17-year-old golf sensation Blades Brown made his PGA Tour debut on Jan. 16 at the American Express Golf Tournament in La Quinta, Calif., setting professional records for a player of his age. Brown first made headlines at age 16, when he broke Bobby Jones’ record as the youngest medalist in stroke play in U.S. amateur history — the record having stood for 103 years prior. Since, Brown has been working his way up in the amateur golfing world.
In 2023, Brown tied a course record score of 64 at Colorado Golf Club during the 123rd U.S. Amateur, tying for first place in the stroke play portion. The following year, Brown was named the high school “Sportsperson of the Year” by The Tennessean. Finally, after weighing college options, Brown earned a T26 finish in his first Tour event in the 2024 Myrtle Beach Classic. Brown’s performance earned him sponsor exemptions to compete in the pros, after which Brown announced that he was foregoing college and going to try to advance his golfing career.
Brown, riding the momentum of his success in South Carolina, entered The American Express on Friday, Jan. 16, marking his entry into the professional golfing world. In the first of three rounds, Brown scored an even 72-par. This performance, though slightly underwhelming, was followed by an expert second round in which Brown shot an eight-under 64. On Saturday, Jan. 17, Justin Ray posted on X commending Brown on his performance and highlighting his place in golf history.
“17-year-old Blades Brown shot 64 today at The American Express,” Ray said. “It’s the lowest score in a PGA Tour round by a player under age 18 in the last 40 years.”
When asked about his mindset going into the second round, Brown commented how grateful he was to be in his position.
“I play golf right now for a living, and I promise you, there are a lot more challenging things than playing golf for a living,” Brown said. “There’s a lot to be grateful for out here. I think keeping it in perspective that you get to play golf for free on an unbelievable golf course and with awesome people […] definitely helped me today.”
On Sunday, Jan. 18, Brown’s hot streak continued early on with three birdies in his first five holes on the day. However, as the day progressed Brown failed to earn another birdie for the remainder of the day. Brown bogeyed holes seven, 14 and 15, followed by a par-5 on the sixteenth hole and a water ball-turned-double bogey on the subsequent hole.
Brown finished three strokes short of qualifying in the top 65 players and was ultimately cut from advancing to the final round. Austrian professional golfer Sepp Straka won the tournament with a 25-under performance and a two-shot advantage over second place Justin Thomas.
Despite his disappointing finish, Brown remained in good spirits when addressing the media after the tournament:
“It was a blast competing on the PGA Tour,” Brown said. “Unfortunately, I wasn’t able to convert coming down the stretch […]. I’m glad I’m doing it right now; that way I can learn. My dad always says ‘you win and you learn,’ and I’m definitely going to learn from this experience.”
Though ultimately coming up short, Brown’s performance proved promising for his future in PGA Tour events.
“Golf is a weird and funny game,” Brown said. “But I’m going to keep my head up. Sometimes you’re not going to hit the ball where you want to, but I love to see the ball fly through the air and I’m really looking forward to what’s next.”