Money talks
PGA Championship 2024: Club pro gives most relatable answer ever after making first major cut
Jeremy Wells hits his shot from the 12th tee during the second round of the PGA Championship.
Andrew Redington
Against the backdrop of potentially the most surreal opening two days in major championship history, club professional Jeremy Wells had an uneventful first two rounds at the 2024 PGA Championship. But look a little closer, and Wells’ 69-71 to make his first major championship cut was chaotic.
After opening in two under and birdieing his first two holes on Friday, Wells, the director of player development at Cypress Lake G.C. in Fort Myers, Fla., had it to four under and had us wondering if we were dealing with another Michael Block situation.
Yet after playing his next four holes in five over par, the 33-year-old former college golfer at William and Mary moved from the cusp of contention to two strokes outside the cut line.
For the 21 PGA Professionals in the field this week at Valhalla, making the cut is not simply an emotionally rewarding victory—a proof that at their best, they can stand up to the best players in the world. It’s a financially rewarding endeavor, too, when you consider the record-breaking $18.5 million purse this week.
Indeed, a made cut and a decent weekend can earn half or even an entire year’s salary for the club professionals. Take Block at Oak Hill last year for example. With his T-15 finish, he earned $288,000—a nice little week for the tour pros in the field, but a far more meaningful amount for the club pros.
Wells, whose missed the cut a year ago at Oak Hill in his only other major championship start, bounced back from the rough stretch with three birdies over his next seven holes to get back inside the cut line. But he couldn’t finish up his round Friday when darkness suspended play with Wells having two holes remaining.
Wells then had to be ready for a 7:15 a.m. restart that meant an early morning alarm. “So we woke our kids at 4:30 to get to the golf course, which was interesting,” Wells said on Saturday. “We were in blankets in the clubhouse, but we only had one car. Didn’t sleep much last night."
Jeremy Wells reacts to making his putt on the ninth hole during the second round of the PGA Championship.
Scott Taetsch/PGA of America
After a nearly 2½-hour fog delay on Saturday morning, play eventually resumed, and Wells capped off his marathon first two days with two solid pars to finish at two under and make the cut. When asked after the round how it felt to make the cut, Wells gave the most relatable answer.
“Yeah, excited. Guess I’m going to make some money, so looking forward to that,” said Wells, who is joined by Braden Shattuck as the only two club professionals to make the cut at Valhalla.
Just how much Wells will take home this weekend remains to be seen, but considering last place will take home more than $22,000, the week is already a success.
“Never could have predicted any of this,” Wells said. “I wanted to do this full time like a lot of people, and to just have this treat to be able to come here once a year hopefully and be competitive and have so many people I care about, including him [caddie and college roommate Spencer Kushner], it’s great.”
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