Lee Westwood facts for kids

Kids Encyclopedia Facts

Quick facts for kids Lee Westwood OBE

Personal information
Full name	Lee John Westwood
Nickname	Westy
Born	(1973-04-24) 24 April 1973 (age 52) Worksop, Nottinghamshire, England
Height	6 ft 0 in
Weight	205 lb (93 kg; 14.6 st)
Nationality	England
Residence	Newcastle upon Tyne, Tyne and Wear, England
Spouse	Laurae Coltart (m. 1999; div. 2015) Helen Storey (m. 2021)
Children	2
Career
Turned professional	1993
Current tour(s)	LIV Golf
Former tour(s)	PGA Tour European Tour
Professional wins	44
Number of wins by tour
PGA Tour	2
European Tour	25 (8th all-time)
Japan Golf Tour	4
Asian Tour	8 (Tied-6th all-time)
Sunshine Tour	3
PGA Tour of Australasia	1
Other	3
Best results in Major Championships
The Masters Tournament	2nd/T2: 2010, 2016
U.S. Open	3rd/T3: 2008, 2011
The Open Championship	2nd: 2010
PGA Championship	T3: 2009
Achievements and awards
European Tour Golfer of the Year	1998, 2000, 2009, 2020
European Tour Order of Merit winner/ Race to Dubai winner	2000, 2009, 2020
European Tour Players' Player of the Year	2009, 2020

Lee John Westwood (born 24 April 1973) is a famous English professional golfer. People know him for being very consistent in his game. He is one of the few golfers who has won tournaments on five different continents: Europe, North America, Asia, Africa, and Australia.

Westwood has won many times on the European Tour and the PGA Tour. He has also won tournaments in four different decades, from the 1990s to the 2020s! He was named the European Tour Golfer of the Year four times. He also won the European Tour's top award, the Order of Merit (now called the Race to Dubai), three times. Even though he hasn't won a major championship, he has come very close, finishing second three times.

He has played for Europe in ten Ryder Cups, which are big team competitions. In 2010, he became the world number one golfer, taking the top spot from Tiger Woods. He was the first British golfer since Nick Faldo in 1994 to be ranked number one. He held this position for 22 weeks. Lee Westwood is sometimes called by his nickname, Westy.

Early Life and Starting Golf

Lee Westwood was born in Worksop, England. He went to Sir Edmund Hillary Primary School and Valley Comprehensive School.

He started playing golf when he was 13 years old. His grandparents bought him a half set of golf clubs. His father, John, who was a math teacher, also started playing golf at the same time to encourage Lee. Lee was a talented athlete at school and played rugby, cricket, and football.

Even though he started golf later than many other professional players, he became the junior champion of Nottinghamshire in less than two years. He played for England's junior team in 1989. He also played for the Great Britain and Ireland boys team in the Jacques Léglise Trophy in 1990 and 1991. In 1991, he won his first important amateur tournament, the Peter McEvoy Trophy. He turned professional in 1993 after winning the British Youths Open Amateur Championship.

Professional Golf Career

In 1996, Lee Westwood won his first professional tournament, the Volvo Scandinavian Masters. Soon after, he won the Sumitomo Visa Taiheiyo Masters in Japan. He continued his success in 1997, winning the Malaysian Open, the Volvo Masters in Spain, and the Holden Australian Open. He even beat famous golfer Greg Norman in a playoff at the Australian Open. That year, he also played in the Ryder Cup with Nick Faldo.

Westwood has won 25 events on the European Tour and many more in other parts of the world. His best year was 2000 when he won seven tournaments globally. He was ranked first on the European Order of Merit, ending Colin Montgomerie's long winning streak. His win in South Africa in 2000 made him the first golfer to win events on all six of the major international golf tours. Only Ernie Els and Justin Rose have done this since.

Westwood took a break from golf in 2001 after his son Samuel was born. He also changed his golf swing. He started winning again in 2003 with a victory in Germany.

He won two more European Tour events in 2007, moving back into the top 50 in the world rankings. In 2008, he came very close to winning the U.S. Open, finishing third.

In 2009, Westwood finished third in two more major championships: the Open and the PGA Championship. He then won the Portugal Masters and the Dubai World Championship, which also made him the first winner of the Race to Dubai title.

