Derek Ernst (born May 16, 1990) is an American

professional golfer A professional golfer is somebody who receives payments or financial rewards in the sport of golf that are directly related to their skill or reputation. A person who earns money by teaching or playing golf is traditionally considered a "golf pr ...

who plays on the

PGA Tour The PGA Tour (stylized as PGA TOUR by its officials) is the organizer of professional golf tours in North America. It organizes most of the events on the flagship annual series of tournaments also known as the PGA Tour, the PGA Tour Champion ...

. He earned his first PGA Tour victory at the 2013

Wells Fargo Championship The Truist Championship is a professional golf tournament in North Carolina on the PGA Tour. Held in early May, usually at the Quail Hollow Club in Charlotte, it has attracted some of the top players on the tour. It debuted in 2003 as the Wachov ...

Early life and amateur career

Ernst was born in

Woodland, California Woodland is a city in and the county seat of Yolo County, California, United States. Located approximately northwest of Sacramento, it is a part of the Sacramento metropolitan area. The population continues to grow every year, with a growth ra ...

to Mark and Dawn Ernst. He attended

Clovis East High School Clovis East High School is a four-year public high school of Clovis Unified School District located in Clovis, California, United States. It is home to the Timberwolves. It was built in 2000, but first welcomed students in 1999, sharing a campus ...

Clovis, California Clovis is a city in Fresno County, California, United States. It was established in 1890 as a freight stop for the San Joaquin Valley Railroad by a group of Fresno businessmen and Michigan railroad speculator Marcus Pollasky. The railroad bou ...

and played college golf at

UNLV The University of Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV) is a public land-grant research university in Paradise, Nevada, United States. The campus is about east of the Las Vegas Strip. It was formerly part of the University of Nevada from 1957 to 1969. ...

, where he was a four-time All-American and was twice named

Mountain West Conference The Mountain West Conference (MW) is a collegiate athletic conference in the Western United States, participating in NCAA Division I. Its football teams compete in the Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS). The MW officially began operations on Ja ...

player of the year. He was runner-up at the 2011

U.S. Amateur Public Links The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 contiguous ...

championship, losing the final on the 37th hole to Clemson's Corbin Mills. Ernst represented the United States at the 2012

Palmer Cup The Palmer Cup is a 1200–1215 CE goblet from northern Syria or Jazira region, Jazira, and an example of early Islamic glass. It is sometimes described as "Ayyubid", since it corresponds to the time when the Ayyubids disputed control of areas of ...

, and he turned pro following the 2012

U.S. Amateur The United States Amateur Championship, commonly known as the U.S. Amateur, is the leading annual golf tournament in the United States for amateur golfers. It is organized by the United States Golf Association and is currently held each August ov ...

Professional career

Ernst made his professional debut at the 2012 Frys.com Open, where he finished T-41. He earned a

2013 PGA Tour The 2013 PGA Tour was the 98th season of the PGA Tour, the main professional golf tour in the United States. It was also the 45th season since separating from the PGA of America, and the seventh edition of the FedEx Cup. Changes for 2013 The ...

card through

qualifying school In professional golf, the term qualifying school is used for the annual qualifying tournaments for leading golf tours such as the U.S.-based PGA and LPGA Tours and the European Tour. A fixed number of players in the event win membership of the ...

, surviving all four stages. He finished T-59 in his season debut at the

Sony Open in Hawaii The Sony Open in Hawaii is a professional golf tournament on the PGA Tour, and is part of the tour's FedEx Cup Series. It has been contested at the Waialae Country Club in Honolulu, Hawaii, since the event's modern-day inception as the Hawaiian ...

. After missing the cut in each of his next five starts, he rehired Aaron Terry, his first golf instructor, as his caddy. Ernst finished T-47 in his next event, the

Zurich Classic of New Orleans The Zurich Classic of New Orleans is a professional golf tournament in Louisiana on the PGA Tour, currently held at TPC Louisiana in Avondale, a suburb southwest of New Orleans. Beginning in 1938 and held annually since 1958, it is commonly pla ...

