Luke Clanton (born November 5, 2003) 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 ...

. He rose to world number one in the

World Amateur Golf Ranking The World Amateur Golf Ranking for men was introduced by The R&A, the governing body of the sport of golf outside the United States and Mexico, on 23 January 2007. It is based on the results of over 2,600 amateur tournaments per year (and amateurs ...

in August 2024.

Amateur career

While at American Heritage High School, Clanton won the Florida High School State Championship on three occasions, in 2019, 2021 and 2022. He also won several other prestigious tournaments, including the

Azalea Invitational The Azalea Invitational is an annual amateur golf tournament. It has been played since 1946 at the Country Club of Charleston in Charleston, South Carolina. Several past champions have subsequently gained membership to the PGA Tour, including Men ...

, and the

North and South Amateur The North and South Men's Amateur Golf Championship, commonly known as the North and South Amateur, is an annual golf tournament held since 1901 at the Pinehurst Resort in Pinehurst, North Carolina, US. An invitational tournament, participants ar ...

at Pinehurst. In the fall of 2022, Clanton enrolled at

Florida State University Florida State University (FSU or Florida State) is a Public university, public research university in Tallahassee, Florida, United States. It is a senior member of the State University System of Florida and a preeminent university in the s ...

. In his sophomore year, he rose to number one in the

after winning three amateur titles – the Seminole Intercollegiate, the Valspar Collegiate, and the Lewis Chitengwa Memorial – and performing well in several professional tournaments. In June 2024, Clanton competed in the 2024 U.S. Open at Pinehurst, having come through final qualifying at The Bear's Club in Florida, finishing T-41. The following month, he became the first amateur since 1958 to finish in the top-10 in back-to-back

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 ...

events, finishing in a tie for 10th at the Rocket Mortgage Classic and as joint runner-up in the

John Deere Classic The John Deere Classic is a professional golf tournament on the PGA Tour. It is played annually in July, usually the week before The Open Championship, at TPC Deere Run in the Quad Cities community of Silvis, Illinois. History The tournament bega ...

. He had two more top-ten finishes on the PGA Tour later in the year, with a 5th place at the

Wyndham Championship The Wyndham Championship is a professional golf tournament in North Carolina on the PGA Tour. It is played annually in Greensboro and was originally the Greater Greensboro Open. History Founded in 1938 as the Greater Greensboro Open, it was usua ...

and another runner-up finish at the

RSM Classic The RSM Classic is a golf tournament on the PGA Tour, played in the autumn in Georgia. It debuted in October 2010 on St. Simons Island, Georgia at the Sea Island Golf Club. The tournament was known as the McGladrey Classic until 2015, when the ti ...

, which put him inside the top-100 of 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 ...

. At the end of the year, he was awarded the Mark H. McCormack Medal as the world's top amateur golfer. In February 2025, Clanton made the

cut Cut or CUT may refer to: Common uses * The act of cutting, the separation of an object into two through acutely directed force ** A type of wound ** Cut (archaeology), a hole dug in the past ** Cut (clothing), the style or shape of a garment ** ...

at the Cognizant Classic to secure the final points he needed to earn PGA Tour membership via the PGA Tour University Accelerated program. He did not turn professional immediately.

Professional career

Clanton turned professional in June 2025 after the NCAA golf championship and made his pro debut at the

RBC Canadian Open The Canadian Open () is a professional golf tournament in Canada. It is co-organized by Golf Canada (formerly known as the Royal Canadian Golf Association) and the PGA Tour. It was first played in 1904, and has been held annually since then, ...

Amateur wins

*2017 South Florida Junior Open, AJGA Junior at Blue Hill *2020 Arnold Palmer Invitational Junior *2022

, South Beach International Amateur *2023 NCAA Morgan Hill Regional *2024 Seminole Intercollegiate, Valspar Collegiate, Lewis Chitengwa Memorial *2025 Watersound Invitational, Seminole Intercollegiate, Lewis Chitengwa Memorial, NCAA Tallahassee Regional Source:

Results in major championships

"T" = tied

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Clanton, Luke American male golfers PGA Tour golfers Florida State Seminoles men's golfers Golfers from Florida Sportspeople from Hialeah, Florida 2003 births Living people 21st-century American sportsmen