IVINS, Utah — Michael Brennan was simply as dominant at Black Desert as he was on the PGA Tour Americas. He closed with a 5-under 66 to go from a sponsor exemption to a PGA Tour winner Sunday together with his four-shot victory within the Financial institution of Utah Championship.
In his first PGA Tour begin as knowledgeable, Brennan grew to become the primary sponsor exemption to win since Nick Dunlap took The American Specific in January 2024 as an newbie.
The victory means Brennan, a 23-year-old who starred at Wake Forest, will get to skip the Korn Ferry Tour subsequent yr and go straight to the massive leagues. He earned a two-year exemption on the PGA Tour, together with a spot within the PGA Championship and the $20 million RBC Heritage.
Brennan was No. 451 on this planet when he left the South America portion of the PGA Tour Americas. However he was dominant in Canada (with one win in Minnesota), successful thrice in a four-tournament stretch and posting eight prime 10s in 10 begins.
Successful the Fortinet Cup season factors race gave him a completely exempt Korn Ferry Tour card. Now he is going straight to the PGA Tour to compete alongside Scottie Scheffler and the remainder of golf’s greatest.
“It is an incredible feeling,” Brennan mentioned. “Successful golf tournaments is among the higher emotions on this planet. It takes quite a bit to play skilled golf, and I’ve such an amazing workforce behind me.”
It wasn’t the right end to an in any other case splendid week. He put his second shot right into a deep pit with lava rocks, neatly took a penalty shot for an unplayable lie and closed with a bogey. He completed at 22-under 262, 4 pictures away from Rico Hoey (67).
Brennan was a mixture of energy and poise at Black Desert Resort, the scenic Tom Weiskopf design framed by the red-rock cliffs and black lava.
Beginning the ultimate spherical with a three-shot lead, Brennan ran off three birdies in his opening 5 holes to stretch his result in 5 pictures and he was by no means severely challenged.
Hoey acquired inside three pictures after a two-shot swing on the tenth — a uncommon bogey by Brennan and Hoey making birdie. However then Brennan hammered a drive that rolled out 411 yards on the twelfth gap down by the inexperienced, establishing a pitch-and-putt birdie. And he drove the par-4 14th inexperienced with a 3-wood to arrange a two-putt birdie to maintain everybody at bay.
Successful within the FedEx Cup Fall portion of the schedule now not comes with an invite to the Masters, however now that’s in vary for Brennan. That huge summer season in Canada, alongside together with his victory Sunday, strikes him simply inside the highest 50 on this planet.
He has entry to 3 PGA Tour occasions remaining on the schedule. The highest 50 on this planet on the finish of the yr get to Augusta Nationwide.
Hoey’s probabilities all however ended when he missed a 5-foot birdie putt on the thirteenth to shut inside two pictures, and a 10-foot birdie likelihood on the 14th that put him 4 pictures behind. Even so, he went from No. 91 within the FedEx Cup to No. 61, securing his card for 2026.
Thorbjorn Olesen of Denmark (68) and defending champion Matt McCarty (70) had been within the massive group that tied for third at 16-under 268. That moved up Olesen 19 spots to No. 97 in his bid to maintain full standing subsequent yr.
Brennan mentioned his caddie, Jeff Kirkpatrick, informed him throughout his scorching summer season run that they might bypass the Korn Ferry Tour and make it straight to the PGA Tour.
“I can not imagine he is proper,” Brennan mentioned with fun.