Ivins, Utah — Michael Brennan earned a spot on the Korn Ferry Tour with a dominant late-summer performance on the PGA Tour Americas. Two days at the Bank of Utah Championship in Black Desert propelled him to the top of the PGA Tour leaderboard.
Brennan shot a 6-under 65 on Friday to take a one-stroke lead into the second round, which was interrupted by darkness. Brennan, who was playing on a sponsor exemption, made a 40-foot eagle putt on the par-5 ninth.
“It’s very exciting to be a part of a Tour event,” Brennan said. “I didn’t expect to be able to play in any games this fall, so it’s really cool to have the opportunity to play this fall. I’m really grateful to be here. It’s been a really fun week so far, and I hope it continues.”
The 23-year-old former Wake Forest player won three in four consecutive PGA Tour Americas events in August and September, topping the season points list and earning the first of 10 available Korn Ferry Tour spots on tour.
“It’s been a great experience playing on the Americas Tour this year and having some success,” Brennan said. “After those experiences, I definitely feel more prepared for this weekend. I know it’s not at the same level, but I’m going to treat it exactly the same and see what happens.”
Brennan finished with a total of 10-under 132.
Pierceson Coody (64), Jackson Suber (67) and Justin Lower (67) were 9 under. In the FedEx Cup standings, Suber is 127th, Lower is 129th and Coody is 133rd.
After this week, there are only three tournaments left in the season for players to finish in the top 100 in the FedEx Cup and hold a full card for the 2026 season. The top 100 is down from 125 players who held cards a year ago.
Defending champion Matt McCarty played the opening nine (the back nine on the course) with a 7-under 28 and shot a 1-over 65 the rest of the way. He entered the week in 84th place in the FedEx Cup at 8 under par.
David Ford was 8 under with six holes left. The game was suspended due to darkness for the second consecutive day.
First-round leader Thorbjorn Olesen shot a 70 to finish at 7 under and 116th in the FedEx Cup.
Max Homa was 6 under after shooting a painful 66. The former world No. 5 was seen limping around the course on Friday and later told reporters he was dealing with bone spurs in his right foot.
Information from The Associated Press was used in this report.