My9Iron · Professional Golf & Your Golf Tour
Ryan Ruffels Bio
The Australian prodigy who turned professional at 17, rebuilt his career through creator golf and returned to the PGA Tour before becoming the first pick in the Your Golf Tour draft.
Quick answer: Ryan Ruffels is an Australian professional golfer and creator. A two-time Australian Boys’ Amateur champion and 2014 Junior World winner, he turned professional at 17, competed on PGA Tour Latinoamérica and the Korn Ferry Tour, won The Q to return to the PGA Tour in 2026 and became Wesley Bryan’s first overall selection for Your Golf Tour.
Ryan Ruffels at a Glance
From elite junior tennis to Australian golf
Ruffels was born in Orlando while his parents, former professional tennis players Ray Ruffels and Anna-Maria Fernandez, worked as teaching professionals at Isleworth. Two-time major champion Mark O’Meara gave him an early cut-down golf club, but tennis initially looked like Ryan’s future.
At 10, Ruffels was the No. 1-ranked under-12 tennis player in Southern California. Golf became serious after a junior tournament changed his interest in the game. When his father returned to Australia to coach, the family moved first to Canberra and later Melbourne. Ryan increasingly focused on golf and developed at Victoria Golf Club.
His athletic background remained important: tennis supplied competitive instincts, while soccer and other sports kept him from specializing too early.
A dominant junior and amateur résumé
Ruffels gained national attention at 15 in the 2013 Australian Open. After an opening 76, he shot a five-under 67, made the cut and finished tied for 24th. Brady Watt earned low-amateur honors; Ruffels was second among the amateurs.
His 2014 season established him as one of Australia’s best prospects. Ruffels became the youngest winner in the 106-year history of the Riversdale Cup, won the Australian Boys’ Amateur and captured the Callaway Junior World Championship’s 15–17 division at Torrey Pines. He defended the Australian Boys’ Amateur in 2015 by 15 strokes, closing with rounds of 65 and 66 while no other player finished under par.
Ruffels represented Australia at the Ten Nations Cup, Toyota World Junior and 2014 Eisenhower Trophy. He was ranked No. 13 in the World Amateur Golf Ranking when he turned professional.
Ryan Ruffels bypassed college golf
Ruffels turned professional in January 2016 and made his professional debut at the Farmers Insurance Open. He received seven PGA Tour sponsor exemptions during his first season, but those starts did not amount to a full PGA Tour card.
Later in 2016, Ruffels tied for second at the Copa Diners Club International on PGA Tour Latinoamérica after a closing 64. He added enough strong finishes to establish a developmental-tour path and continued competing across Latin America while pursuing higher status.
That distinction matters: Ruffels accumulated genuine PGA Tour experience, but much of his early access came through exemptions, qualifying and individual invitations rather than regular PGA Tour membership.
One stroke from his first Korn Ferry Tour victory
Ruffels advanced through the 2019 Korn Ferry Tour Qualifying Tournament and began 2020 with guaranteed starts. His closest victory came at the Pinnacle Bank Championship in Omaha.
Rounds of 66, 70 and 65 gave him a two-stroke lead entering Sunday. Ruffels regained the lead during the final round, but consecutive bogeys on Nos. 16 and 17 contributed to a closing 73. He finished tied for second at ten under, one stroke behind Seth Reeves, and earned $32,100.
An injury early in 2022 complicated his final Korn Ferry season, and he subsequently lost status. Ruffels later played a limited Challenge Tour schedule in Europe. The available direct evidence does not establish the injury’s exact diagnosis, so My9Iron is not assigning it one.
Why Ryan Ruffels moved into YouTube golf
Tour golf remained Ruffels’ goal, but travel, entry fees and the absence of secure status made the traditional route difficult to sustain. Rather than treating content as retirement, he built Ryan Ruffels Golf around competitive matches, training, club fitting and access to professional players.
Ruffels also became part of The Lads, a creator project connected with major champion Jason Day. His personal channel grew beyond 100,000 subscribers while he continued training and looking for competitive starts.
The strongest version of his story is not “professional turned influencer.” Creator golf became the platform that helped Ruffels remain visible, finance his pursuit and access a new kind of qualifier.
Winning his way back to the PGA Tour
In 2026, Ruffels entered The Q at Myrtle Beach, a creator-led competition awarding a start in the ONEflight Myrtle Beach Classic. Match play reduced 16 players to a four-man final at Pawleys Plantation Golf & Country Club.
Ruffels shot a one-under 71 to defeat Grant Horvat by two strokes, with Luke Kwon and Micah Morris tied for third. His bogey-free back nine included birdies at Nos. 14 and 16.
At the PGA Tour event, Ruffels opened 67–70 and entered the weekend tied for 15th. He completed all four rounds at 67–70–72–70, finished tied for 45th at five under and earned $11,411. It was his first PGA Tour start since the 2022 Shriners Children’s Open. He later received a Rocket Classic start, where rounds of 70–70 missed the cut.
First overall pick for Team Wesley
Wesley Bryan selected Ruffels with the first overall pick in the inaugural Your Golf Tour draft. Team Wesley’s permanent roster paired Ruffels with Wesley, Micah Morris and Roger Steele.
At Pursell Farms, Ruffels and Steele shot five under in the front-nine scramble. Ruffels then partnered Wesley for a five-under 31 in alternate shot, helping Team Wesley advance to the final.
Ruffels shot a four-under 68 in his individual final match. It was a strong round, but Brad Dalke produced a course-record 62 to win the matchup. Team Wesley finished runner-up in the event, which carried a $175,000 team prize.
A family built around high-level sport
Ryan’s younger sister, Gabi Ruffels, followed a similar tennis-to-golf transition. She won the 2019 U.S. Women’s Amateur and later joined the LPGA Tour.
The siblings also became professional teammates. Representing the Los Angeles Roses, Ryan and Gabi shot 13 under in the final round and finished 21 under to win the 2025 Grass League Championship. Ryan was retained by the franchise and named its captain for 2026.
Ryan Ruffels’ golf equipment
Ruffels documented a predominantly TaylorMade setup in his 2024 WITB content, including a Qi10 driver and blended TaylorMade irons. By the 2026 Rocket Classic, tournament imagery showed a substantially changed mixed-brand setup.
Ruffels also said he moved to a mallet putter at the beginning of 2026 after approximately a decade with his previous style. Because the evidence crosses different dates and configurations, My9Iron is not presenting the older TaylorMade bag as his current equipment.
A separate Clubs and Specs page should use a single dated bag and verify every head, loft and shaft from video or tournament photographs before publication.
Frequently asked questions
Meet Ryan Ruffels’ Your Golf Tour Teammates
- Wesley Bryan →PGA Tour winner, Bryan Bros creator and Team Wesley captain.
- Micah Morris →Professional golfer, powerful creator and permanent Team Wesley competitor.
- Roger Steele →Creator, golf advocate and permanent Team Wesley competitor.
- Your Golf Tour 2026 →See every team, player, episode date and result in one place.
Build a Bag Around Your Own Game
Editorial review: August 30, 2026. Tournament and equipment references are dated evidence and should be rechecked before future present-tense claims.