Westwood playing a bunker shot at the 2008 Open Championship

Westwood has often played in the Gary Player Invitational charity event. This helps raise money for children in need around the world. In 2010, he finished second at the 2010 Masters Tournament, leading on the final day before Phil Mickelson won. He also won the St. Jude Classic that year and finished second at the 2010 Open Championship.

In 2011, Westwood lost a playoff at the BMW PGA Championship to Luke Donald, who then became the new world number one. In June 2011, Westwood tied for third at the U.S. Open, his fourth third-place finish in a major. In December 2011, he shot his lowest score ever, a 60, at the Thailand Golf Championship, which he won by seven shots.

Westwood played on the PGA Tour again in 2012. He reached the semi-finals of the WGC-Accenture Match Play Championship for the first time. He also tied for third at the Masters Tournament in April 2012. This was his seventh time finishing in the top three at a major without winning. He successfully defended his title at the Indonesian Masters and won the Nordea Masters for the third time.

At the 2012 U.S. Open, Westwood was in a good position but lost his ball in a tree, which hurt his chances. In the 2013 Open Championship, he led after three rounds but shot a higher score on the final day, finishing tied for third. This was the second time he led a major going into the final round but didn't win.

In April 2015, Westwood won the CIMB Niaga Indonesian Masters for the third time. He won in a sudden-death playoff. At the 2016 Masters, he finished tied for second place. He was briefly only one shot behind the leader but made a mistake on the 16th hole. This was his third time finishing as runner-up in a major.

Westwood holds the record for playing in the most major championships without winning one. He passed Jay Haas at the 2021 Open Championship, which was his 88th major.

In 2018, Westwood won the Nedbank Golf Challenge in South Africa. This was his 24th European Tour victory and his first since 2014. In July 2019, he finished tied for fourth at the 2019 Open Championship. This earned him a spot in the 2020 Masters Tournament.

In January 2020, Westwood won the Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship. This win meant he had won titles in four different decades on the European Tour. In December 2020, he won his third Race to Dubai title, becoming the oldest winner at 47 years old.

In March 2021, Westwood led after three rounds at the Arnold Palmer Invitational but finished second by one shot. The next week, he again led after three rounds at The Players Championship but finished second. He earned over $1.6 million for this finish, which was his largest prize money ever.

In June 2022, Westwood joined LIV Golf. In May 2023, he resigned his membership from the European Tour. In April 2023, Westwood turned 50 and became old enough to play in senior golf tournaments.

World Ranking Achievements

Lee Westwood first reached the top 10 in the Official World Golf Ranking in July 1998. He spent a total of 160 weeks in the top 10 between 1998 and 2001.

After dropping out of the top 100 in 2002, he slowly climbed back up. In 2008, he returned to the top 20. On October 31, 2010, Westwood became the World number one golfer, ending Tiger Woods' long time at the top. He was the world number one for 17 weeks. He got the number one spot back in April 2011 and held it for another 5 weeks. He has spent over 350 weeks in the top-10 golfers in the world.

Ryder Cup Appearances

The Ryder Cup is a golf competition between teams from Europe and the United States. Lee Westwood has played for Europe in ten Ryder Cups.

He made his Ryder Cup debut in 1997. In the 2002 event, he teamed up with Sergio García and they won three of their four matches. In the 2004 Ryder Cup, Westwood made the putt that helped Europe win the Cup. Europe won by a large margin that year. He also didn't lose a single game in 2004 and 2006.

In 2010, Westwood was part of the European team that won the 2010 Ryder Cup by just one point. He was also on the winning teams in 2012 and 2014. In 2016, his friend Darren Clarke was the captain, and Westwood was chosen to play again, but Europe lost that year.

In 2018, Thomas Bjørn chose Westwood as one of his five vice-captains. In September 2021, Westwood played in the 2021 Ryder Cup in Wisconsin. The U.S. team won that year.

Westwood holds the record for the most appearances on Ryder Cup winning teams for Europe, with 7 wins and 4 losses.

Singles matches: played 11, won 4, lost 7
Foursomes matches: played 20, won 9, lost 7, tied 4
Fourballs matches: played 16, won 8, lost 6, tied 2

Personal Life and Interests

Lee Westwood married Laurae Coltart in 1999. They had two children, Samuel and Poppy. They divorced in 2017. After his divorce, Westwood moved back to Europe from Florida. He now lives in Jesmond, Newcastle upon Tyne with his wife, Helen Storey. Helen also works as his caddie (the person who carries his clubs and helps him on the course). They got married in Las Vegas in June 2021.

