Mateusz Gradecki (born 4 June 1994) is a Polish professional golfer who plays on the Challenge Tour. He won the 2022 Limpopo Championship, becoming the first Sunshine Tour winner and only the second Challenge Tour winner to hail from Poland.[1]

Mateusz Gradecki
Personal information
Born (1994-06-04) 4 June 1994 (age 30)
Trzebnica, Poland
Height6 ft 0 in (1.83 m)
Sporting nationality Poland
Career
CollegeEast Tennessee State University
Turned professional2018
Current tour(s)Challenge Tour
Former tour(s)Pro Golf Tour
Professional wins5
Number of wins by tour
Sunshine Tour1
Challenge Tour1
Other4

Amateur career

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Gradecki was born in Trzebnica and grew up in Oborniki Śląskie. His father Krzysztof owned the Eko supermarket chain and has been featured on lists of the 100 richest Poles. He also built the Gradi Golf Club in Brzeźno, where his son practices.[2] Gradecki attended East Tennessee State University from 2013 to 2017 and played with the East Tennessee State Buccaneers men's golf team alongside compatriot Adrian Meronk.[3]

Gradecki represented Poland in the Eisenhower Trophy in 2012, 2014 and 2016. He won the Polish Amateur five times and finished third at the 2017 Wrocław Open.[4]

Professional career

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Gradecki turned professional early 2018 and joined the Pro Golf Tour. In September, he won the New Golf Club Matchplay Championship in Germany and finished fifth in the Order of Merit to get promotion to the Challenge Tour. He had a disappointing rookie season and made only four cuts. Back on the Pro Golf Tour, he won the 2019 Open Prestigia and the 2021 Red Sea Egyptian Classic.

On the Challenge Tour again for the 2021 season, he finished 68th in the Challenge Tour Order of Merit to keep his card, after recording several top-10 finishes including a season best of tied 6th at the Sydbank Esbjerg Challenge.

In April 2022, Gradecki won the co-sanctioned Limpopo Championship in South Africa to become the first Pole to win on the Sunshine Tour, and only the second Challenge Tour winner to hail from Poland, after Adrian Meronk.[1] In July, he lost a playoff at the German Challenge to Alejandro del Rey of Spain, who won with a birdie at the second playoff hole.[5]

Amateur wins

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  • 2011 Polish Amateur
  • 2012 Polish Amateur
  • 2013 Polish Amateur
  • 2014 Faldo Series Poland
  • 2015 Polish Amateur
  • 2016 Polish Amateur
  • 2017 MVK Turkish International Amateur Open Championship

Source:[3][6]

Professional wins (5)

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Sunshine Tour wins (1)

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No. Date Tournament Winning score Margin of
victory
Runner-up
1 3 Apr 2022 Limpopo Championship1 −19 (68-68-67-66=269) 3 strokes   Hennie du Plessis

1Co-sanctioned by the Challenge Tour

Challenge Tour wins (1)

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No. Date Tournament Winning score Margin of
victory
Runner-up
1 3 Apr 2022 Limpopo Championship1 −19 (68-68-67-66=269) 3 strokes   Hennie du Plessis

1Co-sanctioned by the Sunshine Tour

Challenge Tour playoff record (0–1)

No. Year Tournament Opponent Result
1 2022 Big Green Egg German Challenge   Alejandro del Rey Lost to birdie on second extra hole

Pro Golf Tour wins (3)

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No. Date Tournament Winning score Margin of
victory
Runner(s)-up
1 5 Sep 2018 New Golf Club Matchplay Championship 1 up   Baptiste Achard
2 4 Feb 2019 Open Prestigia −14 (69-66-67=202) 1 stroke   Allen John,   Hurly Long
3 15 Apr 2021 Red Sea Egyptian Classic −12 (66-70-68=204) 2 strokes   Mike Toorop

Other wins (1)

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No. Date Tournament Winning score Margin of
victory
Runners-up
1 10 Sep 2024 Penati Slovak Open −9 (72-65=137) 1 stroke   Ondřej Lieser,   Filip Mrůzek

Team appearances

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Amateur

Professional

References

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  1. ^ a b "Gradecki seals maiden Challenge Tour title in Limpopo". European Tour. Retrieved 10 October 2022.
  2. ^ Guder, Jakub (14 August 2014). "Golf. Wielkie talenty z Wrocławia lekcje biorą u najlepszych - w USA" [Golf. Great talents from Wroclaw take lessons from the best - in the USA]. Gazeta Wrocławska (in Polish). Retrieved 11 October 2022.
  3. ^ a b "Mateusz Gradecki". East Tennessee State Buccaneers. Retrieved 11 October 2022.
  4. ^ "2017 Wroclaw Open". Official World Golf Ranking. Retrieved 11 October 2022.
  5. ^ "Del Rey claims play-off glory in Germany". European Tour. 24 July 2022. Retrieved 11 October 2022.
  6. ^ "Mateusz Gradecki". World Amateur Golf Ranking. Retrieved 11 October 2022.
  7. ^ "European Boys' Team Championship – European Golf Association". Retrieved 22 January 2023.
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