HE is a golfing maverick who has never had a lesson in his life, but taught himself enough to win the The Masters at Augusta.

A tearful Bubba Watson lifted the coveted trophy during the early hours of Monday morning UK-time after triumphing in a sudden-death play-off against South African Louis Oosthuizen.

One of the game's more colourful figures, Watson is better known on this side of the Atlantic for his unusual monicker and his gaffe-prone appearance at the French Open last year.

Now the 33-year-old will have to get used to being a household name for a different reason after winning his first major and donning the Augusta champion's green jacket.

His victory is a remarkable achievement for a golfer who has been bubbling under for some time, but was not expected to reach such dizzying heights at a tournament that was supposed to be a battle between a rejuvenated Tiger Woods and Northern Irish golden boy Rory McIlory.

Born in 1978, in Bagdad, Florida, Watson was shown how to hold a golf club by his father Gary when he was six, and has never looked back or taken any form of professional advice. Self-taught, he played golf at both Faulkner State Community College in Alabama and the University of Georgia, before turning professional in 2005.

He plays left handed, and some would say that's the most orthodox thing about him. On the tour Watson is famed for his long drives, and says he hits the ball better when he hooks or slices it.

Following his win, Watson said: "We always joked about Bubba Golf. I can hit it straight, it's just it's easier to see curves. That's the way I like to play all the golf courses, not just Augusta. I don't play the game for fame. I'm just Bubba – I goof around. I joke around. I just want to be me and play golf."

Although his real name is Gerry, he goes by the nickname his father gave him when he was a baby. Watson says that his dad, who died of throat cancer two years ago, called him Bubba because he thought he was a fat and ugly baby, although it is actually a common pet name for the first male child among families in America's southern states.

Off the course, he is married to Angie, a 6ft 4in former basketball player he began dating when he was at college. The pair, who are committed Christians, have just adopted a one-month-old baby boy they have named Caleb, although Watson says he has yet to change his first nappy.

However, it remains to be seen if fatherhood will iron out some of his eccentricities. Watson is also the proud owner of the General Lee – the car from the TV series Dukes of Hazzard – and has also produced an odd YouTube video of himself singing with fellow golfers Rickie Fowler, Hunter Mahan, and Ben Crane.

The American is the eighth successive champion never to have won a major before. His win was not only a shock to the spectators in Augusta, but to himself. He said: "I've never had a dream go this far, so I can't really say it's a dream come true. I dreamed about it. I just never made the putt. As a golfer, this is Mecca."

He added: "A few years ago I was living the wrong way. Every golf shot was controlling how mad I got. I was so wrapped up in what everybody else was doing. Why is he beating me, why this, why that, why can't I make putts, why can't I make the cut?

"My wife and caddie told me I was going the wrong way. If I'm going to live my life as a Christian you can't live your life that way and so I had to change. It's a slow process, but I've been working hard and hopefully the years to come it gets better and better."

Watson's victory takes him to a career-high fourth in the world. He came into the week ranked 16th.

However, fans on this side of the Atlantic may have a long wait before they see golf's latest champion in the flesh as Watson has turned his back on the European tour since criticising the behaviour of fans and security at the French Open last year.