Maverick McNealy

McNealy was born in Stanford, California, on November 7, 1995,^[1] to Susan and Scott McNealy.^[4] In 1982, Scott co-founded Sun Microsystems, a technology company which was acquired by Oracle Corporation for $7.4 billion in 2010.^[5]

McNealy was one of four children, all boys. Scott McNealy, who played collegiate golf at Harvard University, introduced his sons to golf at a young age. Scott stated in 2014: "I told the boys, never mind a silver spoon; you’ve got a platinum spoon in your mouth. Everybody’s going to think it was given to you. So you have to outwork and outclass everyone on the planet or they’re just going to think you’re a child of privilege."^[4] Alongside golf, McNealy competed in basketball, soccer, and hockey during his youth. He was part of two California state hockey championships with the San Jose Junior Sharks.^[4]

McNealy qualified for the 2014 U.S. Open at Pinehurst at the age of 18.^[6] During the 2014−15 golf season, McNealy shot a 61 in the final round of the Pac-12 Conference Championship tournament, tying the 18-hole Stanford record held by Tiger Woods and Cameron Wilson.^[7] In 2015, he won the Haskins Award, which is presented annually to the best collegiate male golfer in the United States, becoming the third Stanford University golfer to win the award since 1971 (the other two being Woods and Patrick Rodgers).^[8]

Despite being America's most highly rated professional golf prospect in 2016, McNealy considered passing on professional golf for a career in business.^[8][5] In August 2017, McNealy confirmed that he would turn professional after the 2017 Walker Cup. His professional debut was at the Safeway Open.

McNealy played on the Web.com Tour in 2018. He played in 18 tournaments, making the cut in 12. His best finish was a tie for third at the United Leasing & Finance Championship. McNealy earned a total of $84,261 and finished 65th on the money list for 2018. He did not earn a PGA Tour card for the 2018–19 season but he did earn full status on the Web.com Tour for the 2019 season.^[9]

McNealy earned his PGA Tour card for the 2019–20 season, via his finish on the 2019 Korn Ferry Tour.

In November 2024, McNealy won the RSM Classic for his first PGA Tour victory in his 134th start. McNealy birdied the final hole to win by one.^[10][11]

McNealy reached a career high Official World Golf Ranking of 10 in April 2025.

McNealy met his wife Maya Daniels, a kinesiologist, at a physical therapy clinic in Las Vegas. They married in 2023 and had their first child in 2025.^[12]

As of 2023, McNealy is a licensed pilot, flying himself in a Cirrus SR22 single-engine propeller plane to compete in the 2025 Genesis Invitational golf tournament held in Pacific Palisades, California.^[13][14] His brother, Scout, was his caddie for the 2025 PGA Tour season.^[15]

• 2014 OFCC Fighting Illini Invite, SW Invite
• 2015 The Prestige at PGA West, The Goodwin, Pac-12 Championships, NCAA Chapel Hill Regional, Northern California Amateur Match Play, OFCC Fighting Illini Invite, U.S. Collegiate Championship, Gifford Collegiate-CordeValle
• 2016 Western Intercollegiate, Nike Collegiate Invite

Source:^[16]

Results not in chronological order in 2020.

CUT = missed the half-way cut
"T" = tied
NT = no tournament due to COVID-19 pandemic

CUT = missed the halfway cut
"T" indicates a tie for a place

¹Canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic
"T" = Tied
NT = No tournament
Note that the Champions was discontinued from 2023.

Amateur

• Arnold Palmer Cup: 2015 (winners), 2017 (winners)
• Walker Cup: 2015, 2017 (winners)
• Eisenhower Trophy: 2016

• 2019 Korn Ferry Tour Finals graduates