Michael Brennan ‘had no idea’ he joined an exclusive 7-player club after Bank of Utah Championship win

Michael Brennan won the Bank of Utah Championship 2025 on Sunday. The 23-year-old golfer, who entered the contest as a sponsor exemption, clinched the four-shot victory after closing with a 5-under 66 on final day. This was the PGA Tour Americas champion’s third career PGA Tour start, making him only the seventh player since 1970 to win a Tour event in three starts.

Brennan joined the exclusive club by winning in his first ever PGA Tour start as a pro. Interestingly, the former Wake Forest golfer followed last year’s Bank of Utah Championship winner Matt McCarty in the third-event winner’s club. Following the win, the PGA Tour-bound golfer revealed that he “had no idea” of the statistic during the event.

He dubbed it ‘cool’ to be on the list that also features the likes of Bob Gilder, Seve Ballesteros, Russell Henley, Garrick Higgo and Jim Benepe, who is also the only player to win in his official Tour debut.

Reacting to the statistic at Black Desert, Michael Brennan said, as quoted by ASAP Sports:

“Yeah, that's really cool. I had no idea. It had been over two years since I played in the last TOUR start in 2023, so quite a long gape between the U.S. Open at LACC and then here. So, it's not like I played the last two weeks, so it was kind of an interesting get. I mean, cool to be on that list.”

With the win, Brennan qualified for The Players and PGA Championship 2026. The FedExCup Fall victory also moved the Korn Ferry Tour bound golfer 68 positions from No.111 to 43 on the Official World Golf Ranking (OWGR). While the win no longer comes with an invitation to the Masters, the 23-year-old is closer to qualify for the Augusta National with his new top 50 ranking position.

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Michael Brennan beats Rico Hoey to win Bank of Utah Championship

Michael Brennan dominated at Black Desert Resort with rounds of 67-65 and 64 on the first three days of Bank of Utah Championship. The former PGA Tour Americas star sealed the victory by closing with a 5-under 66 on Sunday. The sponsor exempt player beat sat four shots clear of Rico Hoey after finishing at 22-under 262. The Filipino golfer’s final round 67 couldn’t challenge the leader.

With his maiden PGA Tour win in his first start as a professional, Michael Brennan also became the first sponsor exemption to win since Nick Dunlap triumphed at The American Express in January 2024. Notably, 21-year-old winner was an amateur at the event. Owing to the win, Brennan can now skip Korn Ferry Tour and join the PGA Tour in 2026 as he earned a two-year exemption.

The former Wake Forest player, who won three times in a four-event stretch on the PGA Tour Americas in late summer, also earned berths on the PGA Championship and the $20 million RBC Heritage. The former World No. 451 golfer bagged the $1,080,000 winner’s paycheck from the $6,000,000 prize event as runner-up Hoey settled for $654,000.

Edited by Vishnu Mohan