Philip Francis (golfer) Philip Francis (golfer) Philip C. Francis is an American professional golfer. Francis was born in Las Vegas, Nevada. He was one of the top-ranked junior golfers in the class of 2007, winning more than 140 junior events, to include the 2006 U.S. Junior Amateur. He was ranked number one in junior golf for 65 straight weeks. Francis first picked up a golf club at 18 months old and won for the first time at age four in an eight and under event. He also broke Tiger Woods' record by winning four consecutive Junior World Golf Championships (1999-2002). Francis played in
Tiger Woods of the Year a record-tying four times, and is one of only two people to be named "Sports Illustrated"s Sportsman of the Year more than once. Since his record-breaking win at the 1997 Masters, Woods became the biggest name in golf, and his presence in tournaments drew a huge fan following . Some sources have credited him for dramatically increasing prize money in golf, generating interest in new PGA tournament audiences, and for drawing the largest TV ratings in golf history. During the first decade of his professional career, Woods was the world's most marketable athlete. Shortly after his 21st