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Will Zalatoris is an American professional golfer born in San Francisco, California, on August 16, 1996. He grew up in Texas and attended Wake Forest University in North Carolina, where he played golf and studied psychology. Zalatoris turned professional in 2018 and has since competed primarily on the PGA Tour, winning the 2022 FedEx St. Jude Championship and achieving three runner-up finishes in major championships. He has gained popularity, amassing over 300,000 followers on Instagram, where people can follow his golf journey.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Full Name | William Patrick Zalatoris |
| Born | August 16, 1996 |
| Birthplace | San Francisco, California |
| Parents | Richard and Catherine Zalatoris |
| Education | Wake Forest University |
| Collegiate Titles | 4 |
| Collegiate Scoring Average | 70.44 |
| First Professional Victory | TPC Colorado Championship (2020) |
| PGA Tour Wins | 1 (2022 FedEx St. Jude Championship) |
| Runner-up Finishes in Major Championships | 3 |
| Actor Resemblance | Jared Van Snellenberg in Happy Gilmore |
| Film Appearance | Happy Gilmore 2 (2025) |
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What You'll Learn
Golfer Will Zalatoris' early life in San Francisco, California
William Patrick Zalatoris, popularly known as Will Zalatoris, is an American professional golfer born in San Francisco, California. Zalatoris was born on August 16, 1996, to Catherine and Richard Zalatoris, who worked in real estate. His mother, Catherine, was a track and field athlete at the University of Oregon, specialising in middle-distance running. Both his parents were recreational golfers, and his mother continued to play golf while pregnant with him until three weeks before he was born.
Zalatoris received his first plastic golf club at 18 months old and began learning to play at Mariners Point Golf Center in Foster City, California. His parents were members of the California Golf Club, where he played alongside his father. At the age of nine, Zalatoris moved with his family to Texas, where he grew up at the Bent Tree Country Club in Dallas. He often competed against fellow Dallas-area golfers Jordan Spieth and Scottie Scheffler in junior tournaments.
Zalatoris attended Trinity Christian Academy in Addison, Texas, where he was a four-year letterman. He excelled in golf from a young age, winning the Antigua National High School Tournament in 2013 and finishing in the top six in all four of his appearances. He was also a runner-up at The Classic at the Texarkana CC in 2013 and co-medalist with Jordan Spieth at the 2011 Champions Invitational. In 2014, he qualified for the Texas State Amateur Championship and finished tied for seventh at the Bobby Chapman Invitational.
After a successful junior golf career, Zalatoris planned to attend Stanford University. However, he was offered the Arnold Palmer Scholarship to play for the Wake Forest Demon Deacons at Wake Forest University in North Carolina, where he majored in psychology. His passion for golf continued at Wake Forest, where he excelled as an individual player and a valuable team member. In 2014, he won his first individual collegiate title at the Bank of Tennessee Intercollegiate, scoring 10-under to finish two strokes ahead of runner-up Denny McCarthy.
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Will Zalatoris' move to Texas and junior golf career
William Patrick Zalatoris, born in San Francisco, California, moved to Texas with his family when he was nine years old. He grew up at Bent Tree Country Club in Dallas, where he often competed against fellow Dallas-area junior golfers Jordan Spieth and Scottie Scheffler.
Zalatoris attended Trinity Christian Academy in Addison, Texas, where he was a four-year letterman. In 2014, he won the Texas Amateur Championship, the Trans-Mississippi Amateur, and the U.S. Junior Amateur. These junior golf accomplishments led to him being offered the Arnold Palmer Scholarship by Jerry Haas to play for the Wake Forest Demon Deacons at Wake Forest University in North Carolina, where he majored in psychology.
At Wake Forest, Zalatoris excelled in collegiate golf. In October 2014, he won his first individual collegiate title at the Bank of Tennessee Intercollegiate. He went on to win his second collegiate title in September 2015 at the Rod Myers Invitational. In July 2016, he won the Trans-Mississippi Amateur for the second time, along with the Pacific Coast Amateur. As a junior, he was named ACC Player of the Year in 2017, as well as receiving numerous other accolades.
Zalatoris left college after his junior year to turn professional in 2018. While it is unclear if he moved back to Texas after turning pro, he did compete in Texas as a professional golfer, participating in the 2020 Korn Ferry Tour and winning the TPC Colorado Championship. In 2022, he won his first PGA Tour event at the FedEx St. Jude Championship.
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Collegiate golf career at Wake Forest University
Will Zalatoris is an American professional golfer born in San Francisco, California, on 16 August 1996. He began his collegiate golf career at Wake Forest University in North Carolina in the fall of 2014, after being offered the Arnold Palmer Scholarship by Jerry Haas to play for the Wake Forest Demon Deacons.
Zalatoris won his first individual collegiate title at the Bank of Tennessee Intercollegiate in October 2014, scoring 10-under to finish two strokes ahead of runner-up Denny McCarthy. In his freshman year, he also achieved a 12th-place finish at the Primland Collegiate Invitational, helping Wake Forest to a team victory. He earned another top 10 finish at the Schenkel Invitational and was Wake Forest's highest finisher at The Hootie at Bulls Bay, taking fifth place.
