Ryan Palmer was born on September 19th, 1976 in Texas, USA. He played in the US Open in 1998 as an amateur but failed to make the cut. He turned pro in 2000 and two years later won four events on the Tight Lies Tour. In 2003 he finished 6th on the Nationwide Tour money list.

He was a PGA Tour rookie in 2004 and on just his 34th start he won the FUNAI Classic at the Walt Disney World Resort. After three rounds he was five shots behind the leader. A final round of 62 was enough to win him the title. In 2006 he came close to winning again finishing T2 in the FBR Open.