JOHN MALLINGER

While golf is John Mallinger’s profession, having been born and raised in Escondido, CA, he embodies the Southern California active lifestyle. He is an avid snowboarder and surfer, a car enthusiast and enjoys spending time with his family. The 30-year old is also the face of Travis Mathew Clothing, an innovative line of apparel designed for young golfers.

With more than $4.6 million in overall earnings on the PGA Tour, John is confident the 2010 season will bring great achievements. He continues on a path that began with earning runner-up honors as the PGA’s Rookie of The Year in 2007 and is looking forward to his first tournament win. “I’d definitely like to get a victory,” he told ESPN. “I think the main thing is just to keep putting myself in the position where I have that chance on any given Sunday. Getting better every year is the biggest thing for me.”

Mallinger has come close to his goal a number of times, finishing second once and third six times. In 2009 he finished third at The PLAYERS Championship, which has one of the deepest fields in golf and second at the US Bank Championship in a playoff. Another highlight of his 2009 season was a hole-in-one at the 50th Bob Hope Classic on the 183-yard third hole. In 2008 he placed third at the AT&T Pebble Beach National Pro-Am.

Along the way, Mallinger has recorded some other impressive statistics: he made 18 of 27 cuts in 2009 and finished in the money in 17. He also made 20 of 29 cuts in 2008 and finished in the money in all 20. In 2009 he was 10th overall in total driving efficiency and tied for 9th overall for the lowest round with a 62 and finished 50th on the Money Leaders List.

Mallinger’s path to the PGA began at Long Beach State University, where he was a three-time First Team All-Big West Conference selection from 1998 to 2001. He graduated with a Bachelor’s Degree in Business Administration and Marketing. After turning pro in 2002, he played 81 professional tournaments, including the 2005 U.S. Open, without missing a cut. He also won two tournaments on the Hooters Tour and was a medalist at the 2006 Canadian PGA Tour Qualifying Tournament.

John is an active supporter of multiple charities including, San Diego Junior Golf, “Get-A-Grip” Foundation, California Pools of Hope and the Long Beach State University Alumni Association. The Century Club of Long Beach honored Mallinger with the Hank Hollingsworth Award for Outstanding Athletic Achievement.

Now that the 2010 PGA Tour is underway be on the lookout for John Mallinger’s name atop the leaderboard.