In September 2015, during his sophomore year, Zalatoris won his second collegiate title at the Rod Myers Invitational, birdieing the final hole to win by one stroke. He also achieved top-five finishes at the Valspar Collegiate and 3M Augusta Invitational. In his junior year, Zalatoris was named ACC Player of the Year in 2017 and was selected as a member of the U.S. team in the 2017 Walker Cup. He was also named First-Team GCAA All-American, First-Team Golfweek All-American, and was a Ben Hogan Award semifinalist and Jack Nicklaus Award finalist.
Zalatoris left Wake Forest University after his junior year in December 2017, forgoing his final semester to turn professional at the start of 2018. He completed his psychology degree at the university in 2023, while recovering from back surgery. During his collegiate golf career at Wake Forest, Zalatoris won four individual titles and had 15 top-five finishes in 40 starts, with a scoring average of 70.44.
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Will Zalatoris' professional career on the PGA Tour
Will Zalatoris is an American professional golfer who was born in San Francisco, California, on August 16, 1996, to parents Richard and Catherine Zalatoris, both of whom were recreational golfers. He received his first plastic golf club when he was 18 months old and began playing the sport at Mariners Point Golf Center in Foster City, California. At the age of nine, Zalatoris moved with his family to Texas, where he grew up at the Bent Tree Country Club in Dallas. He often competed against fellow Dallas-area golfers Jordan Spieth and Scottie Scheffler in junior tournaments.
Zalatoris attended Trinity Christian Academy in Addison, Texas, where he was a four-year letterman. In 2014, he won the Texas Amateur Championship, the Trans-Mississippi Amateur, and the U.S. Junior Amateur. That same year, he enrolled at Wake Forest University in North Carolina, where he won his first individual collegiate title at the Bank of Tennessee Intercollegiate. In 2015, Zalatoris won his second collegiate title at the Rod Myers Invitational. He went on to win the Trans-Mississippi Amateur and the Pacific Coast Amateur in 2016, and he represented the United States at the Arnold Palmer Cup. In 2017, he was named ACC Player of the Year and decided to turn professional, foregoing his final semester of university.
Zalatoris made his debut on the PGA Tour in 2018, but he struggled to make cuts and failed to advance past the first stage of qualifying school for the Web.com Tour (later renamed the Korn Ferry Tour). However, he secured membership for the 2020 Korn Ferry Tour season after strong performances in 2019, including a third-place finish at the LECOM Health Challenge. In July 2020, Zalatoris earned his first professional victory at the TPC Colorado Championship, which was one of his 11 consecutive top-20 finishes on the Korn Ferry Tour.
Zalatoris continued his impressive form into 2021, recording top-15 finishes at the Farmers Insurance Open, Genesis Invitational, and Arnold Palmer Invitational. He qualified for the 2021 Masters Tournament and finished tied-8th at the PGA Championship in May. He was voted PGA Tour Rookie of the Year for the 2020-21 season and shot his career-low round (11-under 61) at the Sanderson Farms Championship in October 2021. In 2022, Zalatoris had several notable performances, including a tie for the lead at the Farmers Insurance Open, a sixth-place finish at the Masters Tournament, and a runner-up finish at the PGA Championship, losing to Justin Thomas in a playoff. He won his first PGA Tour title at the 2022 FedEx St. Jude Championship but later withdrew from the FedExCup Playoffs due to injury.
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Will Zalatoris' acting career, including a role in Happy Gilmore 2
Will Zalatoris is an American professional golfer who has competed primarily on the PGA Tour. He was born in San Francisco, California, in 1996, to parents who were recreational golfers. Zalatoris himself started playing at a very young age and went on to win several championships, including the Texas Amateur Championship, the Trans-Mississippi Amateur, and the U.S. Junior Amateur, all in 2014.
In addition to his golfing career, Zalatoris has also ventured into acting. He made his acting debut in the 2025 film Happy Gilmore 2, a sequel to the 1996 film Happy Gilmore starring Adam Sandler. In the film, Zalatoris played a fictionalized version of himself, appearing as a professional golfer and the same young caddy from the original film, who resents Happy for his previous mistreatment. The role was a starring one and came about due to the attention brought to Zalatoris's resemblance to the unnamed caddy from the first film, played by Jared Van Snellenberg.
Zalatoris's casting in Happy Gilmore 2 was met with excitement and humour, with the golfer himself commenting on the comparison to the caddy, saying, "I've laughed at it... A couple of buddies that I've known for a long time have always kind of compared me to that kid, too, especially when I had the longer hair when I first came out here." When discussing his experience filming the movie, Zalatoris joked that he had no prior acting experience but that the directors told him to "act like a moron as much as you possibly can," which he found easy to do.
Happy Gilmore 2 features an impressive list of cameos and stars alongside Zalatoris, including Sandler, Julie Bowen, and Sandler's wife and daughter. The film also includes appearances by professional golfers Tony Finau, Justin Thomas, Bubba Watson, Scottie Scheffler, and Rory McIlroy, among others.
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Frequently asked questions
San Francisco, California.
Wake Forest University in North Carolina.
Yes, he learned to play at Mariners Point Golf Center in Foster City, California.
Dallas, Texas.
At the TPC Colorado Championship in 2020.
