MattJones
Ripper GC
Current Position
#47
Age
44
Turned Pro in
2001
LIV debut
2022
Matt Jones: In golf’s spotlight from an early age
Matt Jones is a two-time winner on the PGA Tour and twice became Australian Open champion before signing up for the inaugural LIV Golf Invitational Series in 2022.
Sydney-born Jones was inspired to pursue the game of golf at the age of six after being introduced to the world No.1 at the time, Greg Norman.
Australia’s 7News visited the 1987 Australian Masters at Huntingdale to follow his story.
The blond-haired youngster had recently hit a hole-in-one, and his reward was to be introduced to fellow Aussie and global golf superstar Norman, who went on to become CEO of LIV Golf.
With prophetic words, Norman said: “He’s the future generation of Australian golf and probably world golf and I just love to see that.
“He’s good, I like his personality, he’s got a good attitude, a good swing.
“I like his right foot slide, there’s somebody else who has that every now and then,” he added, referring to his own swing technique, before presenting Jones with a Norman-style hat.
Early steps as a professional
Early steps as a professional
Jones moved to the US in 1998 to play college golf at Arizona State University and while at ASU he was a first-team All-American.
He turned professional in 2001 but had to wait until 2007 for his breakout season, in which he racked up four second-place finishes on the Korn Ferry Tour, and secured seventh on the money list to earn his PGA Tour card.
Two of his near misses were as a result of playoffs. At the 2007 Oregon Classic in September, Jones and Jon Turcott were edged out by Kyle Thompson, who birdied the second extra hole to win.
A month later at the Mark Christopher Charity Classic, Richard Johnson took the honors with a birdie on the first extra hole, eclipsing Jones and Jeremy Anderson.
His maiden appearance at a Major in 2009 was one to forget after he tackled the unforgiving Bethpage Black course, host of a rain-affected US Open, while injured.
Jones hit a first-round 78 before having to withdraw due to a herniated disc in his back.
First PGA Tour win at the 2014 Houston Open
First PGA Tour win at the 2014 Houston Open
Matt Jones produced one of the shots of the year to clinch his first PGA Tour win at the 2014 Shell Houston Open in April.
It was his 156th start on the Tour and the maiden victory was well worth the wait.
In the final round, Jones drained a 46-yard putt on the 18th for a birdie, carding a 66 that pulled him level with overnight leader Matt Kuchar who had bogeyed two of the final three holes.
But it was at the first sudden death playoff hole where the magic came.
Jones weighed up his third shot, which required a chip from 42 yards over a bunker to the uphill 18th green.
He pitched the ball short of the ridge on the green to let the ball run round to the left and towards the pin.
With just the right pace the ball rolled to the flag and dropped into the hole for a birdie that Kuchar could not match.
That winning shot also booked Jones his first ticket to The Masters the following week, though he missed the cut at Augusta.
Two-time champion at the Australian Open
Two-time champion at the Australian Open
Winning a tournament on home turf is special, but victory in your national championships is the stuff of dreams.
Jones was on the brink of achieving both at the 2015 Australian Open, a tournament on the PGA Tour of Australasia.
He began Sunday’s play as the overnight leader by three strokes, but nerves frayed as he dropped three shots in his first two holes at the Australian Golf Club.
Jones then hit a disastrous triple-bogey on the ninth, while world No.1 Jordan Spieth and fellow Australian golfer Adam Scott came charging up on the rails.
Two birdies on a bogey-free back nine saw Jones keep his nose ahead by one shot to lift the Stonehaven Cup.
“That was very stressful, it wasn’t comfortable out there for me,” he said.
“I’ve watched the Australian Open for many years and just to have my name on that trophy is something I’ll never forget.”
Jones was champion once again with a more dominant display in 2019, but even that had its drama.
Having hit the front after the second round he looked in complete control until South African Louis Oosthuizen pulled off an eagle at the final hole to record a 66.
That left Jones needing to find par-5 on the 18th , which he achieved after sinking a pressure four-foot putt.
