One year to the day after Braden Shattuck became a PGA of America member, he added another special title to his name: PGA Professional champion.
Shattuck, the director of instruction at Rolling Green Golf Club in Springfield, Pennsylvania, shot 2-under-par 70 on Wednesday at Twin Warriors Golf Club in Santa Ana Pueblo, New Mexico, to finish at 9-under 279 and win the 2023 PGA Professional Championship by one stroke.
He will lead the 20 low scorers into the PGA Championship on May 18-21 at Oak Hill Country Club’s East Course in Pittsford, New York.
Shattuck, 28, is the 11th player in tournament history – and first since 2016 – to win in his first appearance. He also is the second champion from the Philadelphia PGA Section, joining 1985 winner Ed Dougherty.
“It feels incredible,” Shattuck said. “I couldn’t imagine being here right now. This is my first PGA Professional Championship, so I didn’t really know what to expect. It means the world, though. I can’t believe it.”
Shattuck entered the final day tied for the lead with John Somers of New Port Richey, Florida, but made a strong start with a birdie on the par-5 first hole. After five consecutive pars, Shattuck posted his lone bogey of the day, at the par-4 seventh. Following pars on holes 8-11, he collected birdies at Nos. 12 and 16, both par 5s, providing the eventual margin of victory.
“I couldn’t imagine being here right now. This is my first PGA Professional Championship, so I didn’t really know what to expect. It means the world, though. I can’t believe it.”
Braden Shattuck
Matt Cahill of Palm Beach Gardens, Florida, and Michael Block of Mission Viejo, California, shared second place at 8-under 280. Somers slipped into a tie for fourth with Kenny Pigman of Ontario, California, and Gabe Reynolds of Dallas, Texas, at 6 under.
“I hit it great all day,” Shattuck said. “I hit a lot of good tee shots. I hit a lot of good iron and wedge shots that gave myself a lot of opportunities.”
Shattuck holed two critical putts down the stretch, including a downhill 20-footer for birdie on 16 and a 10-footer for par on 18. Back-to-back pars on the 17th and 18th holes clinched the one-shot victory.
“Those stood out the most because they’re about the only putts that went in all day,” he said.
Despite it being his first PGA Professional Championship, Shattuck didn’t feel any added pressure for the majority of his final round.
“To be honest with you, it didn’t really bother me all that much,” he said. “I get more bothered when I’m off the golf course with the anticipation of everything. I didn’t really feel a ton of nerves until I made that putt on 16. I calmed down. Then on 18, obviously the approach shot, that’s a big-boy hole location, and I did not put a good golf swing on it. Luckily, I was able to get that up and down.”
Shattuck conceded to peeking at the scoreboard throughout Wednesday’s finale.
“I would take a look just to make sure nobody was getting away from me and I didn’t have to change up the game plan,” he said. “I like to play a little bit more on the conservative side. I was able to stick to that conservative game plan and not deviate, which was nice.”
Shattuck grew up in Aston, Pennsylvania. He honed his craft at The Golf Course at Glen Mills, where his mom would drop him off each morning and so that could practice during the summer.
“They were great to me,” Shattuck said. “I played all my golf there growing up. I spent the whole day practicing there every day.”
The 2023 PGA Championship will feature two other PGA Professional champions in Alex Beach (2019) and Block (2014).
Beach, from Stillwater, Minnesota, will be the most experienced of the 20 PGA pros at Oak Hill, playing in his fifth straight PGA Championship and sixth overall (2017, 2019-22).
Block, who also was runner-up last year, will be appearing in his fifth career PGA Championship (2014, 2016, 2018, 2022).
Wyatt Worthington II of Reynoldsburg, Ohio, who in 2016 became only the second Black club pro to earn a PGA berth, will return to the field for his third time after also playing in 2022.
Five of the PGA professionals will be making a second trip to the PGA Championship, including Ben Kern of Grove City, Ohio, who made the cut at Bellerive in 2018 as the low PGA pro and finished T-42.
Eleven members will be making their PGA Championship debuts, including Shattuck.
“I’m very happy to be a PGA professional, and I can’t believe I have this opportunity in a couple weeks,” Shattuck said.
For more about the 20 club professionals who earned exemptions into the 2023 PGA Championship, click HERE.
PGA of America