Baylor Athletics Hall of Fame
- Induction:
- 2015
- Class:
- 2001
It took him 12 years and 188 starts before Jimmy Walker finally broke through and won his first PGA Tour event at the 2013 Frys.com Open in San Martin, Calif.
But it was a tie for 52nd that made the former Baylor All-American first realize, "I can do this."
"I qualified for the (2001) U.S. Open right out of school, turned pro there and shot a really good score," said Walker, who earned a $13,164 paycheck by shooting 292 in his first pro event, beating former majors winners like Jim Furyk, Ernie Els and Nick Faldo. "I knew I could play, but that's what kept me going and made me realize I can do this."
"It was huge," Walker said of his first PGA victory back in October 2013. "It had been a long time coming. I know a lot of people thought it was going to happen a long time ago, and it just didn't, for whatever reason. But it hadn't deterred me. I knew I was going to do it. It was just a matter of time. And then once I did it, I did it a bunch more. That's what's really exciting is I just keep looking forward to the future, and each week brings something new."
An Oklahoma City, Okla., native, Walker won 21 high school tournaments at New Braunfels (Texas) Canyon, earning all-state and team MVP honors all four years.
"I remember when Brandon Sanders, Worth Williams and I came on a recruiting visit, we thought we were three pretty good high school/junior golf standouts, and we all thought if we came to Baylor we'd be pretty good," Walker said.
Playing for coach Tim Hobby, Walker and the Bears won 11 team tournament titles in four years, but none bigger than the 2001 Big 12 Championship. With all three seniors finishing in the top five individually, Baylor won the conference title by 10 strokes over Oklahoma and Texas.
"It was just kind of cool to see how all that came into focus at the end of our careers there," said Walker, who finished fourth at the Big 12 tournament and fifth at the NCAA Central Regional.
Nearly 15 years later, Walker still holds the Baylor school records for career stroke average (71.55) and top-five finishes (19) and ranks 2nd in top-10 finishes with 26. He is Baylor's only four-time All-Big 12 pick and earned third-team All-America honors as a senior when he posted a 71.89 average and won two individual titles.
"I knew what I wanted to do after school, and that was to turn pro and become a professional," he said. "That doesn't mean it's going to happen, but I had the drive and work ethic and luck and talent to go get after it. There have been a lot of ups and downs and bumps in the road . . . but I just showed some stick-to-it-ness and always knew I could do it."
Other than his five Tour victories, one of Walker's biggest career highlights was playing for USA in the 2014 Ryder Cup at historic Gleneagles in Scotland. While Europe won the event, 16 ½-11 ½,, Walker went undefeated playing with Rickie Fowler in four team matchups and also beat Europe's Lee Westwood, 3 and 2, in the Sunday singles.
"I personally had a great week that week, played really well," he said. "The bonds you form with your teammates, the guys you play your matches with, it's just different. Rickie Fowler and I played every match together. We were decent friends before, but we've gotten to be really good friends. . . . There's just this connection with your partner that's hard to describe unless you've been there and done it."
Walker met his wife, the former Erin Stiegemeier, while playing at a Web.com Tour event in Utah in 2004. The couple has two boys, Mclain and Beckett.
"She was a tournament volunteer, and my caddy introduced us," he said. "We just met by happenchance, got the relationship going and now we have two kids."