“I was told on the 18th fairway that Louis had made eagle ahead of me,” he said. “So, it was a pretty good up and down to win the championship.”
More PGA Tour success at the 2021 Honda Classic
More PGA Tour success at the 2021 Honda Classic
It took seven years for Jones to land his second win on the PGA Tour but when he did it was a big one.
At the 2015 Honda Classic in Florida, Jones blew the field away to win by five strokes and earn the $1.26million prize money.
He also shot up the FedEx Cup standings from 60 th to 11 th and qualified for The Masters as a result of becoming champion.
“Sorry, I’m pretty emotional,” he said in his interview after. “Seven years… I’ve had some tough times in between that and now.
“But I just worked hard. Had some tough times putting but just worked hard with my coach home in Australia, Gary [Barter] and it’s finally paid off.”
By the end of the 2021-22 season, Jones had competed in 364 PGA Tour events, winning twice and gathering 19 top-five finishes to earn $17,330,501 in prize money. He has also achieved a career best 41st on the official world golf ranking.
Life as a real Ripper on LIV
Life as a real Ripper on LIV
Jones signed a contract for the inaugural LIV Golf Invitational Series in 2022 and was a member of Aussie themed-team Punch GC.
In his first season, Punch, who rebranded as Ripper GC from the start of the LIV Golf League, enjoyed a big showing at the end-of-season Team Championship at Trump National Doral in Miami, sealing the runners-up spot behind Dustin Johnson’s 4Aces.
Jones was 42nd in the individual standings and was signed up again by Ripper for 2023.
There was a team win to celebrate in Bedminster in August and Jones placed 37th in the year’s individual event and again was retained by Cameron Smith for Ripper for the following year.
2024 was a roaring success for Ripper as they won the Team Championship finale in Dallas after finishing third in the regular season standings.
They won back-to-back team events in Adelaide and Singapore during the year, with Jones completing the individual round in Australia with a six-under-par 66 to finish T9, his best performance of the season.
The Australian’s two-under-par 70 in the four-team shootout to decide the Team Championship in Dallas contributed to Ripper’s combined score of 11-under to pip 4Aces and Iron Heads to the title.
After another 42nd place in the individual standings, Jones got the nod for a fourth season playing on LIV with Ripper.
Life away from golf with wife Melissa Weber
Life away from golf with wife Melissa Weber
In 2011 Matt Jones became engaged to Melissa Weber, the winner of Miss Idaho 2009 who also made the top 15 of Miss USA.
The two married in 2012 and Melissa Weber Jones became one of the more recognisable player partners at LIV events.
The couple have three daughters and that was a big factor behind Jones quitting the PGA Tour for LIV.
“The schedule is great for me with three kids — three young girls,” Jones said when announcing his decision.
“I want to be around as a dad. I mean, I’ve been out here [the PGA Tour] for 15 years.
“I’ve missed a lot of what goes on in my kids’ lives. I was raised with a mom and dad that were always there for me.
“They were at every sporting event, every schooling event, and that’s something I’d like to try to do for my kids.”
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2/13 events
Pos.
47
Event | Finish | Points | Score | |||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
RiyadhFEB 06-08, 2025 | T33 | 0 | -5 R1:+2 R2:-4 R3:-3 | |||
AdelaideFEB 14-16, 2025 | 44 | 0 | +3 R1:+3 R2:-1 R3:+1 | |||
Hong KongMAR 07-09, 2025 | - | - | - | |||
SingaporeMAR 14-16, 2025 | - | - | - | |||
MiamiAPR 04-06, 2025 | - | - | - | |||
Mexico CityAPR 25-27, 2025 | - | - | - | |||
KoreaMAY 02-04, 2025 | - | - | - | |||
DCJUN 06-08, 2025 | - | - | - | |||
DallasJUN 27-29, 2025 | - | - | - | |||
AndalucíaJUL 11-13, 2025 | - | - | - | |||
United KingdomJUL 25-27, 2025 | - | - | - | |||
ChicagoAUG 08-10, 2025 | - | - | - | |||
IndianapolisAUG 15-17, 2025 | - | - | - |