winners)
- Ryder Cup: 2023
See also
editReferences
edit- ^ "Week 13 2023 Ending 2 Apr 2023" (pdf). OWGR. Retrieved April 3, 2023.
- ^ Hedes, Ed (June 15, 2013). "Despite missing U.S. Open cut, it's been quite a run for Homa". Times News.
- ^ a b c "Painter: Homa feeling at home at Riviera". Los Angeles Daily News. February 11, 2014.
- ^ a b Schmitt, Michael (May 6, 2019). "Wells Fargo champion Homa happy to be known for more than his tweets". Golf365.com.
- ^ "Jewish golfer Max Homa, Berkeley alum, enters world top 30 after tourney win".
- ^ Myers, Alex (December 3, 2019). "Tiger Woods' walk-off "win," Shooter McGavin shoots his shot, and PGA Tour wedding season continues". Golf Digest.
- ^ DiMeglio, Steve (April 28, 2020). "Itching to return, Max Homa talks missing April Masters, Westworld's 'confusing' plot". Golfweek.
- ^ Hamel, Riley (November 1, 2022). "Max Homa and wife, Lacey, welcome their first child, Cam". Golfweek. Retrieved May 24, 2023.
- ^ "PGA golfer Max Homa discusses waiting to defend title, Santa Clarita course that shaped his game". ABC7 Los Angeles. May 4, 2020.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k "Max Homa Bio". University of California Golden Bears Athletics.
- ^ Barnes, Wil (January 29, 2015). "A Bright Future for former Cal star Max Homa". California Golf News.
- ^ "Max Homa reflects on time playing for Valencia after first PGA Tour win". signalscv.com. May 11, 2019.
- ^ "Max Homa Player Profile". AmateurGolf.com.
- ^ "Five AJGA alums selected to U.S. Walker Cup Team". AJGA. July 23, 2013.
- ^ a b c Harig, Bob (May 6, 2019). "Max Homa's journey from $18,008 to $1.42 million". ESPN.
- ^ Shefter, David (December 18, 2013). "Max Homa Among Q-School Grads". United States Golf Association. Archived from the original on May 19, 2014. Retrieved May 18, 2014.
- ^ Keepfer, Scott (May 18, 2014). "Homa wins BMW Pro-Am". Greenville News.
- ^ a b c d e "Max Homa". PGA Tour. Retrieved October 23, 2018.
- ^ Ferguson, Doug (May 5, 2019). "Homa comes full circle and wins Wells Fargo Championship". Associated Press News. Retrieved May 6, 2019.
- ^ a b "Valencia Professional Golfer Throws First Pitch at Dodgers Game". mynewsla.com. May 11, 2019.
- ^ Scott, David (March 3, 2020). "Max Homa is ready for the Masters; Wells Fargo Championship will feature Bubba Watson". The Charlotte Observer.
- ^ "Homa wins hometown Genesis, beating Finau in playoff". Associated Press. February 21, 2021. Retrieved February 22, 2021.
- ^ Wagaman, Michael (September 20, 2022). "Max Homa rallies to win Fortinet Championship at Silverado". Associated Press. Retrieved October 1, 2022.
- ^ Curtis, Jake (May 9, 2022). "Max Homa Wins Wells Fargo Championship: Former Cal golfer captures his fourth PGA Tour title and second of this season". Sports Illustrated. Retrieved May 9, 2022.
- ^ McCauley, Janie (September 18, 2022). "Homa chips in, wins in Napa after Willett's shocking 3-putt". Associated Press. Retrieved October 1, 2022.
- ^ Beall, Joel (September 25, 2022). "Presidents Cup 2022: Our grades for all 24 players, from an A+ for Spieth to an F for Scheffler". Golf Digest. Retrieved September 27, 2022.
- ^ "Max Homa comes from five back to win Farmers Insurance Open". Sportsnet.ca. Associated Press. January 28, 2023. Retrieved January 29, 2023.
- ^ "Homa wins Nedbank Golf Challenge in South Africa for 1st win abroad". Associated Press News. November 12, 2023. Retrieved November 12, 2023.
- ^ Hirsh, Jack (January 7, 2024). "With 1 swing, Max Homa entered the PGA Tour record book Saturday". Golf Magazine. Retrieved January 8, 2024.
- ^ Dellenger, Ross (April 14, 2024). "Masters: Amen Corner dooms Max Homa, Ludvig Åberg and Collin Morikawa". Yahoo Sports. Retrieved April 14, 2024.