WHO are the 10 Best Left-Handed Players in Golf History?
Updated: Jan 27
Across all walks of life, left-handed golfers seem to always be significantly outnumbered, and although there aren't any empirical disadvantages to golfing from the right side of the golf ball, there have been relatively few successful left-handed golfers on the PGA Tour.
There are many theories aiming to justify the reasoning behind this disparity, for example the lack of readily available left-handed equipment, but there have still been a number of Southpaws to make a name for themselves, while paving the way for future Southpaws in the process.
We turned back the clocks to the PGA Tours inception back in 1929 in order to bring you the 10 best left-handed players in the History of Golf.
10. Nick O'Hern
Getty Images/Paul Kane
PGA Tour Wins: 0
Professional Wins: 6
Highest Official World Golf Ranking: 16 (January 28, 2007)
Birthday: October 18, 1971
Despite never having won on the PGA Tour, Nick O'Hern sustained success on major tours around the world for several decades, beginning in 1994 when he turned Professional. Hailing from Australia, O'Hern earned several years inside the Top 50 of the Official World Golf Rankings and reached a career high of 16 in 2007. Largely contributing to his notable position among the worlds best were the 23 top-10 finishes he earned throughout the course of 13 years on the PGA Tour. If you ever run into him, he may not be afraid to mention that he was the only man to beat World #1 Tiger Woods not once, but twice in the WGC Accenture World Match Play Championship.
9. Eric Axley
Jonathan Ferrey/Getty Images
PGA Tour Wins: 1 (2006 Valero Texas Open)
Professional Wins: 5
Highest Official World Golf Ranking: 169
Birthday: April 22, 1974
Eric Axley was born and raised in Tennessee and turned professional in 1997 at the age of 23. He earned his lone PGA Tour victory at the 2006 Valero Texas Open, at the beginning of one of the best streaks of his career spanning the 2006-2010 seasons, during which he competed in at least 29 PGA Tour events each season. While Axley is one of the few natural lefties to win on the Web.com Tour and PGA Tour, he has also claimed a couple of victories on the Hooters Tour.
8. Russ Cochran
PGA Tour Wins: 1 (1991 Centel Western Open)
Professional Wins: 9
Highest Official World Golf Ranking: 64 (1992)
Birthday: October 31, 1958
Russ Cochran was born and raised in Kentucky, where he went on to attend the University of Kentucky prior to turning professional in 1979 and joining the PGA Tour in 1982. The highlight of his well-rounded professional career came in 1991 when he won the Western Open, and proceeded to finish 10th on the annual PGA Tour money list. In a narrow 2nd came his title at the 2011 Senior British Open, where he held off fellow Americans Mark Calcavecchia and Tom Watson to claim his first PGA Champions Major Championship. The successes of his playing career and additional endeavors contribute to his estimated net worth of $10.7 million.
7. Ted Potter, Jr.
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PGA Tour Wins: 1 (2012 Greenbrier Classic)
Professional Wins: 19
Highest Official World Golf Ranking: 73
Birthday: November 9, 1983
As a Florida native, Ted Potter Jr. experienced youth dominance which continued through high school, contributing to his decision of forgoing a collegiate career to turn professional upon high school graduation in 2002. What may come as slightly disheartening to truly left-handed golfers - Potter Jr. is naturally right-handed, but his decision to embrace the Southpaw way facilitated a fulfilling career, including a win on the PGA Tour and two wins on the Web.com Tour. Perhaps Potter Jr.'s legacy, however, is as a career journeyman golfer and mini-tour legend as it's estimated he's notched 60+ mini-tour victories, including 12 titles on the Hooters Tour.