Player to Watch: Luke Donald: An artful amateur - British golfer Luke Donald - Brief Article

Golf Digest, Dec, 1999 by Ryan Herrington

NAME: Luke Donald. AGE: 22 as of Dec. 7.

HOME: High Wycombe, Buckinghamshire, England (30 miles northwest of London).

PORTFOLIO: Forget Austin Powers. Donald, a junior at Northwestern University, was the swingingest British import of 1999, going 4-0 for the victorious GB&I team at the Walker Cup, playing in the British Open at Carnoustie and becoming only the third non-American male golfer to win the NCAA Championship.

MASTER STROKES: Donald's works of art aren't confined to the golf course, for the soft-spoken Brit is as talented with a Winsor & Newton fine-point brush as he is with a Mizuno cavity-back iron. Donald, an art theory and practice major, has had his paintings displayed on campus. "It gets me away from golf," says Donald, who enjoys painting still lifes best of all.

PURPLE REIGN: After Donald's plans to attend Stanford ran into an admissions roadblock in 1997, former Cardinal coach Wally Goodwin directed Donald to Northwestern, where he coached in the 1980s. Donald posted five individual victories and a 70.45 stroke average his sophomore season, helping the Wild-cats take their first Big Ten team title since 1948. Not only was he named national college golfer of the year, but he also earned the Jesse Owens Award, given to the Big Ten's outstanding overall athlete. This fall, he picked up where he left off, winning the Ping Preview at the site of the 2000 NCAA Championship and leading his team to a first-place finish.

COOL HAND LUKE: At 5-foot-9, 148 pounds, he isn't the longest hitter among collegians, though a weight-room regimen improved his strength and flexibility enough to add 15 yards off the tee since he came to the States. His precise iron play sets him apart. "I've never seen him hit trouble shots, because I've never seen him in trouble," says Minnesota coach John Means.

EL NINO ON HOLIDAY: If not for his father's purchase of a time-share in Spain when he was 8, Donald might never have picked up a club. A fan of soccer, rugby and cricket, he took up golf only upon learning the family received free playing privileges at the resort's course.

HAVING A BALL: Despite playing in his first PGA Tour event this fall, Donald intends to pal around with his Sigma Chi fraternity brothers in Evanston, Ill., for another couple of years before turning pro. "Still haven't gotten to Wrigley Field yet," he notes. So he can play in the U.S. Amateur and several other American events, he'll stay in the U.S. next summer rather than return home. "Look at the college careers of the David Duvals, Phil Mickelsons, Justin Leonards and Tiger Woodses," says Wildcat coach Pat Goss. "If Luke wants to compete against those players down the road, he needs to do his best to compete on an equal level with what they did in college."