He is good friends with fellow golfer Darren Clarke. For a while, they even owned a private jet together.

In 2007, Nottingham Trent University gave Westwood an honorary degree. The university also named its sports hall after him in 2010. He started the Lee Westwood Golf School in 2010. This school helps young golfers combine their golf training with their education. He also created a Junior Lee Westwood Golf Tour and Lee Westwood Golf Camps. Because of his work with young golfers, he received the Golf Foundation's 'Spirit of Golf' Award.

Westwood loves horse racing and has owned parts of several successful racehorses. He also enjoys films, snooker, and cars. He is a big football fan and supports Nottingham Forest. He also supports and sponsors his local semi-professional team, Worksop Town FC.

Westwood was honored by the Queen in 2011. He was made an Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE).

Amateur Wins

1991 Peter McEvoy Trophy
1992 Lagonda Trophy
1993 British Youths Open Amateur Championship, Leven Gold Medal

Professional Wins (44)

PGA Tour Wins (2)

No.	Date	Tournament	Winning score	Margin of victory	Runner(s)-up
1	6 Apr 1998	Freeport-McDermott Classic	−15 (69-68-67-69=273)	3 strokes	Steve Flesch
2	13 Jun 2010	St. Jude Classic	−10 (63-68-71-68=270)	Playoff	Robert Garrigus, Robert Karlsson

PGA Tour Playoff Record (1–0)

No.	Year	Tournament	Opponents	Result
1	2010	St. Jude Classic	Robert Garrigus, Robert Karlsson	Won with birdie on fourth extra hole Garrigus eliminated by par on first hole

European Tour Wins (25)

Legend
Tour Championships (2)
Rolex Series (2)
Other European Tour (21)

No.	Date	Tournament	Winning score	Margin of victory	Runner(s)-up
1	4 Aug 1996	Volvo Scandinavian Masters	−7 (69-75-69-68=281)	Playoff	Paul Broadhurst, Russell Claydon
2	2 Nov 1997	Volvo Masters	−16 (65-67-68=200)*	3 strokes	Pádraig Harrington
3	1 Jun 1998	Deutsche Bank - SAP Open TPC of Europe	−23 (69-69-61-66=265)	1 stroke	Darren Clarke
4	7 Jun 1998	National Car Rental English Open	−17 (68-68-67-68=271)	2 strokes	Greg Chalmers, Olle Karlsson
5	11 Jul 1998	Standard Life Loch Lomond	−8 (69-69-68-70=276)	4 strokes	Robert Allenby, Dennis Edlund, David Howell, Gary Orr, Eduardo Romero, Ian Woosnam
6	4 Oct 1998	Belgacom Open	−16 (67-68-67-66=268)	Playoff	Freddie Jacobson
7	25 Jul 1999	TNT Dutch Open	−15 (72-68-66-63=269)	1 stroke	Gary Orr
8	2 Aug 1999	Smurfit European Open	−17 (69-67-70-65=271)	3 strokes	Darren Clarke, Peter O'Malley
9	5 Sep 1999	Canon European Masters	−14 (69-69-67-65=270)	2 strokes	Thomas Bjørn
10	21 May 2000	Deutsche Bank - SAP Open TPC of Europe (2)	−15 (71-69-69-64=273)	3 strokes	Emanuele Canonica
11	25 Jun 2000	Compaq European Grand Prix	−12 (68-68-70-70=276)	3 strokes	Freddie Jacobson
12	9 Jul 2000	Smurfit European Open (2)	−12 (71-68-71-66=276)	1 stroke	Ángel Cabrera
13	6 Aug 2000	Volvo Scandinavian Masters (2)	−14 (63-67-69-71=270)	3 strokes	Michael Campbell
14	24 Sep 2000	Belgacom Open (2)	−18 (65-69-67-65=266)	4 strokes	Eduardo Romero
15	31 Aug 2003	BMW International Open	−19 (65-68-70-66=269)	3 strokes	Alex Čejka
16	28 Sep 2003	Dunhill Links Championship	−21 (70-68-62-67=267)	1 stroke	Ernie Els
17	13 May 2007	Valle Romano Open de Andalucía	−20 (72-64-65-67=268)	2 strokes	Fredrik Andersson Hed, Phillip Archer
18	23 Sep 2007	Quinn Direct British Masters	−15 (68-70-70-65=273)	5 strokes	Ian Poulter
19	18 Oct 2009	Portugal Masters	−23 (66-67-66-66=265)	2 strokes	Francesco Molinari
20	22 Nov 2009	Dubai World Championship	−23 (66-69-66-64=265)	6 strokes	Ross McGowan
21	1 May 2011	Ballantine's Championship^1,2	−12 (72-68-69-67=276)	1 stroke	Miguel Ángel Jiménez
22	9 Jun 2012	Nordea Masters (3)	−19 (68-64-68-69=269)	5 strokes	Ross Fisher
23	20 Apr 2014	Maybank Malaysian Open¹	−18 (65-66-71-68=270)	7 strokes	Nicolas Colsaerts, Louis Oosthuizen, Bernd Wiesberger
24	11 Nov 2018	Nedbank Golf Challenge	−15 (71-69-69-64=273)	3 strokes	Sergio García
25	19 Jan 2020	Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship	−19 (69-68-65-67=269)	2 strokes	Matt Fitzpatrick, Tommy Fleetwood, Victor Perez

