Kalle Samooja

Kalle Samooja (born 25 January 1988) is a Finnish professional golfer.
Early life.
Samooja was born in Turku, Finland. He started playing golf when he was eight years old after being introduced to the game by his father.
Professional career.
Samooja competed in the European Tour Qualifying School in 2008, 2009, 2010, 2013, and 2014. He did not make it onto the European Tour during any of these experiences. During this interim period he primarily played on the Asian Tour. He did not have a ton of success but recorded top-10 finishes at the 2012 Handa Faldo Cambodian Classic and 2015 Philippine Open.
In 2016, Samooja made it on to the European Tour's developmental tour, the Challenge Tour. Samooja finished 69th and 71st on the Challenge Tour's Order of Merit in 2016 and 2017. In 2018, he won the Hainan Open and finished 4th on the Order of Merit earning a promotion to the European Tour.
In 2019, his rookie season on the European Tour, Samooja recorded four top-25 finishes through the first half of the year including a top-10 at the Kenya Open. Samooja would then play excellently at the Omega European Masters that summer. Samooja fired a third round 62 (−8) to get near the lead. During the final round he fired a 67 to tie several players at the end of regulation. The five-way playoff included: Rory McIlroy, Sebastian Söderberg, Samooja, Lorenzo Gagli, and Andrés Romero. Samooja had the closest approach to the hole, to five feet. Soderberg made an eight-foot birdie putt and the other competitors missed. Samooja, putting last, would "miss narrowly" assuring Soderberg's victory.
Samooja would have one more top-10 during the season, a T-10 at the Nedbank Golf Challenge. These three top-10s helped him finish 62nd on the Order of Merit and thereby keep his card.
Professional wins (1).
Challenge Tour wins (1).
1Co-sanctioned by the China Tour
Playoff record.
European Tour playoff record (0–2)
Team appearances.
Amateur