Steven Charles Stricker (born February 23, 1967) is
an American professional golfer.
Stricker was born in Edgerton, Wisconsin. A 1990
graduate of the University of Illinois, Stricker
turned professional in 1990 and has won four times
on the PGA Tour. His most successful season on tour
came in 1996, when Stricker notched two victories
(Kemper Open, Motorola Western Open) and seven top
ten finishes on his way to finishing fourth on the
1996 PGA Tour money list. Stricker's third and most
impressive win came at the 2001 WGC-Accenture Match
Play Championship, where he defeated Pierre Fulke 2
and 1 to earn the $1,000,000 prize. His most recent
victory came at The Barclays tournament on August
26, 2007 ending an 11 year span for a win on
American soil.
In 1998, Steve Stricker played himself into
contention in the final round of the PGA
Championship at Sahalee Country Club in Redmond,
Washington. Thanks to a back-nine surge, PGA Tour
veteran Vijay Singh bested Stricker down the stretch
and claimed a two-stroke victory. The runner-up
finish remains Stricker's best result in a major
championship.
Stricker has six times finished inside the Top 20 at
the U.S. Open, his best finish a fifth-place score
at the 1999 U.S. Open played at Pinehurst No. 2.
Largely due to his seven top-10 finishes, Stricker
was voted PGA Tour Comeback Player of the Year in
2006. His renewed form continued throughout 2007,
qualifying for the Presidents Cup and after his
victory at The Barclays, Stricker reached a high of
4th in the Official World Golf Rankings. Stricker
finished runner-up in the 2007 FedEx Cup Playoffs to
Tiger Woods. He was again voted PGA Tour Comeback
Player of the Year in 2007.
In the Mercedes Benz Championship, the opening event
of the 2008 season, Stricker lost out in a play-off
to Daniel Chopra. This result took Stricker to 3rd
in the world rankings. He has spent over 25 weeks in
the top-10 of the rankings since 2007.