*Note: The 1997 Volvo Masters was shortened to 54 holes due to weather.
¹Co-sanctioned by the Asian Tour
²Co-sanctioned by the Korean Tour

European Tour Playoff Record (2–6)

No.	Year	Tournament	Opponent(s)	Result
1	1996	Volvo Scandinavian Masters	Paul Broadhurst, Russell Claydon	Won with birdie on second extra hole Broadhurst eliminated by par on first hole
2	1998	Belgacom Open	Freddie Jacobson	Won with birdie on first extra hole
3	2007	HSBC Champions	Ross Fisher, Phil Mickelson	Mickelson won with birdie on second extra hole
4	2008	Quinn Insurance British Masters	Gonzalo Fernández-Castaño	Lost to par on third extra hole
5	2009	Open de France Alstom	Martin Kaymer	Lost to par on first extra hole
6	2010	Omega Dubai Desert Classic	Miguel Ángel Jiménez	Lost to par on third extra hole
7	2011	BMW PGA Championship	Luke Donald	Lost to birdie on first extra hole
8	2018	Made in Denmark	Steven Brown, Jonathan Thomson, Matt Wallace	Wallace won with birdie on second extra hole Thomson and Westwood eliminated by birdie on first hole

PGA of Japan Tour Wins (4)

No.	Date	Tournament	Winning score	Margin of victory	Runner(s)-up
1	10 Nov 1996	Sumitomo Visa Taiheiyo Masters	−10 (68-70-68=206)*	Playoff	Costantino Rocca, Jeff Sluman
2	16 Nov 1997	Sumitomo Visa Taiheiyo Masters (2)	−16 (68-68-65-71=272)	1 stroke	Masashi Ozaki, Naomichi Ozaki
3	15 Nov 1998	Sumitomo Visa Taiheiyo Masters (3)	−13 (72-67-67-69=275)	2 strokes	Masashi Ozaki
4	22 Nov 1998	Dunlop Phoenix Tournament	−13 (68-67-66-70=271)	3 strokes	Darren Clarke

*Note: The 1996 Sumitomo Visa Taiheiyo Masters was shortened to 54 holes due to fog.

PGA of Japan Tour Playoff Record (1–0)

No.	Year	Tournament	Opponents	Result
1	1996	Sumitomo Visa Taiheiyo Masters	Costantino Rocca, Jeff Sluman	Won with par on fourth extra hole Sluman eliminated by birdie on first hole

Asian Tour Wins (8)

Legend
Flagship events (2)
Other Asian Tour (6)

