Stanford alum Michael Thorbjornsen ’24 captured his first PGA Tour victory last Sunday at the Rocket Classic in Detroit, shooting a final-round of 63 (-7) to secure the win. 

Thorbjornsen’s final round was the best of his young professional career, recording no bogeys on his scorecard despite challenging playing weather at the Detroit Golf Club. The former Pac-12 Golfer of the Year (2022-23) averaged 318 yards off the tee while hitting 73% of fairways for the week, which is considerably higher than the tour average of 60%.

Thorbjornsen put an exclamation point on Sunday’s round with a gutsy birdie putt on hole 18 as he walked to the clubhouse with a two-stroke lead over Davis Riley, who had been the leader entering Sunday’s round and sat four strokes ahead of Thorbjornsen. 

After a short wait in the clubhouse to allow for the remaining players to finish their rounds, Thorbjornsen officially tallied his first professional win. He was quick to thank his parents, both of whom are golf enthusiasts. Thorbjornsen’s mother was a college golfer, while his father is an engineer who became fascinated with the science of the golf swing and served as one of many coaches for the sophomore PGA Tour player.    

“Every bit of success I have out here is a family win,” Thorbjornsen said. 

The Rocket Classic win is yet another accolade for the accomplished former Cardinal. Before his move to The Farm, Thorbjornsen established himself in the golf scene by winning the 2018 U.S. Junior Amateur Championship. Once at Stanford, Thorbjornsen was named to the All-Pac-12 Newcomer Team as a freshman, and he was a consistent member of the All-Pac-12 First Team over his final three collegiate years. 

Thorbjornsen played over 120 rounds at The Farm, collecting three tournament wins. Sunday’s round and win, however, was the most impressive of his golf career — and potentially the first of many for Thorbjornsen.