Ryan Peake: Meet the golfer who's gone from being a gang member to the Open Championship
Peake didn't always live a life of crime. He was a promising young golfer after beginning lessons at 10 in the Lakelands Country Club just outside of his hometown of Perth, Australia.
He embarked on a promising amateur career where he qualified for the Australian Open and tied for 10th at the PGA Tour of Australia's WA Open at just 17-years old. He also represented Australia in his youth, teaming up with long-time friend and 2022 Open winner Cameron Smith. Ryan Peake of Australia looks on during day 3 of the 2025 New Zealand Open. Pic:Two years later he turned pro but failed to win full tour membership at the PGA Tour of Australia Qualifying school. Battling through depression at the time Peake decided to step away from Golf entirely.
He took up plenty of jobs to pay the bills, including working down the mines, plastering, brick laying and mixing cement. Around this time he would begin to drink heavily and gained a lot of weight, ballooning to over 135kg at one point. Ryan Peake of Australia plays a shot through the trees. Pic:It was also around this time when Peake would become part of the Rebels Motorcycle Club, a bike gang and was a full member at age 21. He would then be arrested soon after becoming a member following an incident where the gang got into a fight with a rival and left the victim with a fractured skull.
Peake was sentenced to 7 years in prison for two counts of grievous bodily harm. While in prison he would lose weight and get back into golf, giving other inmates some tips.
While in prison, Peake would be contacted his old coach Ritchie Smith about possibly making a return to professional golf upon release. That release came in May 2019 and soon after Peake began working as a greenkeeper at Lakelands Country Club while trying to restart his pro career. Ryan Peake of Australia walks of the green. Pic:He would turn pro again in 2022 and worked his way up to full status for the PGA Tour of Australia for the 2024/25 season before he accomplished his biggest achievement in March of this year.
Peake would win his biggest tournament of his career when we shot a final round 66 to win the New Zealand Open in Queenstown. It was a remarkable week for Peake, who had trouble getting into New Zealand due to visa issues around his criminal past. Ryan Peake of Australia talks with his caddie on the first tee during a practice round. Pic:He would only land in New Zealand 36 hours before the tournament began and he would finish it with a NZ $302,000 jackpot and a spot at The Open Championship, the first time he'll play at a major.
He's now ready to take part of the star-studded field. He's grouped up with all-time great Phil Mickelson and South Africa's Daniel van Tonder for the first two rounds and if he makes the cut, he'll be in for a nice pay day in the tens of thousands. Not too bad for someone who was in prison just over six years ago.
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