American teenager Blades Brown has made PGA Tour history by becoming its youngest winner in 95 years.
The 19-year-old defeated Ben James on the second playoff hole at Sunday’s World Wide Technology Championship to claim the first professional title of his career.
“It hasn’t set in just yet, I guess, the magnitude of being a PGA Tour winner,” Brown said.
“I just go back to 5-year-old Blades watching TV, watching Tiger Woods and all those great players win major championships. To think that I’m now in a similar spot, having won a PGA Tour event, is mind-blowing.”
Brown is the youngest winner since Charles Kocsis captured the Michigan Open in 1931 at age 18. At the time, the event was regarded as a regional tournament during the PGA’s early years.
James surrendered a four-shot advantage entering the final round at El Cardonal at Diamante, but showed remarkable composure by launching a 285-yard approach to within 20 feet on the par-5 18th. He converted the eagle putt to card a 70 and force a playoff.
American golf sensation Blades Brown has become the youngest PGA Tour winner in 95 years
The 19-year-old won the World Wide Technology Championship on Sunday afternoon
However, James missed an eight-foot putt on the second extra hole, while Brown calmly rolled in his three-footer for victory.
“I had a feeling it was going to go in,” James said of the clutch eagle, his only putt longer than 15 feet that he made all day. “I hadn’t really made anything all day. I just had a really good line on it, and it was a good putt. I played the best I could.”
For a low-profile FedEx Cup Fall event on the southern tip of Baja California, the contest delivered compelling drama between two of golf’s rising stars.
James finished last season as the No. 1 player in the PGA Tour University rankings. Brown, meanwhile, turned professional at 17 and secured his PGA Tour card this year by finishing among the top 20 in Korn Ferry Tour points.
After erasing a seven-shot deficit during the final round, Brown faced another test as he waited on the range, hitting through two bags of golf balls while hoping his two-shot lead over James would survive. The suspense ultimately sent both players back to the par-5 18th for the playoff.
Their approach shots on the opening extra hole finished side by side, roughly three feet apart, but both players narrowly missed eagle attempts. Back at the 18th tee, their drives again landed close together, and both approaches came up just short of the green.
James nearly holed his pitch before the ball rolled eight feet past the cup. Brown, who had hit a similar pitch to six feet for a closing birdie in regulation, left his second attempt three feet short. James’s birdie putt caught the right edge, allowing Brown to sink the winning putt.
“I’m so obsessed with this game. It tests you in so many ways,” Brown said. “I love golf, everything that goes into it, and I can’t wait for what’s next.”
Brown poses with the World Wide Technology Championship Trophy and his caddie, Brett Swedberg
With eight players separated by just two shots on the back nine, Brown produced three consecutive birdies to join the leaders and then watched the rest of the field make mistakes. A precise pitch on the 18th set up another birdie, leaving him at 23-under 265.
That total gave him a one-shot advantage over Michael Kim, who played alongside the Tennessee teenager and made a 12-foot birdie putt for a 64 just before Brown completed his round.
The victory earns Brown a two-year exemption and a place in the elite Championship Series when the PGA Tour’s revamped model launches in 2028. It also guarantees him a spot in his first major, next year’s PGA Championship.
For James, the result marked another near miss. In 13 starts since turning professional, he has recorded five top-five finishes, including two runner-up results.
Denny McCarthy, still searching for his first PGA Tour victory after nine years and 240 starts, briefly moved into the lead with a 30-foot birdie on the 13th. He then hit a routine pitch to the par-5 14th and could make only par. From the 15th fairway, he left a wedge roughly 40 feet short and three-putted for bogey.
McCarthy’s tee shot on the 17th finished to the right of the 18th tee box. His next attempt landed off a dirt path and went into a hazard, leading to a double bogey. He closed with a 69.