No.	Date	Tournament	Winning score	Margin of victory	Runner(s)-up
1	18 Apr 1999	Macau Open	−9 (66-69-70-70=275)	Playoff	Andrew Pitts
2	24 Apr 2011	Indonesian Masters	−19 (68-66-66-69=269)	3 strokes	Thongchai Jaidee
3	1 May 2011	Ballantine's Championship^1,2	−12 (72-68-69-67=276)	1 stroke	Miguel Ángel Jiménez
4	18 Dec 2011	Thailand Golf Championship	−22 (60-64-73-69=266)	7 strokes	Charl Schwartzel
5	22 Apr 2012	CIMB Niaga Indonesian Masters (2)	−16 (65-68-65-74=272)	2 strokes	Thaworn Wiratchant
6	20 Apr 2014	Maybank Malaysian Open¹	−18 (65-66-71-68=270)	7 strokes	Nicolas Colsaerts, Louis Oosthuizen, Bernd Wiesberger
7	14 Dec 2014	Thailand Golf Championship (2)	−8 (70-71-72-67=280)	1 stroke	Marcus Fraser, Martin Kaymer
8	26 Apr 2015	CIMB Niaga Indonesian Masters (3)	−7 (69-74-65-73=281)	Playoff	Chapchai Nirat

¹Co-sanctioned by the European Tour
²Co-sanctioned by the Korean Tour

Asian Tour Playoff Record (2–0)

No.	Year	Tournament	Opponent	Result
1	1999	Macau Open	Andrew Pitts	Won with par on second extra hole
2	2015	CIMB Niaga Indonesian Masters	Chapchai Nirat	Won with birdie on first extra hole

Asia Golf Circuit Wins (1)

No.	Date	Tournament	Winning score	Margin of victory	Runner-up
1	9 Mar 1997	Benson & Hedges Malaysian Open	−14 (64-72-69-69=274)	2 strokes	Larry Barber

Asia Golf Circuit Playoff Record (0–1)

No.	Year	Tournament	Opponent	Result
1	1998	Benson & Hedges Malaysian Open	Ed Fryatt	Lost to par on second extra hole

Sunshine Tour Wins (3)

No.	Date	Tournament	Winning score	Margin of victory	Runner-up
1	6 Feb 2000	Dimension Data Pro-Am	−14 (68-67-69-70=274)	5 strokes	Tom Gillis
2	9 Dec 2010	Nedbank Golf Challenge	−17 (68-64-71-68=271)	8 strokes	Tim Clark
3	7 Dec 2011	Nedbank Golf Challenge (2)	−15 (68-70-62-73=273)	2 strokes	Robert Karlsson

PGA Tour of Australasia Wins (1)

Legend
Flagship events (1)
Other PGA Tour of Australasia (0)

No.	Date	Tournament	Winning score	Margin of victory	Runner-up
1	30 Nov 1997	Holden Australian Open	−14 (68-66-68-72=274)	Playoff	Greg Norman

PGA Tour of Australasia Playoff Record (1–0)

No.	Year	Tournament	Opponent	Result
1	1997	Holden Australian Open	Greg Norman	Won with par on fourth extra hole

Other Wins (2)

No.	Date	Tournament	Winning score	Margin of victory	Runner(s)-up
1	9 Oct 2000	Cisco World Match Play Championship	38 holes		Colin Montgomerie
2	16 Nov 2003	Nelson Mandela Invitational (with Simon Hobday)	−15 (65-64=129)	2 strokes	Hugh Baiocchi and Tim Clark

Other Playoff Record (0–1)

No.	Year	Tournament	Opponent	Result
1	2000	Nedbank Golf Challenge	Ernie Els	Lost to birdie on second extra hole

Results in Major Championships

Results not in chronological order in 2020.

Tournament	1995	1996	1997	1998	1999
Masters Tournament			T24	44	T6
U.S. Open			T19	T7	CUT
The Open Championship	T96	CUT	T10	T64	T18
PGA Championship			T29	CUT	T16

Tournament	2000	2001	2002	2003	2004	2005	2006	2007	2008	2009
Masters Tournament	CUT		44			CUT	CUT	T30	T11	43
U.S. Open	T5	CUT			T36	T33		T36	3	T23
The Open Championship	T64	T47	CUT	CUT	4	CUT	T31	T35	T67	T3
PGA Championship	T15	T44	CUT	CUT	CUT	T17	T29	T32	CUT	T3

Tournament	2010	2011	2012	2013	2014	2015	2016	2017	2018
Masters Tournament	2	T11	T3	T8	7	T46	T2	T18
U.S. Open	T16	T3	T10	T15	CUT	T50	T32	T55
The Open Championship	2	CUT	T45	T3	CUT	T49	T22	T27	T61
PGA Championship		T8	CUT	T33	T15	T43	85	T67

