World number one seed
Luke Donald has triumphed in four PGA Tour and six European Tour competitions in an illustrious career that has spanned over a decade since the 33-year-old turned professional in 2001.
He took the top spot in the official world rankings in May this year after a stunning triumph at the BMW PGA Championship, where he saw off competition from compatriot
Lee Westwood at the first hole of the play-off round.
"To win this flagship event with possibly one of the best fields we'll play all year with the four major champions and everyone from the
Ryder Cup is very special," he said upon his win. "And to become the new world No.1 feels great."
Born in Hemel Hempstead in December 1977, Donald played junior
golf at Hazlemere and Beaconsfield
Golf Clubs with his brother. He was named the club champion of Beaconsfield on two occasions, with his first victory coming at the age of 15.
Donald went on to take a golf scholarship at Northwestern University in 1997, where he studied art theory and practice. He met his future wife Diane Antonopoulos while carrying out his education and the pair - who got married in 2007 - now have two daughters together.
In 2002, Donald became only the 11th rookie player in PGA Tour history to earn more than $1 million (£630,000) during his first season after triumphing at the rain-shortened Southern Farm Bureau Classic.
He went on to win two European Tour events in 2004, the Omega European Masters and the Scandinavian Masters, as well as his appearance in the victorious European Ryder Cup team along with
Paul Casey, Paul McGinley,
Miguel Angel Jimenez and
Colin Montgomerie.
Donald won the Madrid Masters by just one shot in 2010, representing his first title in four years, where he beat Welsh golfer Rhys Davies to take the crown.
After his victory he said: "It's definitely a weight off my shoulders. I felt a little frustrated that I hadn't won in the last four years and to come here and play like I did meant a lot to me."
The world number one has enjoyed a successful 2011 season, which has seen him voted golf's social media player of the year by technorati.com. He was also named PGA Tour player of the year, as well as claiming the tour's money list title.
As a result, the 33-year-old is ranked number one in the Race to Dubai ahead of Germany's Martin Kaymer and recently promoted world number two Rory McIlroy.
