Steven John Wheatcroft (born February 21, 1978) 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 ...
.
Wheatcroft was born in
Indiana, Pennsylvania
Indiana is a borough in and the county seat of Indiana County in the U.S. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. The population was 13,564 at the 2020 census, and since 2013 has been part of the Pittsburgh metropolitan area. After being a long time p ...
, grew up in
Washington, Pennsylvania
Washington is a city in and the county seat of Washington County, Pennsylvania. A part of the Greater Pittsburgh area in the southwestern part of the state, the city is home to Washington & Jefferson College and Pony League baseball. The popu ...
, and attended
Indiana University
Indiana University (IU) is a system of public universities in the U.S. state of Indiana.
Campuses
Indiana University has two core campuses, five regional campuses, and two regional centers under the administration of IUPUI.
* Indiana Univers ...
earning a degree in Sports Marketing and Management. He turned professional in 2001 and has played in several tours over the years. His first victory came at the
Pennsylvania Open Championship The Pennsylvania Open Championship is the Pennsylvania state open golf tournament, open to both amateur and professional golfers. It is organized by the Pennsylvania Golf Association. It has been played annually since 1912 (except for war years) at ...
in 2003. He is currently a member of the
PGA Tour
The PGA Tour (stylized in all capital letters as PGA TOUR by its officials) is the organizer of professional golf tours in the United States and North America. It organizes most of the events on the flagship annual series of tournaments also k ...
.
In his 2006
Nationwide 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 ...
debut season, Wheatcroft recorded only one top-10 and missed the cut 12 times. Despite his difficulties, he would perform well at the PGA Tour
Q-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 th ...
. He finished 7th to earn his card for 2007. He would make only 10 cuts out of 25 attempts and post one top 25. Consequently, he lost his card. He returned to the Nationwide Tour in 2008 and had disappointing results until the summer of 2009.
Wheatcroft made some changes to his game. As a result, he recorded six top-10s and two top-25s before the end of the season. He launched up the money list to 20th and earned his card for the 2010 PGA Tour.
Wheatcroft would play well at the
Puerto Rico Open
The Puerto Rico Open is a professional golf tournament on the PGA Tour that was first played in 2008. It is the only PGA Tour event ever held in Puerto Rico. The tournament is played at the Coco Beach Golf Course (previously Trump International ...
, finishing tied for 3rd, three strokes behind fellow Nationwide Tour graduate,
Derek Lamely. He also qualified for the
2010 U.S. Open after winning a 4-way playoff at the
Rockville, Maryland sectional qualifier. He led briefly midway through the second round. He returned to the Nationwide Tour for the 2011 season after finishing 166th on the PGA Tour's money list.
At the 2011
Melwood Prince George's County Open, Wheatcroft won by a record-breaking 12 strokes. At the 72nd hole, he made an eagle putt to finish at 255 (-29); shattering the previous 72-hole scoring record by three strokes. He also set the record for largest 54-hole lead by eight strokes.
Wheatcroft's strong play would continue through the 2011 season, with three more top-10s and four top-25s. After finishing tied for 8th at the season-ending
Nationwide Tour Championship
The Korn Ferry Tour Championship presented by United Leasing & Finance is the year-end golf tournament of the Korn Ferry Tour. It has been played at a variety of courses; starting in 2019 it will be played at Victoria National Golf Club in Newburg ...
, he ended the year at 20th on the money list. Wheatcroft returned to the PGA Tour once again for 2012.
Wheatcroft played 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 ...
in 2013 and 2014. In 2014, he finished 19th in the regular season rankings to earn another return to the PGA Tour.
Professional wins (3)
Web.com Tour wins (2)
Web.com Tour playoff record (1–0)
Other wins (1)
*2003
Pennsylvania Open Championship The Pennsylvania Open Championship is the Pennsylvania state open golf tournament, open to both amateur and professional golfers. It is organized by the Pennsylvania Golf Association. It has been played annually since 1912 (except for war years) at ...
Results in major championships
"T" = Tied
''Note: Wheatcroft only played in the U.S. Open.''
See also
*
2006 PGA Tour Qualifying School graduates
__NOTOC__
This is a list of the 40 players who earned their 2007 PGA Tour
The PGA Tour (stylized in all capital letters as PGA TOUR by its officials) is the organizer of professional golf tours in the United States and North America. It organ ...
*
2009 Nationwide Tour graduates __NOTOC__
This is a list of players who graduated from the Nationwide Tour in 2009. The top 25 players on the Nationwide Tour's money list in 2009 earned their PGA Tour card for 2010.
*PGA Tour rookie in 2010
#Michael Sim received a battlefield pr ...
*
2011 Nationwide Tour graduates
*
2014 Web.com Tour Finals graduates
*
2017 Web.com Tour Finals graduates
This is a list of golfers who graduated from the Web.com Tour and Web.com Tour Finals in 2017. The top 25 players on the Web.com Tour's regular season money list in 2017 earned PGA Tour cards for 2018. The Finals determined the other 25 players to ...
References
External links
*
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Wheatcroft, Steve
American male golfers
Indiana Hoosiers men's golfers
PGA Tour golfers
Korn Ferry Tour graduates
Golfers from Pennsylvania
Indiana University alumni
People from Indiana, Pennsylvania
Golfers from Jacksonville, Florida
1978 births
Living people