. In May, he notched his first

victory at the

, defeating David Lynn in a playoff. Ernst was the fourth alternate and 1,207th in the world rankings at the start of the week. He was scheduled to play on the

Web.com Tour The Korn Ferry Tour is the developmental tour for the U.S.-based PGA Tour, and features professional golfers who have either not yet reached the PGA Tour, or who have done so but then failed to win enough FedEx Cup points to stay at that level. T ...

Stadion Classic at UGA The Stadion Classic at UGA was a golf tournament on the Web.com Tour. Founded in 2006 as the Athens Regional Foundation Classic, it was played at Jennings Mill Country Club in Bogart, Georgia from 2006 to 2009 and at the University of Georgia Golf ...

when he received a last-minute call that tee times were available; a number of golfers withdrew due to weather and unfavorable course conditions. The win also moved Ernst from 196th to 32nd in the

FedEx Cup The FedEx Cup is the championship trophy for the PGA Tour. Its introduction in 2007 marked the first time that men's professional golf had a playoff system. Since its inception, the competition has been sponsored by FedEx. In 2022, the PGA Tour ...

standings, and earned him entry into

The Players Championship The Players Championship (commonly known as simply The Players, stylized by the PGA Tour as THE PLAYERS Championship) is an annual golf tournament on the PGA Tour. Originally known as the Tournament Players Championship, it began in 1974. The ...

as the final guaranteed entrant, the 2013 PGA Championship, and the

2014 Masters Tournament The 2014 Masters Tournament was the 78th edition of the Masters Tournament, the first of golf's four major championships in 2014. It was held April 10–13 at Augusta National Golf Club in Augusta, Georgia. Bubba Watson won his second Masters, ...

, plus a PGA Tour exemption through 2015. Ernst was the second consecutive Q school graduate to win, following

Billy Horschel William John Horschel (born December 7, 1986) is an American professional golfer who currently plays on the PGA Tour. Early years and amateur career Horschel was born and raised in Grant, Florida. He attended Bayside High School (Palm Bay, Flori ...

's win at the

. He also skyrocketed to 123rd in the

Official World Golf Ranking The Official World Golf Ranking is a system for rating the performance level of professional golfers. It was started in 1986. The rankings are based on a player's position in individual tournaments (i.e. not pairs or team events) over a "rolling ...

and was the first alternate to win a PGA Tour event since Wes Short Jr.'s victory at the

2005 2005 was designated as the International Year for Sport and Physical Education and the International Year of Microcredit. The beginning of 2005 also marked the end of the International Decade of the World's Indigenous Peoples, Internationa ...

Michelin Championship at Las Vegas.

Personal life

Ernst has two sisters, Brianna and Shawna. He has blurry vision in his right eye as the result of an injury he sustained in the second grade. Using a children's tool set at home while making a Valentine's Day present for his mother, a shard of PVC bounced up and cut his eye, requiring 10 stitches. Scar tissue remains in the eye and his depth perception is poor.

Professional wins (1)

PGA Tour wins (1)

PGA Tour playoff record (1–0)

Results in major championships

CUT = missed the half-way cut
"T" indicates a tie for a place

Results in The Players Championship

CUT = missed the halfway cut

Results in World Golf Championships

"T" = Tied

U.S. national team appearances

Amateur *

2012 2012 was designated as: *International Year of Cooperatives *International Year of Sustainable Energy for All Events January *January 4 – The Cicada 3301 internet hunt begins. * January 12 – Peaceful protests begin in the R ...

References

External links

* *
Profile on UNLV's official athletic site
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ernst, Derek American male golfers UNLV Rebels men's golfers PGA Tour golfers Korn Ferry Tour graduates Golfers from California Sportspeople from Woodland, California Sportspeople from Clovis, California Sportspeople from Fresno, California 1990 births Living people 21st-century American sportsmen