Stephen Gallacher

Gallacher was born in Dechmont, West Lothian, the nephew of former European Ryder Cup captain Bernard Gallacher and cousin of Sky Sports news presenter Kirsty Gallacher. He won the 1994 European Amateur and a couple of important amateur tournaments in Britain. He played in a victorious Walker Cup side in 1995 and turned professional later that year.

Gallacher won the 2013 OMEGA Dubai Desert Classic, holing his second shot for an eagle at the 16th (his fifth eagle of the week) in the final round to shake off Richard Sterne and win by three. His previous triumph came at the 2004 Alfred Dunhill Links Championship, exactly 35 years after his uncle, former Ryder Cup captain Bernard Gallacher, won his maiden professional title. He successfully defended his Omega Dubai Desert Classic title in 2014, doing so in record-setting fashion. In the third round, after shooting an even-par 35 on the front nine at Emirates G.C., he went bogey-free on the final nine of the day, recording seven birdies and an eagle en route to a 9-under 28. He held a two-shot, 54-hole lead over Rory McIlroy and stumbled early as he began his final round with back-to-back bogeys, shooting a 4-over 39 on the front nine. He righted his play for a second consecutive day on the back nine with a four-birdie, five-par performance to hold off Emiliano Grillo by one stroke.

He won a European Tour card in his first attempt in 1995. He sustained a back injury in the summer of 1996 while removing his luggage from an airport carousel, and did not play from June onward. He won the Scottish Amateur Match Play and Stroke Play Championships to accompany his Lytham Trophy success and was a member of the victorious Walker Cup side at Royal Porthcawl in 1995. His first European Tour win was at the 2005 Dunhill Links Championship when he beat Graeme McDowell in a playoff, delighting the home crowds at St. Andrews and fulfilling the promise he had shown since turning professional in 1995. He suffered from a debilitating viral infection, sarcoidosis, which attacked his lungs and joints in 2009, but returned to full health in 2010. A year later, he guided Scotland, alongside Martin Laird, to a joint fourth-place at the Mission Hills World Cup.

2014 Notes: Along with his Dubai win, Gallacher also finished T-6th at WGC-Cadillac and then T-5th at the BMW PGA Championship. The next week, he lost a playoff to Thongchai Jaidee at the Nordea Masters, then finished T-4th at the Aberdeen Asset Scottish Open. He finished the year with a pair of top-10s at the Czech Masters (T-7th) and the Italian Open (third). He finished the year 16th on the Race to Dubai rankings. Thanks to his good finish in Italy, he received one of three Captain's picks and made his Ryder Cup debut less than 50 miles from his home in Bathgate, Scotland. He went 0-2-0 during the European Team's five-point victory over the USA Team.

2015 Notes: Played in 23 European Tour events, making 14 cuts and two top ten finishes. He was 60th on the order of merit with earnings of euro645,869. In defense of his Omega Dubai Desert Classic title, he finished 3rd, six shots behind the winner Rory McIlroy. His second top ten was T-9th at the Portugal Masters.

2016 Notes: Played in 19 European Tour events, making 10 cuts and no top ten finishes. He was 122nd on the order of merit with earnings of euro216,742. His best finish was T-12th at the Portugal Masters and British Masters.

2017 Notes: Played in 27 European Tour events, making 17 cuts and two top ten finishes. He was 76th on the order of merit with earnings of euro558,67. His best finish was T-9th at the Omega Dubai Desert Classic.

2018 Notes: Played in 26 European Tour events, making 20 cuts and four top ten finishes. He was 82nd on the order of merit with earnings of euro478,278. His best finish was T-7th at the Hero Indian Open.

2019 Notes: Played in 23 European Tour events, making 7 cuts and one top ten finish. He was 90 on the order of merit with earnings of euro350,465. He won his fourth and final European Tour win with a one-shot victory at the Hero Indian Open. This would be his last top ten finish on the European Tour. He continued to play a full-time schedule, but in 2020 made 8 cuts in 14 starts; in 2021, 9 cuts in 19 starts; in 2022, 9 cuts in 24 starts; in 2023, 4 cuts in 17 starts; and in 2024, 7 cuts in 22 starts. His last start was missing the cut at the French Open, he returned to DP World Q-School but missed the cut, finishing 124th. It would not be the end of the world as Gallacher turned 50.

His final totals on the European tour included 664 starts, which places him 7th on the all-time appearance list on the DP World Tour. Gallacher made 390 cuts and had 69 top-ten finishes. For his 28 years on the DP World Tour, he earned euro12,151,194.

2025 Notes: At the end of 2024 made it to the final stages of PGA Tour Champions Q-School and finished T-9th. He was two shots back of getting a Champions Tour card and will be able to try and qualify for Champions Tour events. He made five Champions Tour starts, with his best finish being T-12th at the Senior Open Championship. Played in 16 Legends tour events with six top ten finishes. He was 13th on the order of merit with earnings of euro280,425. His best finish was 3rd at the European Legends Cup.

2026 Notes: Was 2nd at the Staysure Marbella Legends, a shot back of the winner Jamie Donaldson.