Martin Laird
Scotland
Martin Laird (born 29 December 1982) is a Scottish professional golfer, playing on the PGA Tour.
Personal information
Born 29 December 1982 (1982-12-29) (age 29)
Glasgow, Scotland
Height 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)
Weight 195 lb (88 kg; 13.9 st)
Nationality Scotland
Residence Scottsdale, Arizona, USA
Career
College Colorado State University
Turned professional 2004
Current tour(s) PGA Tour
Professional wins 4
Number of wins by tour
PGA Tour 2
Nationwide Tour 1
Best results in Major Championships
Masters Tournament DNP
U.S. Open CUT: 2007, 2009
The Open Championship CUT: 2009, 2010
PGA Championship T48: 2010
Laird was born in Glasgow, Scotland and played his youth golf at Hilton Park Golf Club. He learned to play golf left-handed but eventually switched to playing right-handed. With the assistance of College Prospects of America, he moved to the United States to take up a golf scholarship at Colorado State University, where he graduated with a degree in marketing in 2004, and won four individual titles in college events.
Turning professional after college, he played some events on the Canadian Professional Golf Tour and on other tours around the world. He concentrated full-time on the U.S.-based Nationwide Tour in 2005, after going through the PGA Tour's Qualifying School series of events in the fall of 2004. But Laird did not play any events there in 2006. In 2007 he won the Athens Regional Foundation Classic and finished in 13th place on the Nationwide Tour's money list, to earn his PGA Tour card for 2008. Laird finished in 125th place on the PGA Tour's money list for 2008, retaining his card for the 2009 season with the last qualifying spot on the season's money list. Laird has also played on the Gateway Tour, which is a third-tier tour in the United States. He has two victories on that tour.
2009: first PGA Tour win
On 26 May 2009, Laird secured a place at the 2009 Open Championship after making it through the American qualifier in Texas. He shot rounds of 67 and 65 to share the third spot.[1] On 8 June 2009, Laird made it through qualification for the U.S. Open, set for the Black Course at Bethpage State Park. He gained one of the 13 spots available with rounds of 67-70, to make it in by one shot.
Laird won the 2009 Justin Timberlake Shriners Hospitals for Children Open in a three-man playoff for his first PGA Tour win, securing his Tour card for 2010 and 2011. He jumped from 134th to 62nd on the money list. By winning that tournament he became the first Scot to win a PGA Tour event in America since Sandy Lyle won the 1988 Masters Tournament, and the first Scotsman to win any PGA Tour event since Paul Lawrie's 1999 Open Championship triumph. Laird also became the highest ranked Scot in the Official World Golf Rankings.
2010: loses playoffs
Laird played most of his golf on the PGA Tour in 2010. He had a solid season, in the top 125 money winners through mid-August. He earned top-10 finishes at the SBS Championship and the Crowne Plaza Invitational at Colonial. Laird played very well in The Barclays tournament, the first FedEx Cup playoff event, at the Ridgewood Country Club in late August. He sat at 13 under par playing the 72nd hole, and had a one-stroke lead. But he missed a 7-foot par putt which would have won the tournament outright, and fell into a tie with Matt Kuchar. Kuchar birdied the first playoff hole, the 18th, following a spectacular recovery shot from the left rough, which finished two feet from the pin; Laird, in the right rough from the tee, hit the green, but had a long birdie putt which he missed. Still, the high finish allowed Laird to greatly improve his playoff position, and to boost his world ranking to a personal high of 61st from 120th.
Laird returned to Las Vegas in October to defend the Justin Timberlake Shriners Hospitals for Children Open title that he won in 2009. Laird missed a 25-foot putt on the 72nd hole to retain his title. A three-man playoff then ensued with Laird being joined by Cameron Percy and Jonathan Byrd. Martin had more chances to win but missed putts of varying lengths at the first three sudden-death playoff holes. This was to prove costly as on the 4th playoff hole, Byrd, who had the honour, made the first ever hole in one in a playoff in PGA Tour history to win the title. The tie for 2nd place lifted Laird to a career high world ranking of 55th.
2011: Arnold Palmer Invitational titleLaird's good form in the latter part of 2010 continued in early 2011. In February, he tied for 3rd in the Waste Management Phoenix Open, lifting his world ranking to 41.[15] In March, he tied for 10th in the WGC-Cadillac Championship and tied for 5th in the Transitions Championship, his ranking rising to 40.
On 27 March 2011, Laird claimed the biggest title of his career at the Arnold Palmer Invitational taking the first prize of $1,080,000. After three rounds of 70, 65 and 70 Laird had a two shot lead over Spencer Levin with Steve Marino and Bubba Watson a further two strokes behind. Laird dropped three shots on the front nine and then had a double-bogey at the 11th. At this stage Levin was also five over par for his round but Marino was two under par, resulting in a seven shot swing and leaving Laird three shots behind Marino. Laird scored three birdies and a bogey in the next five holes, while Marino scored a bogey and then a double-bogey at the par three 17th hole, leaving Laird now with a two shot lead. However Marino birdied the 18th, after holing an eight foot putt, leaving Laird needing to par the last hole to win. His second shot was on the green but eighty three feet away. He two-putted for the victory. This ensured that he became first ever European winner of the Arnold Palmer Invitational. After the tournament his world ranking rose to 21.
By qualifying for the 2010 Tour Championship, Laird also qualified for his first Masters. Rounds of 74, 69, 69 and 73 left him tied 20th, his best finish in a major
Player profile is based on the information provided by www.en.wikipedia.org