Tournament	2019	2020	2021	2022
Masters Tournament		T38	CUT	T14
PGA Championship	CUT		T71	CUT
U.S. Open		T13	T46
The Open Championship	T4	NT	T59	T34

Top 10 Did not play CUT = missed the half way cut
"T" indicates a tie for a place
NT = No tournament due to COVID-19 pandemic

Summary of Major Championship Results

Tournament	2nd Place	3rd Place	Top-5 Finishes	Top-10 Finishes	Top-25 Finishes	Events Played	Cuts Made
Masters Tournament	2	1	3	6	11	21	17
PGA Championship	0	1	1	2	6	24	15
U.S. Open	0	2	3	5	10	20	17
The Open Championship	1	2	5	6	8	27	21
Totals	3	6	12	19	35	91	70

Most consecutive cuts made – 14 (2014 PGA – 2018 Open)
Longest streak of top-10 finishes – 3 (twice)

Results in The Players Championship

Tournament	1998	1999
The Players Championship	T5	T6

Tournament	2000	2001	2002	2003	2004	2005	2006	2007	2008	2009
The Players Championship	T48	CUT	CUT			T22	T38		CUT

Tournament	2010	2011	2012	2013	2014	2015	2016	2017	2018	2019
The Players Championship	T4		T61	T8	T6	CUT		T65

Tournament	2020	2021	2022
The Players Championship	C	2	CUT

Top 10 Did not play CUT = missed the halfway cut
"T" = Tied
C = Cancelled after the first round due to the COVID-19 pandemic

Results in World Golf Championships

Results not in chronological order before 2015.

Tournament	1999	2000	2001	2002	2003	2004	2005	2006	2007	2008	2009	2010	2011	2012	2013	2014	2015	2016	2017	2019
Championship	T4	2	NT¹		T35	T13	T51	T32		T34	T61	T30	T18	T29	T25	T34	T12		T28	T33
Match Play	R64	R32		R32		R64	R32	R64	R64	R32	R32	R32	R32	4	R64	R64	R16	T38	T17	T56
Invitational	T33	T20	WD	T15	T46	T9	T24	WD	T22	T2	9	WD	T9	70	T40	T19	T17		T47
Champions											T8	2	T13	T6	T55	T20	T51	29

Tournament	2020	2021	2022
Championship	T22	T61
Match Play	NT²	T18	T35
Invitational		T31
Champions	NT²	NT²	NT²

¹Cancelled due to 9/11
²Cancelled due to COVID-19 pandemic
Top 10 Did not play QF, R16, R32, R64 = Round in which player lost in match play
"T" = Tied
WD = Withdrew
NT = No tournament
Note that the HSBC Champions did not become a WGC event until 2009.
Note that the Championship and Invitational were discontinued from 2022.

Team Appearances

Amateur Teams

European Boys' Team Championship (representing England): 1990, 1991
Jacques Léglise Trophy (representing Great Britain & Ireland): 1990 (winners), 1991 (winners)

Professional Teams

Ryder Cup (representing Europe): 1997 (winners), 1999, 2002 (winners), 2004 (winners), 2006 (winners), 2008, 2010 (winners), 2012 (winners), 2014 (winners), 2016, 2021

Ryder Cup Points Record
1997	1999	2002	2004	2006	2008	2010	2012	2014	2016	2021	Total
2	2	3	4.5	4	1	2.5	2	2	0	1	24

Alfred Dunhill Cup (representing England): 1996, 1997, 1998, 1999
Seve Trophy (representing Great Britain & Ireland): 2000, 2002 (winners), 2003 (winners), 2011 (winners)
Royal Trophy (representing Europe): 2007 (winners)
EurAsia Cup (representing Europe): 2016 (winners)

Images for kids

Lee Westwood

In Spanish: Lee Westwood para niños

List of golfers with most European Tour wins
List of golfers with most Asian Tour wins

All content from Kiddle encyclopedia articles (including the article images and facts) can be freely used under Attribution-ShareAlike license, unless stated otherwise. Cite this article:

Lee Westwood Facts for Kids. Kiddle Encyclopedia.