Meet Golf’s Lethal Weapon

Ryggs Johnston is a prime example of how great professional golf can be.

If you’re unfamiliar with the 24-year-old rookie, allow me to introduce you. Johnston — who is named after Mel Gibson’s character in Lethal Weapon, which is awesome enough — is from Libby, Montana, a small town of less than 3,000 people. His childhood goal was to play golf at Arizona State, and he worked his way onto a talented, national championship-contending Sun Devils roster where he spent the last five years.

Johnston finished third at the 2021 NCAA Championship as a sophomore but struggled to stay in the lineup for the next few years. As a fifth-year graduate student, Johnston got back to work and ended his career with four straight top-10 finishes.

He finished 17th in the PGA Tour University rankings, which earned him access to PGA Tour Americas events. Across 10 starts on the developmental circuit, Johnson struggled with his consistency and logged just one top-10 finish and three inside the top 20. His former coach at Arizona State suggested DP World Tour Q-School, and once again, Johnston got to work. He advanced through all three stages and made his DP World Tour debut at last week’s BMW Australian PGA Championship, where he made the cut and finished T43.

On Sunday, in just his second DP World Tour start without a practice round to start the week, Johnson fired a 4-under 68 in the final round to win by three at the ISPS Handa Australian Open.

Johnston has earned every bit of success in his young career. The kid who created his own practice area in his parent’s basement went on to win four straight high school state titles, fought for his dream to play at Arizona State, worked his way through Q-School, and then earned a win in just his 12th professional start. That victory also earns him a place in next year’s Open Championship, his first major championship start.

There are a lot of handouts in professional golf these days, which makes stories like Johnston’s all the more special. I can’t wait to see what he accomplishes next.

This piece originally appeared in the Fried Egg Golf newsletter. Subscribe for free and receive golf news and insight every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday.