Blades Brown secures PGA Tour Special Temporary Membership 4 days after turning 19, has decisions to make

A belated happy birthday to Blades Brown. Only, in this case, the newly-turned 19-year-old delivered the gift himself.

Celebrating his 19th birthday on Thursday during the first round of the CJ Cup Byron Nelson at TPC Craig Ranch, Brown tied for 14th place Sunday and secured Special Temporary Membership on the PGA Tour. He only needed a tie for 21st place to grab the goods.

Special Temporary Memberships are given to non-members who earn enough FedEx Cup points to match the player who was 150th the previous year in standings. It means Brown can now accept unlimited sponsor exemptions through the rest of the year, including the fall. As a non-member before earning the new status, Brown was only allowed seven exemptions.

“It’s a pretty cool spot to be in,” he said. “I’m really thankful.”

So, now what?

Brown has three options. He can play only on the PGA Tour, which is a chance to earn more money and attempt to secure a place in all signature events next year. He can play only on the Korn Ferry Tour, which would not allow him to play his way into signature events but could give him a chance at better PGA Tour status for 2027, meaning a guarantee in every other tour event. Or he can straddle both tours and play where he thinks he can best compete. Doing that though would make it possible to not earn status on either the PGA Tour or Korn Ferry Tour for next year.

“I think I'm going to play next week in Raleigh on the Korn Ferry Tour,” Brown said Sunday after shooting a final-round 67 to finish 12 shots behind winner Wyndham Clark. “Then, yeah, we'll see what we're going to do after that.”

Brown was ranked 112th in the world coming into the Byron Nelson, his 14th event of the year—eight on the Korn Ferry Tour, six on the PGA Tour. His best finishes on the PGA Tour this season came at the Puerto Rico Open (third) and the Myrtle Beach Classic (T-9).

“I'm excited for the next couple of weeks and see what's going to happen,” he said.

The list of players who have reached the tour via the PGA Tour’s Special Temporary Membership and later excelled includes Akshay Bhatia, Min Woo Lee, Ryan Gerard, Ryan Fox and Nicolai Hojgaard.