The stage was set for drama at the 2026 PGA Professional Championship, with the windswept links of Bandon Dunes Golf Resort in Bandon, Oregon, providing a backdrop that was equal parts beauty and brawn. In the end, PGA of America Golf Professional Jesse Droemer emerged as the hero of the story, outlasting the elements and the rest of the 312-player cast to claim the title in cinematic fashion.
Droemer, the Teaching Professional at Riverbend Country Club in Houston, took center stage by shooting a gritty final-round, 2-under-par 70 in difficult, breezy conditions on the Bandon Dunes course to finish at 4-under-par 283 and win by one stroke over Ben Kern, the PGA of America GM at Hickory Hills Golf Club in Grove City, Ohio, and two strokes ahead of Assistant Professional Michael Kartrude, PGA, from The Bear’s Club in Jupiter, Florida. It was a fitting closing act to a 2026 PGA Professional Championship – presented by Club Car, Corebridge Financial and Rolex – that tested every player in the field across four very different days on April 26-29.
“I knew it was going to be windy,” said Droemer, the fifth champion from the Southern Texas PGA Section and last year’s runner-up at PGA Golf Club in Florida. “I knew the conditions were going to be tough, and I just really was trying to embrace the elements. I’m glad it was windy.”
The 34-year-old’s path to the title traced back through past disappointments. He lost by six at Twin Warriors Golf Club in New Mexico in 2023 after missing nine putts inside three feet. Last year, he finished second behind a red-hot Tyler Collet, the PGA of America Assistant Professional at John’s Island Club in Vero Beach, Florida. This time, Droemer had learned the lessons – and found the resolve – to close the deal.
The victory earned him a spot on the Corebridge Financial Team in the 2026 PGA Championship at Aronimink Golf Club in Newtown Square, Pennsylvania, last month, along with a spot on the 2026 U.S. PGA Cup Team and six exemptions into PGA TOUR events over the next 12 months.
With a tightly bunched final-round leaderboard at Bandon Dunes, Droemer pulled ahead of Kern down the stretch with a birdie on the 71st hole, then nearly holed an approach shot for eagle on the closing hole before making a final par that preserved his one-stroke margin of victory. The victory validated the early mornings and late evenings spent working on his game when not teaching lessons at Riverbend.
“It’s tough to prepare to play in an event like this, but you have to grind,” Droemer said. “Sometimes I get to the course at 6:30 to practice before my first lesson, and then I stay until dark. I’ve been giving lessons since I was 17, and it’s gratifying helping people enjoy the game.
“But I love to compete, and this is why I practice – being in situations like this.”
Bandon Dunes’ famously fickle weather stayed dry throughout the 2026 PGA Professional Championship, but the April winds that blew steadily at 25 mph over the final two rounds created a dramatic final act that saw many PGA of America Golf Professionals step into the spotlight at various times.
First to take the stage was a familiar face at Bandon Dunes. Austin Hurt, PGA, the Head Golf Professional at Wing Point Golf & Country Club in Bainbridge Island, Washington, has played the resort’s courses with members several times, and started play at the 2026 PGA Professional Championship by hitting the opening drive in the first round. Hurt set a torrid early pace with a Championship-low 64, just one off the course record.
“I’ve played here many times,” said Hurt, the 2023 and 2025 Pacific Northwest PGA Professional Champion. “I’d say the experience today helped me tremendously. It’s kind of heaven on earth down here for sure.”
After a birdie at the par-5 third and a lone bogey at the par-4 fifth, Hurt caught fire from holes 7-10, going 5-under in the stretch with consecutive birdies on 7 and 8, a 25-foot eagle putt at the par-5 ninth, and another birdie at the par-4 10th. Three more birdies on the back nine – including back-to-back to close – sealed the round. Hurt remained in the hunt throughout the Championship, playing in the final group and finishing T-4.
As Hurt hung on, a quartet of past PGA Professional Champions made high-profile runs up the leaderboard in an attempt to steal the spotlight in the final round. The 2025 Champion, Collet, had the best score of the final round with a 67, while Braden Shattuck (2023) and Ben Polland (2024) shot 68s, while Michael Block (2014) carded a 69 – all four past Champions earned top-10 finishes.
Collet’s final-round 67 included a dunked wedge for eagle on the par-4 eighth hole that helped him post a 1-under score for the Championship that sent him up the leaderboard as the wind took its toll throughout the day.
“The eagle on eight was really nice, and honestly the wind picked up as we were on the 9th tee box, so it was a blessing in disguise that I was out early,” Collet said. “On eight, I busted driver and had 67 yards. I hit lob wedge and it took one hop, spun and just dropped in. I felt like Bandon Dunes would play to my strengths because I play in the wind a lot at home in South Florida, and this venue was a great test. I had a great week as the defending champion.”
During the third round, Kern was the beneficiary of a similar good break with the weather at Bandon Dunes. Kern made the 36-hole cut at Bandon Dunes on the number at 3-over after matching opening rounds of 73 on the Bandon Dunes and Pacific Dunes courses. But a 5-under 67 on Bandon Dunes early during the third round was perfectly timed, with Kern completing play just before strong winds from the north started blowing down the Oregon coastline to torment players who were higher on the leaderboard.
“I made the cut on the number, and told my caddie, Randy, ‘All right, it’s go time. We’ve got to keep getting better. I’ve kind of got nothing to lose,’” said Kern, the Low Club Professional at the 2018 PGA Championship at Missouri’s Bellerive Country Club. “I played really solid in the third round and shockingly found myself in the final pairing in the final round.”
Three of the nine women in the 2026 PGA Professional Championship field also found themselves playing in the spotlight of the final round, and each had scene-stealing moments. Sabrina Bonanno (Redmond, Washington) led the women’s field, finishing T-34 at 5-over thanks to a clutch birdie putt on the closing hole while playing with Collet. Allie Knight (Knoxville, Tennessee) opened with a 67 on Bandon Dunes to stand alone in fourth place following an eagle on the par-5 ninth hole, her last of the day. In her three rounds on the Bandon Dunes course, Knight carded two eagles and a birdie on the hole. And Sandra Changkija (Orlando, Florida) finished T-69 with a performance that included a back-nine 33 on the difficult Pacific Dunes layout in the second round.
When the curtain closed on the 2026 PGA Professional Championship, however, the stage was left to Droemer and Kern. Playing in the penultimate group, Droemer finished with three steely pars as Kern fell a shot back with a bogey on 17. Droemer watched from near the Bandon Dunes clubhouse as Kern’s birdie attempt to tie the score on the final hole slid by the cup, then accepted the Walter Hagen Cup from Honorary PGA President John Lindert with multiple Southern Texas PGA Section players joining him in the celebration.
“It was great having our Section Professionals out here cheering me on,” Droemer said. “Even the ones who didn’t make the cut stayed and followed me, and all that support helped. I said it last year, I’ve never played a tournament to lose. I’m always going to go out and try to win.”
Appropriate words for the star of the show at the 2026 PGA Professional Championship.
