19 Things You Should Know About Jason Dufner

He torched Oak Hill
In retrospect, Oak Hill is tailor made for Jason Dufner: tight fairways that reward great driving, punishing rough and trees if you miss the short stuff, and small greens that, if you manage to hit them, will give you a good look at birdie. Dufner made plenty of those on Friday with a course record 63 -- which, as Dave Kindred wrote after his final round, helped him become a hero on Sunday.• Kindred: How Dufner Became An Unlikely Hero
He married up
It's hard to top winning a major, but winning a major and then having your beautiful wife run onto the green to congratulate you is even better. Jason Dufner's better half, Amanda, didn't quite steal the show on Sunday, but she came pretty darn close -- especially after a sneaky squeeze from the newly crowned PGA Champion.• Photos: PGA Tour Wives• GIFs: Nice Squeeze
His swing is good. Really good.
Pure. Need more be said? His pre-shot waggle (more on that later) helps Dufner keep the club on line and everything in one piece. From there, he unwinds, keeping the club in front of him with a stable head and torso, and never lets his arms get disconnected from the rest of his body. Do all that, and you'll hit it pretty good, too.• Jason Dufner: Swing Sequence• Dufner's Keys To Consistency
He doesn't overlook his equipment
Dufner may be old school in nature, but his equipment is state-of-the-art. He won't be forced into changing anything for no reason, but he always keeps an open mind about new tools that could help him. Case and point: he was one of the first to throw a fat "Stroke Saver" grip on his putter, which are now a mainstay on the PGA Tour.• Video: Choosing The Right Ball• The Clubs Dufner Used To Win The PGA• A closer look at Stroke Saver grips
He keeps his expressions consistent
"Dufner looks like he just got out of a speeding ticket." That's how announcers have taken to describing Jason's expression on the golf course. He has been known to smile on occasions, but those are only rumors. If you want to see him show some actual emotions, it's probably just best to gloss over the golf and wait for one of his commercials.• The not so many faces of Jason Dufner• 7 moments made better by this perfect Jason Dufner GIF
He has a devoted following
He may have the diversity of a stone when it comes to facial expressions, but that doesn't mean he's without fans. "I just love how boring he is," said one fan during the 2013 PGA Championship, the same tournament where a group of red t-shirt-wearing teenagers dubbing themselves "Duf's Dips" cheered him on to victory.• Overheard in the gallery at Oak Hill• These folks just love Dufner.
He made his country proud
The 2012 Ryder Cup, dubbed the "Miracle at Medinah" after Europe's incredible comeback, is understandably a sore spot for most Americans. But Jason Dufner, credit to him, was one of the few who played pretty well. He won three points for his team in four matches, including one of just three-and-a-half points for Team U.S.A. on Sunday singles.• Dan Jenkins At The Ryder Cup
He dips, but no one really minds
Much to the chagrin of wives and mothers everywhere, Jason Dufner is a high-profile "dipper" on the golf course to help him relax. In fact, along with his dour expression, it's fair to say it's become somewhat of a trademark. Copenhagen Snuff is reportedly his weapon of choice.
He's taken his lumps
Between 2004, the year he first worked his way onto the PGA Tour, and 2010, he had boasted zero wins and not much else. Then, at the 2011 PGA Championship, Dufner blew a five-stroke lead with four to play and lost in a playoff. At the 2013 U.S. Open, with a chance to win after a Sunday charge, he blew his tee shot on 15 out-of-bounds en route to a T-4.• With one hand on the Wanamaker, Dufner lets it go• Jason Dufner leaves Merion with heartbreak
He developed a multi-purpose waggle
The Dufner waggle was born out of a combination of two things: first, his love for Ben Hogan, his golf idol, who sported a similar pre-shot routine to relieve tension; and second, his desire to start the club and golf swing on plane. Dufner's hands used to lag behind the club head -- which would drag the club inside -- at the start of the backswing, and they still do a little bit. But on the whole, the waggle helps get the club moving.• Instruction: Learn From Dufner's Waggle
He became friends with a foe
Most people, when they lose in a playoff to a man in the most heartbreaking loss of his career, don't think of becoming friends with that person. But in the case of Jason Dufner and Keegan Bradley, the man who nipped him in a playoff at the 2011 PGA, that most unusual circumstance has blossomed into a genuine friendship. After winning the PGA in 2013, Bradley was waiting on the 18th green to congratulate him.• Keegan Bradley gets last laugh on Dufner
He's a social media king
Everyone says it: Once you get Dufner off the golf course, he's nothing like the drab sloth that he appears on it. But that shines through on Twitter, with Dufner constantly interacting and joking with his fans, and throwing some friendly grief to Keegan Bradley, Bubba Watson, and anybody else in his way.
He's been known to get hot
There was a point in 2012 -- right before the Masters -- that if Jason Dufner wasn't the best player in the world, he was definitely the most in-form. After grabbing the first win of his career at the Zurich Classic in a playoff over Ernie Els, he went on to win the Byron Nelson two weeks later. These, combined with some other good finishes, helped him qualify for the Ryder Cup.• Video: Dufner breaks through for first win• Dufner wins and spikes the ball (or not)
He fueled the only viral Internet golf meme ever
Here's how the story goes: Jason Dufner was sitting in a classroom of small children practicing some mediation exercises and started drifting off when someone snapped a pic. Keegan Bradley saw it pop up on Twitter, reenacted it and dubbed it "#Dufnering." The rest, as they say, is history.• Can't A Man Just #Dufner In Peace?
Don't be fooled. He's sneaky smart.
Always watch out for the guys who play the fool, and Jason Dufner definitely, at times, plays the fool. But the man graduated with an Economics degree from Auburn University, has read numerous biographies of successful people from every field, and is an all-out data nerd when it comes to equipment testing.• Inside Jason Dufner's surprisingly methodical approach to equipment• There's More Beneath The Surface To Jason Dufner
He's got a soft spot for animals
His haircut mildly resembles one, so it makes sense (just kidding). Either way, it does appear Dufner has a soft spot for animals of all sorts: In recent years, he's been photographed with cheetahs, kangaroos, and koala bears.• Jason Dufner tweets photo with cheetah
He appreciates great golf courses
There are five that he let the world know via his Twitter account in November 2012: Pebble Beach, Augusta National, Kingston Heath, Royal Liverpool, and Oak Hill (pictured), site of his 2013 PGA Championship victory.• Oak Hill: East Course: Hole-by-hole• America's 100 Greatest Public Courses• Best Golf Courses Outside the US
He idolizes Ben Hogan
The Ben Hogan plaque at Merion is his Twitter profile picture, and an image of the Hawk at the top of his backswing is his background. He says he modeled his downswing after Hogan's because of its consistency, and admires him personally because of the adversity he overcame.• Dufner's Similarities to Hero Ben Hogan
He's an Auburn man, through and through
Much to Golf Digest's Dan Jenkins disappointment, Jason Dufner is an out-and-out Auburn man. Dufner started as a golf team walk-on, but became an All-American Honorable Mention and three-time winner on the college circuit. He constantly tweets about college football, and after becoming Auburn's first ever alum to win a golf major, paid a visit to his alma mater with the Wanamaker in-hand.• Rosaforte: Why Dufner's win was Hoganesque