Not that they ever left him.

The pro golfer from Cedar Rapids has already had a storied career in his sport, most notably with the 2007 Masters win that put him on the map. If there's one thing we know about Zach Johnson, it's that he's never forgotten where he came from.

Johnson, as you may know, attended Cedar Rapids Kennedy High School and Drake University, which is in the Missouri Valley Conference. The PGA star is now the latest figure to join that conference's Hall of Fame, standing in some pretty good company.

His most notable counterpart in the 26th Missouri Valley Conference class is likely to be Tubby Smith. Smith has a college basketball coaching career spanning decades, with stops at Kentucky, Minnesota, and many other schools. He gets into the MVC Hall of Fame for his time at Tulsa, which according to Wikipedia is a former Missouri Valley school now in the American Athletic Conference, where Smith coached from 1991-1995.

The RSM Classic - Round One
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According to KWWL:

Including this year’s six inductees, the MVC Hall of Fame consists of 145 former student-athletes, administrators, coaches, and contributors.

Meanwhile, check out what Zach did at Drake. According to the Marshalltown Times-Republican, he helped the Bulldogs make it to three NCAA regionals and two MVC Championships. He earned MVC Golfer of the Week five times in his collegiate career and earned selection to the MVC’s All-Centennial Men’s Golf Team, announced in May 2007 in conjunction with the MVC’s Centennial Celebration.

Beyond the course, Zach created the Zach Johnson Foundation in 2010, investing $1 million in the Kids on Course initiative, and was given the "Double D" award at Drake for his success in his field and the impact he has made in the community

Learn more about Johnson's fellow inductees here. The Hall of Fame ceremony will take place next March during the weekend of the Missouri Valley Conference men's basketball championship weekend.

 

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