Friday, Oct. 2, 2009 | 12:07 p.m.
Ryan Moore
Ryan Moore’s first victory on the PGA Tour, at the Wyndham Championship in North Carolina on Aug. 23, 2009, surprised nobody who saw him play golf at UNLV.
As a Rebel, the Tacoma, Wash., native had perhaps the finest amateur season in the history of the game in 2004.
He won the U.S. Amateur, the U.S. Amateur Public Links, the Western Amateur, the Sahalee Players Championship and the NCAA title – a quintet of major amateur victories that nobody else has won in the same year.
In 2005, Moore led the nation with a 69.29 scoring average at UNLV.
“During Ryan’s Rebels career, he achieved things that no amateur player had ever done before and may never do again,” said UNLV men’s golf coach Dwaine Knight when Moore won the Wyndham. “After today, he can add PGA Tour Champion next to his name and all of us at UNLV are so proud of that.”
Charley Hoffman, Chris Riley, Chad Campbell and Adam Scott are other former Rebels who have won PGA Tour events.
As a senior, Moore won three of the nine tournaments in which he participated and finished third in three others, never finishing lower than sixth.
A four-time All-American, Moore (in 2005) and hoopster Larry Johnson (in 1991) are the lone Rebels to have been named national player of the year in their respective collegiate sports.
Moore sank a birdie putt on the third hole of a playoff to defeat Kevin Stadler for the Wyndham trophy. He sighed when the ball dropped in and rattled around the cup.
“Yeah, that was five years worth of exhaustion … ” Moore said. “To actually step up and make that birdie, that was really just fun.”
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