Michael Thorbjornsen

Michael Thorbjornsen
Personal information
Born (2001-09-16) September 16, 2001
Cleveland, Ohio, U.S.
Sporting nationality United States
ResidenceWellesley, Massachusetts, U.S.
Career
CollegeStanford University
Turned professional2024
Current tourPGA Tour
Professional wins1
Highest ranking39 (August 9, 2026)[1]
(as of August 23, 2026)
Number of wins by tour
PGA Tour1
Best results in major championships
Masters TournamentDNP
PGA ChampionshipT41: 2025
U.S. Open79th: 2019
The Open ChampionshipT40: 2026

Michael Thorbjornsen (born September 16, 2001) is an American professional golfer who plays on the PGA Tour. He won the 2026 Rocket Classic.

Early life and family

Thorbjornsen was born in Cleveland, Ohio. He is the son of Thorbjørn Thorbjørnsen, a Norwegian, and Sandra Chiang, a Zimbabwean who was a golfer at Ursuline College. He first tried golf at two years old. His siblings are Victoria Lotus, Michelle Caprise and Teresa Corniche.[2][3]

Amateur career

Thorbjornsen won the 2018 U.S. Junior Amateur at Baltusrol Golf Club.[4] The win qualified him for the 2019 U.S. Open at Pebble Beach Golf Links, where he made the cut, the first U.S. Junior Amateur champion to do so since the exemption was introduced.[5][6] [7] In 2020, Thorbjornsen graduated from Wellesley High School and enrolled at Stanford University, joining the Stanford Cardinal men's golf team.[2]

He reached the quarterfinals of the 2020 U.S. Amateur at Bandon Dunes. He won the 2021 Western Amateur and Massachusetts Amateur, defeating 2017 U.S. Mid-Amateur champion Matt Parziale in the final match. He played on the 2022 Eisenhower Trophy and 2022 Arnold Palmer Cup teams.[8]

Thorbjornsen qualified for his second U.S. Open in 2022 via an 8-for-3 playoff at Century and Old Oaks Country Clubs in Purchase, New York, after shooting 2-under 138 over 36 holes.[8]

Thorbjornsen finished 4th in the 2022 Travelers Championship at the TPC River Highlands in Cromwell, Connecticut. Because Thorbjornsen was competing as an amateur, Chesson Hadley, who finished 5th, took home the $406,700 in prize money that would have otherwise gone to Thorbjornsen.[9]

Professional career

Thorbjornsen finished at the top of the PGA Tour University rankings for 2024, earning him a PGA Tour card for the remainder of 2024 and all of the 2025 season. He turned professional in June 2024.[10] In his third start, he was runner-up at the John Deere Classic in July 2024. Thorbjornsen recorded another runner-up finish in April 2025, at the Corales Puntacana Championship, a stroke behind Garrick Higgo.[11]

In August 2026, Thorbjornsen won the final edition of the Rocket Classic. He finished at 18 under par with a final-round 63 to claim his first career PGA Tour victory by two strokes over runner-up Xander Schauffele at the Detroit Golf Club.[12]

Amateur wins

Source:[13]

Professional wins (1)

PGA Tour wins (1)

No. Date Tournament Winning score Margin of
victory		 Runner-up
1 Aug 2, 2026 Rocket Classic −18 (69-64-66-63=262) 2 strokes United States Xander Schauffele

Results in major championships

Tournament 20192020202120222023202420252026
Masters Tournament
PGA Championship T41 CUT
U.S. Open 79 CUT CUT
The Open Championship NT T40
  Did not play

CUT = missed the half-way cut
"T" = tied
NT = no tournament due to the COVID-19 pandemic

U.S. national team appearances

References

  1. ↑ "Week 32 2026 9 Aug 2025" (pdf). OWGR. Retrieved August 9, 2026.
  2. 1 2 "Men's Golf Roster: Michael Thorbjornsen". Stanford University. Retrieved January 28, 2023.
  3. ↑ Huggan, John (January 28, 2023). "An American amateur and Stanford junior, Michael Thorbjornsen, tied for the lead at Hero Dubai Desert Classic". Golf Digest. Retrieved January 28, 2023.
  4. ↑ Whelan, Tim. "U.S. Open: Wellesley's Michael Thorbjornsen, 17, posts even-par 71 in first round". The MetroWest Daily News. Framingham, Massachusetts.
  5. ↑ Nichols, Beth Ann (June 15, 2019). "17-year-old Stanford commit Michael Thorbjornsen makes cut at U.S. Open". USA Today.
  6. ↑ "Wellesley's Michael Thorbjornsen finishes 79th in US Open". The Boston Globe. Associated Press. June 17, 2019.
  7. ↑ "2018 U.S. Junior Amateur Quarterfinalists". Northeast Golf. Archived from the original on August 23, 2018.
  8. 1 2 "Michael Thorbjornsen Bio". United States Golf Association. Retrieved January 28, 2023.
  9. ↑ "Here's the prize money payout for each golfer at the 2022 Travelers Championship". Golf Digest. June 28, 2022.
  10. ↑ "Players Turned Pro – Week 25, 2024". World Amateur Golf Ranking. Retrieved June 20, 2024.
  11. ↑ "Michael Thorbjornsen". Official World Golf Ranking. Retrieved April 27, 2025.
  12. ↑ Lage, Larry (August 2, 2026). "Michael Thorbjornsen wins 1st PGA Tour title by 2 shots at the 8th and final Rocket Classic". Associated Press News. Retrieved August 2, 2026.
  13. ↑ "Michael Thorbjornsen". World Amateur Golf Ranking. Retrieved June 20, 2024.
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