Stephan Jaeger Player Profile And What's In The Bag
By: Derek Clements | Edited: Tue 02 Apr 2024
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Stephan Jaeger knows how to win tournaments. He has claimed six titles on the Korn Ferry Tour. But in his 135th start on the PGA Tour he finally made the biggest breakthrough of all, winning the Houston Open after Scottie Scheffler missed a five-foot putt on the final green to force a playoff.
The German is the fourth first-time winner this season and his success denied Scheffler a third successive win on the PGA Tour as he tunes up for The Masters. There was a five-way tie for second, with Thomas Detry, Tony Finau, Alejandro Tosti and Taylor Moore finishing alongside Scheffler.
English pair David Skins and Aaron Rai finished in a group on 10 under.
Jaeger said: "Scottie has been playing some unbelievable golf. I played the Arnold Palmer and the Players with him and he's such a great dude as well.
"I just tried to stay within myself, tried to make some birdies. Birdies eluded me on the back nine but this golf course plays a little difficult especially if you're right around the lead. There's so much trouble and I'm super happy obviously with the day."
Jaeger, who was part of a five-way tie for the lead heading into the final round, carded four birdies and a bogey on the front nine before making nine straight pars.
The German narrowly missed a 20-foot birdie chance at the 18th to give Scheffler the chance to force a play-off. But the world number one, who won the Arnold Palmer Invitational and the Players Championship back-to-back, spurned the opportunity - his first missed putt inside seven feet all weekend.
Fellow PGA Tour player Joel Dahmen, who was waiting to congratulate Jaeger, said: "If you win on the Korn Ferry Tour, you can win on the PGA Tour, and to do it six times, it’s not an accident. That means that when you get in that position, you know how to win. You’re not afraid of it. He’s not afraid of it, and he showed that today. The drive he hit on 17, over the water and sent it right at it, that’s just what he does now."
Player Profile
Jaeger was born in Munich on May 30, 1989.
He played collegiate golf at the University of Tennessee and turned professional in 2012.
He qualified for the 2015 US Open, where he shot 74-80 to miss the cut.
At the 2016 Ellie Mae Classic, Jaeger shot a 12-under-par 58 in the first round and followed it up with rounds of 65-64-63 to claim his first Web.com Tour victory. He set the 72-hole aggregate record with his 250 and tied the to-par record, at 30 under par, and won by seven strokes. He also set the 36-hole and 54-hole records. Despite the win, Jaeger finished 28th on the regular season money list, three spots short of a guaranteed PGA Tour card.
In 2017, Jaeger won twice on the Web.com Tour, finishing fifth on the regular-season money list and earning a PGA Tour card for the 2017-18 season. In May 2018, ranked 161st in the FedEx Cup and having failed to qualify for The Players Championship, Jaeger played in and won the Web.com Tour’s Knoxville, his fourth victory on that tour. After failing to finish in either the top 125 of the FedEx Cup or the Web.com Tour's top 25, Jaeger regained his PGA Tour card through the Web.com Tour Finals.
Back on the Korn Ferry Tour in 2020, Jaeger picked up his fifth title on the tour at the Albertsons Boise Open. It helped gain him exemption into the 2020 US Open as one of the leading points scorers in the final three Championship Series events, and into four alternate events on the PGA Tour in 2021 by virtue of being in the top 10 of the tour standings after the Korn Ferry Tour Championship. He won the Korn Ferry Tour player of the year award for the 2020-21 season.
His win in Texas took him to 10th place in the FedEx Cup standings.
In 135 starts he has twice finished third, had four top five and seven top-10 finishes.
Last 10 Events
Houston Open - 1st
The Players Championship - CUT
Arnold Palmer Invitational - T44th
Cognizant Classic - CUT
Mexico Open - T3rd
AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am - CUT
Farmers Insurance Open - T3rd
The American Express - T52nd
Sony Open in Hawaii - T18th
The RSM Classic - T28th
Key Stats
Driving Distance - 309.4 Yards
Driving Accuracy - 58.65%
Greens in Regulation - 68.28%
Sand Saves - 38.64%
Putts Per Round - 28.37
Scoring Average - 69.32
End of Year World Ranking Position
2019: 430
2020: 234
2021: 129
2022: 161
2023: 101
What's In Stephan Jaeger's Golf Bag
Driver: PING G430 LST (9 Degrees)
3-Wood: Callaway Paradym Ai Smoke Triple Diamond (15 Degrees)
7-Wood: PING G425 Max (20.5 Degrees)
Irons: PING S55 (3-PW)
Wedges: Titleist Vokey Design SM10 (50.12F @49, 54.14F @53, 56.14F @57)
Putter: Odyssey Ai-One 2-Ball
Grips: Golf Pride ZGrip Cord
Ball: Titleist Pro V1
About the author
Derek Clements is a seasoned sports journalist and regular Golfshake contributor, specialising in tour coverage, opinion pieces, and feature writing. With a long career in national newspapers and golf media, he has reported on the game across Europe, the United States and Australia. A passionate golfer, he has played and reviewed numerous renowned courses, with personal favourites including Pebble Beach, Kingsbarns, Aldeburgh, Old Thorns and the K Club. His love of the game informs his thoughtful commentary on both professional golf and the wider golfing community.
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Tags: WITB Tour Pro player profile in the bag
