Picked up golf his senior year of high school, took four and a half years off in his 20s following a personal tragedy (his godfather's suicide) and did not return to golf until age 26. He did not turn professional until age 30.

Graduated from Stockdale High School in 2000 and headed to Cal Poly to play baseball, but eventually dropped out and enrolled at Bakersfield College, which competes in the California Community College Athletic Association.

Lived in Australia when he was young, and had a horse race named after him there (Matty's Girl).

Plays with persimmon golf clubs monthly at Goat Hill Park in Oceanside, California.

Worked "almost every manual labor job there is" in Bakersfield as a young adult, citing construction, farm fields, and oil fields.

Played two seasons at Bakersfield College, where he walked on to the golf team and went from the sixth man as a freshman to team MVP and an all-conference selection as a sophomore.