Blades Brown has never been one to set small golf goals for himself.
The Brentwood Academy sophomore always said he wanted to play in a PGA Tour event before his 17th birthday. He’ll do that this week at 16 years old, competing in the Myrtle Beach Classic.
Brown, a three-time TSSAA boys golf individual state champion and the top-ranked golfer in the Class of 2026, will make his PGA Tour debut in South Carolina on a sponsor exemption.
The Myrtle Beach Classic is a new PGA Tour event being played alongside the Tour’s main tournament this week, the Wells Fargo Championship at Quail Hollow in Charlotte, North Carolina.
“For this to be a reality is absurd,” Brown said. “But I’m just treating it like any tournament. It’s a PGA Tour event, yeah, and not many 16-year-olds can say (they’ve played in one.) But I’m just going into the event trusting my game and overall trying to have some fun as well.”
Notable names in the Myrtle Beach Classic include former Vanderbilt and Montgomery Bell Academy star Brandt Snedeker, a nine-time PGA Tour winner, plus Billy Horschel, Beau Hossler, Daniel Berger and Kevin Kisner.
Brown is ranked No. 4 in the AJGA rankings and No. 176 in the World Amateur Golf Ranking. He made national headlines in August when he broke Bobby Jones’ record as the youngest medalist in U.S. Amateur history, tying for first place in the tournament’s stroke play portion. Brown was eliminated in the match play portion in the Round of 32.
He joins pro golf’s recent trend of teenage phenoms playing PGA Tour sponsored events. England’s Kris Kim, 16, debuted at The CJ Cup Byron Nelson last week. Miles Russell, 15, tied for 20th at the Korn Ferry Tour’s Lecom Suncoast Classic last month.
Brown and Russell talked before the tournament about what professional competition is like.
The course conditions at The Dunes Golf and Beach Club are windy, Brown said, but the soft greens might offer more scoring opportunities.
“I think a solid goal would be to make the cut. I think that would be really cool, to be able to compete on the weekend,” he said.
Brown isn’t nervous and neither is his dad.
“There’s no expectations on Blades,” said Parke Brown, who is feeling much improved after finishing chemotherapy for chronic lymphocytic leukemia last summer. “His game is so solid. I don’t worry about him. I know he’ll do well. Just being here and competing is a victory.”
Who is Blades Brown? NIL deals, what to know about 16-year-old making PGA Tour debut this week
Brown, a sophomore at Brentwood Academy, hit a turning point in his career by breaking golf legend Jones’ record as the youngest medalist in U.S. Amateur championship history.
Jones set the U.S. Amateur record at 18 years old. The mark had stood since 1920.
Brown shot an 8-under 64 to tie the Colorado Golf Club course record and finish as co-medalist. He finished higher than numerous college stars, including Caleb Surratt, the former Tennessee star who left college in February to join the LIV Tour.
Brown’s performance was the starting point for sponsor exemption into the Myrtle Beach Classic, as well as financial opportunities. He is being represented by Sportfive sports marketing agency and has NIL deals with Callaway and New Jersey-based Transcend Capital Advisors.
Transcend also has an NIL golf partnership with Virginia star Benjamin James, who is No. 5 in the World Amateur Golf Ranking, and previously had a deal with Surratt before he went pro.
“Luckily with golf, as soon as one door opens, 50 doors open,” Brown said. “I’m so thankful and blessed to be given these opportunities. I like to view this as not a challenge but an opportunity to display the talent God’s given me.”