Braden Shattuck Earns Low PGA of America Golf Professional Honors

The 2024 PGA Championship is now in the books. And you may have noticed a proud PGA of America Golf Professional standing next to new PGA Champion Xander Schauffele.

That's Braden Shattuck, who earned Low PGA of America Golf Professional honors at Valhalla with a tie for 72nd at 1-under par.

Shattuck, who's the PGA Director of Instruction at Rolling Green Golf Club in Springfield, Pennsylvania, shot rounds of 68-74 to edge Jeremy Wells for the award. He'll take home $22,830 for his finish.

After a fog delay halted the resumption of Round 2 at Valhalla Golf Club, players made their way back out to the course at 9:37 a.m. ET local time. 90 minutes later, the weekend field was decided . . . and Braden Shattuck, PGA, and Jeremy Wells, PGA, would be joining the best players in the world for Rounds 3 and 4.

Wells, who's the PGA Director of Player Development at Cypress Lakes Golf Club in Fort Myers, Florida, fired rounds of 69-71 and is T-52. Shattuck, the PGA Director of Instruction at Rolling Green Golf Club in Springfield, Pennsylvania, shot 71-70 to head into Round 3 at T-65.

Wells finished his second round Saturday morning after play was suspended due to darkness on Friday. A good night’s rest isn’t always easy to come by for a father of three. Trying to sleep with two holes still to play to make his first cut at the PGA Championship may be even harder.

“We woke our kids up at 4:30 to get to the golf course,” Wells said. “We were in blankets in the clubhouse. Yeah, didn't sleep very well but it wasn't the first time I felt that way.

“Fortunately, I got to play 8 and 9 this morning, which are kind of normal holes here. But even still, I knew I was going to have to stand over a couple 3-footers.”

With a two-putt par on the par-3 8th hole, Wells had a shot to spare to make the 1-under cut on his 36th hole, alleviating some stress for the 2-footer that finished his even-par round.

"Now that I've made this cut, hopefully some of the pressure is off because these next two days are kind of the goal for my year," said Wells. "I'm fortunate enough to get this far to the PGA Championship."

Meanwhile, Shattuck secured his ticket Friday evening with some clutch play.

Beginning the second round on the 10th hole, Shattuck got off to a quick start with birdies on holes 11-13. He made the turn at 2-under, however bogies on holes 3 and 4 nudged him outside the cutline. He needed at least one birdie over the final two holes to get within the top-70 and ties to reach the weekend. The birdie came on the par-3 8th hole (his 17th of the round) courtesy of draining a 35-footer.

On the par-4 9th, he found the fairway bunker off the tee and a greenside bunker with this approach. He stared down a 4-footer then holed it for par.

“The cup looked like the size of a thimble on that last 4-footer,” Shattuck said, smiling, “but, thankfully, it found its way to the middle.”

Shattuck had to rebuild his swing due to a car accident in 2019, herniating two disks in his back and unable to swing a golf club for two years. He won the 2023 PGA Professional Championship to play at Oak Hill, where missing the cut last year left him wanting more.

This will be his first time playing the weekend of a Major Championship as part of the Corebridge Financial Team.

“That’s something you take a lot of pride in,” he said. “It’s nice to represent the PGA of America out here.”

The last time more than one PGA of America Golf Professional made the cut at the PGA Championship was 2021 at The Ocean Course at Kiawah Island, when Ben Cook (Michigan Section) and Brad Marek (Northern California Section) played the weekend.