Get to know American John Catlin better with these facts.
14 Things You Didn’t Know About John Catlin
2020 was a breakthrough year for John Catlin, announcing himself as a standout player on the European and Asian Tour with some scintillating performances and professional victories to boot. He has also built on 202 with a European Tour win in 2021 as well.
Still relatively unknown, we’ve highlighted some facts about Catlin that you may not already know.
14 Things You Didn’t Know About John Catlin
1. Catlin was born on November 15, 1990 in Sacramento, California.
2. He credits Tiger Woods as his inspiration, after watching him win the 2000 US Open at Pebble Beach.
Catlin watched Tiger’s performance at nine-years-old, though had been playing golf with his older brother since the age of three.
3. Catlin won consecutive NCGA State Match Play Championships in 2010 and 2011, while also winning the Memorial Amateur Championships in 2011 and 2012.
4. While playing for the University of New Mexico, Catlin became an Academic All-American and an honourable mention NCAA All-American in 2012.
2012 also saw him named University of New Mexico Student-Athlete of the year, after winning the Arizona Intercollegiate.
5. Catlin turned professional in 2013, starting his first season playing on the PGA Tour Canada.
However, with his coach Noah Montgomery a big proponent of joining the Asian Tour, Catlin went to Bangkok for the Korn Ferry Tour Qualifying School in 2015.
6. He played on the Asian Development Tour for two years, while also attempting to play on the Canadian Tour as well, racking up plenty of air-miles.
However, Catlin lost his card in Canada and nearly lost his status in Asia at the end of 2016.
7. Catlin suggests that winning the 2016 Combiphar Golf Invitational on the Asian Development Tour saved his career, because he nearly flew home to America to start a new life.
Following this win, Catlin decided to move to Thailand permanently, where he lived up until the start of the pandemic.
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8. He earned Asian Tour status at the start of 2017, though still won the 2017 PGM EurAsia Perak Championship on the Asian Development Tour that same year.
9. Since joining the Asian Tour, Catlin has won four tournaments, including the 2018 Asia-Pacific Classic, 2018 Sarawak Championship, 2018 Yeangder Tournament Players Championship and the 2019 Thailand Open.
10. Catlin received the 2018 Asian Tour’s player of the year, while also earning European Tour status for the 2019 season.
11. While playing on the European Tour, Catlin has three wins to his name, the 2020 Estrella Damm N.A. Andalucía Masters, 2020 Dubai Duty Free Irish Open and 2021 Austrian Golf Open.
He currently still plays on both tours, though hasn’t competed on the PGA Tour.
John Catlin won the Irish Open at Galgorm Spa & Golf Resort in 2020. (Photo by Warren Little/Getty Images)
12. Catlin first broke into the OWGR top 100 after winning the 2020 Dubai Duty Free Irish Open.
The win saw him ranked 84th.
He briefly dropped out at the beginning of 2021, before climbing to 76th – his highest ever ranking – after finishing fifth at the 2021 Tenerife Open over April and May.
13. In August 2020, Catlin broke the European Tour’s Covid-19 safety protocols.
This made him the first player to be withdrawn by organisers due to the pandemic, missing the England Championship.
14. Citing travelling as the reason for his success in golf, Catlin has played golf in Pakistan, Bangladesh, China, South Africa, Morocco, while living in Bangkok for three-and-a-half-years.
This article 14 Things You Didn’t Know About John Catlin appeared first on Golf Monthly.