Key Takeaways
- Bud Cauley has earned over $10 million in his professional golf career despite facing significant challenges.
- After a promising amateur career, Cauley was one of the few golfers to earn his PGA Tour card directly without going through Q-School.
- Cauley made a remarkable comeback to golf after a life-threatening car accident in 2018, returning to competition in 2024 after nearly four years away.
Bud Cauley, an American professional golfer, has made a significant mark in the sport and has earned a career total of $10,048,560. His PGA Tour earnings stand at $9,898,689, with an additional $149,871 from major tournaments.
Hence, even though Bud Cauley’s exact net worth is undisclosed, his career earnings exceeding $10 million highlight his success and resilience in professional golf.
Early Life And Amateur Success
Born on March 16, 1990, in Daytona Beach, Florida, William Carl “Bud” Cauley III displayed immense golfing talent from a young age.
He was home-schooled by his parents and quickly rose through the ranks in junior golf, becoming one of the top-five ranked junior golfers in the United States and among the top 15 in the world.
Cauley’s junior career was filled with notable achievements. He was a member of the 2006 Junior Ryder Cup and the 2008 USA Junior World Golf Championships team.
In 2008, he became a co-medalist at the Toyota World Junior Amateur Championships and won the Players Amateur, which earned him a spot in the 2010 Verizon Heritage on the PGA Tour.
He continued his impressive run in amateur golf after enrolling at the University of Alabama, where he became one of the best players in the program’s history.
During his time at Alabama, he was a three-time first-team Golfweek All-American and a finalist for the prestigious Hogan Award in all three years.
His success continued in 2009 when he was named Southeastern Conference (SEC) Freshman of the Year and won his first collegiate title at the United States Collegiate Championship.
In the same year, he was selected to represent the U.S. in the Walker Cup, where he posted an outstanding 3-0-1 record.
Cauley also showcased his skills in major amateur events, including the 2009 and 2010 U.S. Amateur Championships, where he made headlines by defeating world No. 1 amateur Rickie Fowler in the first round of match play in 2009.
Additionally, he won the Terra Cotta Invitational in 2008.
Turning Professional And PGA Tour Success
After qualifying for the 2011 U.S. Open, Cauley decided to turn professional, choosing to forgo his senior year at Alabama.
His early performances on the PGA Tour were impressive, proving his ability to compete at the highest level. In his first four PGA Tour events, he did not miss a cut.
He finished T4 at the Viking Classic and also achieved a T4 finish at the Utah Championship on the Nationwide Tour.
At the 2011 U.S. Open, he made the cut and finished in T63 position, which allowed him to bypass the first stage of Q-School.
Later in the season, he secured a third-place finish at the Frys.com Open, earning $340,000.
By the end of 2011, he had accumulated $735,150 in just eight PGA Tour starts, a remarkable achievement for a rookie.
This performance placed him 116th on the PGA Tour money list, allowing him to bypass Q-School entirely and earn his PGA Tour card directly—an accomplishment shared by only a few elite golfers, including Phil Mickelson, Tiger Woods, and Justin Leonard.
Cauley continued to perform well in 2012, recording four top-10 finishes and breaking into the top 100 of the Official World Golf Ranking by July of that year.
However, 2013 proved to be a difficult season, as he managed to make the cut in only 10 out of 24 events.
Despite the setback, he regained his PGA Tour card through the Web.com Tour Finals, finishing 18th overall.
Tragic Car Accident And Comeback
In June 2018, Cauley suffered a life-threatening car accident in Dublin, Ohio, which resulted in multiple severe injuries.
He suffered five broken ribs, a broken left leg, and a collapsed lung. Despite the severity of his injuries, he made a remarkable return to golf in October 2018 and continued competing in events over the next two years.
Unfortunately, in September 2020, he developed medical complications that forced him to step away from professional golf.
After a long recovery period, Cauley made his competitive return in January 2024 at a Korn Ferry Tour event, marking his comeback after nearly four years away from the sport.
