Mike Weir

Michael Richard Weir, (born May 12, 1970) is a Canadian professional golfer.

He currently plays on the PGA Tour Champions.

In 1984, Weir decided to write Nicklaus for advice as to whether to make the switch.

Nicklaus quickly wrote back and told Weir, "If you are a good player left-handed, don't change anything—especially if that feels natural to you."

He never thought of switching to right-handed play again, and still keeps the letter, now framed, in his home.

He attended St. Michael Elementary School in Brights Grove and St. Clair Secondary School in Sarnia, winning the Ontario Junior Championship in 1988.

He is a graduate of Brigham Young University (majoring in Recreation Management), and won the Ontario Amateur Championship in 1990 and 1992.

He tied for 2nd at the 1991 Canadian Amateur Championship, and finished clear second in that event in 1992.

He was an All-American selection at BYU in 1992 on the Second Team.

Weir turned professional in 1992, and started on the Canadian Professional Golf Tour, where he won three events.

He also played some events on the Asian PGA Tour early in his career.

He first reached the PGA Tour in 1998, but lost his playing privileges, due to insufficient performance.

He had to requalify, and did so by being medalist at the final Qualifying School tournament.

Weir's first PGA Tour win came at the 1999 Air Canada Championship in Surrey, British Columbia.

The victory made him the first Canadian to win a PGA Tour event in Canada in 45 years.

He shared the 54 holes lead at the 1999 PGA Championship with Tiger Woods but finished T-10.

He spent over 110 weeks in the top-10 of the Official World Golf Ranking between 2001 and 2005.

He won The Tour Championship in a playoff in 2001.

He plays golf left-handed and is best known for winning the Masters Tournament in 2003, making him the only Canadian man to ever win a major championship.

Born in Sarnia, Ontario, Weir grew up in the Sarnia suburb of Brights Grove.

He learned to play golf at Huron Oaks Golf Course, and was coached there by Steve Bennett.

Like many Canadian boys, his first sport was hockey; he was a natural left-handed shot, and began playing golf left-handed as a follow-on from his hockey experience.

Weir was fortunate in that his godfather's son played left-handed and had a partial set of spare clubs that he handed down to Weir—three woods and four irons.

From his earnings as a caddy and pro shop worker, he purchased a left-handed wedge that he used until the grip wore out.

When he was 12, he won a junior tournament in which the first prize was a complete set of irons; he replaced his original four irons with the clubs he had won.

While working at Huron Oaks, he also met Jack Nicklaus at age 11, when the golf legend came to the club to play an exhibition.

This meeting set the stage for a pivotal moment in Weir's career.

Weir gave up hockey in his early teenage years when he realized he would not grow past average size and that golf was his best sport.

However, he had received advice that he might be an even better golfer if he switched to playing right-handed.

Weir began the 2003 season in impressive fashion, winning two tournaments on the West Coast Swing.

He first won the Bob Hope Chrysler Classic in Palm Springs, California, and then followed with a win at Riviera Country Club near Los Angeles, at the Nissan Open.

In April, Weir won the 2003 Masters Tournament at Augusta, Georgia, one of the four major championships.

He is the only Canadian male ever to win a professional major championship.

At the time he won the Masters, Weir became only the second left-handed golfer to win any of the four majors, the other being Bob Charles, who won the British Open forty years earlier (Phil Mickelson and Bubba Watson have since won majors as left-handed golfers).

Weir is a right-hander who plays golf left-handed, a trait he shares with fellow PGA Tour pro and major champion Mickelson.

In June, Weir tied for third at the U.S. Open, the second of the majors, which moved him to third in the Official World Golf Ranking, his highest ranking.

For his outstanding play in 2003, Weir won the Lou Marsh Trophy for outstanding Canadian athlete of the year.

He maintained his position in the world's top ten ranking into 2004.

In February 2004, Weir joined the ranks of a select few players including Ben Hogan to win consecutive championships at the Nissan Open, becoming the sixth player in Nissan Open history to notch back-to-back wins, and the first since Corey Pavin (1994, 1995).

He was the 20th player to post multiple wins at the Nissan Open.