Rick Shiels has done something no other golf creator on YouTube has: his channel has passed a billion views. As of June it also had more than 3 million subscribers.
How it got here
Shiels was born in Bolton in 1986 and started playing at Hart Common Golf Club in Westhoughton when he was 11. He became a golf professional and started the channel in 2011, and it became the biggest golf channel on YouTube in June 2019, when it passed 561,500 subscribers.
The formula hasn't changed much since. There are equipment reviews that people actually use before buying, course vlogs, and challenges against other creators and pros. It's aimed at people who play, not just people who watch.
- 1B+ Channel views, the only golf creator past that mark
- 3M+ Subscribers
- 2019 The year it became YouTube's biggest golf channel
- 2011 The year the channel started
Why it matters
A billion views is a scale most golf broadcasters don't reach, and it comes from one person with a camera crew. Brands have noticed, and so have the new creator events: Shiels played in last year's Internet Invitational alongside the biggest names in the space.
Sources: Wikipedia, Rick Shiels (June 2026 figures); Today's Golfer (2025 Internet Invitational field).