Led by 2023 PGA Professional Champion Braden Shattuck, 20 PGA Members are playing against the world’s best golfers at Oak Hill Country Club
Editors:
For a photo of the Corbridge Financial PGA Team, click here.
For individual photos, click here.
Rochester, N.Y. – Beginning this Thursday, the Corebridge Financial PGA Team—which is comprised of 20 top-playing PGA Club Professionals—will compete against the strongest field in golf at the 2023 PGA Championship at Oak Hill Country Club.
Designed by Donald Ross and recently restored by Andrew Green, Oak Hill will be hosting the PGA Championship for a fourth time.
Braden Shattuck, PGA, the 28-year old Director of Instruction at Rolling Green Golf Club in Glen Mills, Pennsylvania, won the 2023 PGA Professional Championship at Twin Warriors and Santa Ana Golf Clubs in Santa Ana Pueblo, New Mexico, on May 3. He leads the contingent of 20 PGA Professionals who earned a position to compete in the second major championship of the season at Oak Hill.
Shattuck won the PGA Professional Championship on the one-year anniversary of being elected to PGA Membership. Now, he competes in his first major championship against the likes of John Rahm, Scottie Scheffler and Defending PGA Champion Justin Thomas.
Corebridge Financial has broadened its partnership with the PGA of America to include the Title sponsorship of the PGA Professional Member teams formerly known as the Team of 20 (PGA Championship); Team of 35 (KitchenAid Senior PGA Championship); and Team of 9 (KPMG Women’s PGA Championship). Each will now be recognized as the Corebridge PGA Financial Team. The Team consists of talented PGA Professionals from across the country who earned a spot to compete in the PGA’s most prestigious Championships.
The PGA Members that comprise the Corebridge PGA Team advanced to the PGA Championship by finishing in the Top 20 at the PGA Professional PGA Championship, while competing among 312 players in the field. There are nearly 28,000 PGA Professionals worldwide.
ROCHESTER, NY – MAY 16: Members of The Corebridge Financial PGA Team (Front Row L-R); Matt Cahill, Jesse Droemer, Jeremy Wells, and Chris French (Second Row L-R); Greg Koch, Anthony Cordes, Alex Beach, Michael Block, and Ben Kern (Third Row L-R) Steve Holmes, John Somers, J.J. Killeen, Gabe Reynolds, and Kenny Pigman (Back Row L-R) Chris Sanger, Russell Grove, Josh Speight, Braden Shattuck, Colin Inglis, and Wyatt Worthington II pose before the PGA Championship at Oak Hill Country Club on Tuesday, May 16, 2023 in Rochester, New York. (Photo by Darren Carroll/PGA of America)
“The PGA of America is especially proud of the 20 PGA Professionals who have earned a spot in the PGA Championship and the,” said PGA President John Lindert, PGA Director of Golf at The Country Club of Lansing in Lansing, Michigan. “They’re PGA Members who maintain a high-level of play while ensuring golfers everywhere have a place to play and access to the game we all love.”
In all, 12 of the 20 Members of the Corebridge PGA Team will be making their PGA Championship debuts.
Alex Beach, PGA, of Stillwater, Minnesota, the 2019 PGA Professional Championship winner, will be the most experienced of the 20 PGA Professionals at Oak Hill – making his fifth-straight PGA Championship appearance and sixth overall (2017, 2019-’22).
Michael Block, PGA, the PGA Head Professional of Arroyo Trabuco Golf Club in Mission Viejo, California, is making his fourth PGA Championship appearance and his first since 2018. The 46-year old has won nine Southern California PGA Section Player of the Year Awards (2013-’21).
Chris French, PGA, the PGA Head Professional at Aldeen Golf Club in Rockford, Illinois, is making his PGA Championship debut, after largely giving up the game for most of his 20s to pursue a career in the music industry. He’s just the second Rockford native in more than 40 years to play in a major championship.
Chris Sanger, PGA, of Red Hook, New York, is the PGA Head Professional at Woodstock Golf Club. Making his PGA Championship debut approximately 250 miles away at Oak Hill, Sanger is a two-time winner of the Northeastern New York PGA Section Match Play Championship (2019, ‘21); and a two-time winner of the Section’s Assistants Match Play Championship (2015, ‘17). He has also won the NENYPGA Assistants Championship in 2017.
2023 PGA Championship: Corebridge Financial PGA Team
Alex Beach, PGA – Stamford, Conn., Westchester Country Club, Metropolitan Section
Michael Block, PGA – Mission Viejo, Calif., Arroyo Trabuco Golf Club, Southern California Section
Matt Cahill, PGA – West Palm Beach, Fla. Seminole Golf Club, South Florida Section
Anthony Cordes, PGA – Johns Creek, Ga., Cherokee Town & Country Club, Georgia Section
Jesse Droemer, PGA – Houston, Texas, Lakeside Country Club, Southern Texas Section
Chris French, PGA – Rockford, Ill., Aldeen Golf Club, Illinois Section
Russell Grove, PGA – Coeur d’Alene, Idaho, North Idaho College, Pacific Northwest Section
Steve Holmes, PGA – Moorpark, Calif., Rustic Canyon Golf Course, Southern California Section
Colin Inglis, PGA – Creswell, Ore., Shadow Hills Country Club, Pacific Northwest Section
Ben Kern, PGA – Bloomfield, Ohio, Hickory Hills Golf Club, Southern Ohio Section
J.J. Killeen, PGA – Lubbock, Texas, Red Feather Golf and Social Club, Northern Texas Section
Greg Koch, PGA – Orlando, Fla., Ritz-Carlton Golf Club-Grande Lakes Orlando, North Florida Section
Kenny Pigman, PGA – Ontario, Calif., Arrowhead Country Club, Southern California Section
Gabe Reynolds, PGA – Dallas, Texas, Topgolf-Dallas, Northern Texas Section
Chris Sanger, PGA – Red Hook, N.Y., Woodstock Golf Club, Northeastern New York Section
Braden Shattuck, PGA – Glen Mills, Pa., Rolling Green Golf Club, Philadelphia Section
Josh Speight, PGA – Locust Hill, Va., The Club at Viniterra, Middle Atlantic Section
John Somers, PGA – New Port Richey, Fla., Southern Hills Plantation Club, North Florida Section
Jeremy Wells, PGA – Estero, Fla., Cypress Lake Golf Club, South Florida Section
Wyatt Worthington II, PGA – Reynoldsburg, Ohio, The Golf Depot At Central Park, Southern Ohio Section
The 2023 PGA Championship, played Thursday-Sunday, May 18-21, will feature wire-to-wire, 72-hole coverage via CBS Sports, ESPN, ESPN+ and Paramount+, while the PGAChampionship.com website, App and Social Media channels are also providing comprehensive coverage.
For information and bios on the Corebridge PGA Team, click here.
About PGA of America
The PGA of America is one of the world’s largest sports organizations, composed of nearly 28,000 PGA Professionals who work daily to grow interest and inclusion in the game of golf. For more information about the PGA of America, visit PGA.com and follow us on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook.
Media Contacts: Jesse Dodson PGA of America jdodson@pgahq.com
