Blades Brown shares what Justin Thomas came up and told him before his second round 64 at The American Express

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Plenty of eyes were on Blades Brown heading into The American Express, with the 17-year-old making his first PGA Tour start since turning professional ahead of the season.

While players such as Luke Clanton, and Ludvig Aberg previously, have been in no rush to turn professional, Blades Brown decided to take a different approach.

Brown turned down the opportunity to go to college, with the teenager confirming in December that he was turning professional. And it appeared to be a coup for the PGA Tour.

Certainly, there was plenty of intrigue ahead of his first tournament of the season at The American Express.

Blades Brown shares what Justin Thomas told him before his second round at The American Express

Brown would miss the cut. However, there was some exciting signs of what may be to come during the second round, with Brown shooting a 64. He made 10 birdies, including six in a row on the front nine.

And speaking on Subpar, Brown shared what it has been like meeting some of the other players on tour, including Justin Thomas – who he spoke to ahead of that second round in California.

“It really means a lot whenever people come up to you, for example Tiger Woods. Dude, when I got to meet Tiger, that was so sick,” he said.

“But it really meant a lot to me when Justin Thomas came up to me and he was like, ‘hey man, I’m rooting for you this week, let’s go, go make some birdies’. And that was right before the second round, and I was like if JT says it, I got to do it. It was sick, man. It really means a lot.”

Having Brown in the ranks is a much-needed win for the PGA Tour

Obviously, Brown is likely to need some time to find his feet on tour. Not everyone hits the ground running quite like Clanton, who already has several runner-up finishes under his belt.

It is fantastic that the PGA Tour have Brown as a member. It has been notable that LIV Golf have signed so many younger players over the winter, with the likes of Yubin Jang and Frederik Kjettrup joining ahead of 2025. Meanwhile, Tom McKibbin is expected to sign for Legion XIII.

Perhaps LIV’s hand has been forced. Potentially, marquee names are more sceptical about joining LIV now with a deal with the PGA Tour is surely on the horizon. But it may be something which really reaps rewards in the future.

LIV have a number of older players in the league who will need replacing sooner or later. So having guys like Jang, Kjettrup and McKibbin battling with the household names will help increase their own stock over time.

So it feels important that the PGA Tour does have their own crop of younger sensations knocking on the door. And there are not many more impressive statements Brown could have made in his first tour event as a professional than making 10 birdies in one round.