For two of golf's biggest stars, the PGA Championship isn't just another major—it's a family affair. While the tournament has long worked to carve out its own identity among golf's four biggest events, there's one unique element that sets it apart: its deep connection to club professionals. And for Justin Thomas and Cameron Young, that connection runs straight through their fathers.
When the first tee shot of the 2026 PGA Championship is struck Thursday at Aronimink Golf Club, it won't be a tour star or a major champion. It'll be Braden Shattuck, the PGA director of instruction at Rolling Green Golf Club, located just 10 miles down the road. He's one of 20 club professionals in the 156-man field—men who'll be back to giving lessons and ordering merchandise next week, not chasing a multi-million dollar payday on tour.
That blue-collar spirit is what makes the PGA Championship special in the eyes of Thomas and Young. For them, it's personal.
Cameron Young's father, Dave Young, recently retired as golf director at Sleepy Hollow in New York. He never qualified for the PGA Championship as a player, but he worked them as a rules official and served on the rules committee at the Masters. He played just one PGA Tour event in his career—the 1998 Buick Classic. "The PGA Championship, for our family, is a great week," said Young, now ranked No. 3 in the world. "My dad was a PGA of America professional forever, kind of embraced the whole package of that. It's a cool one for us just given his connection."
Justin Thomas knows that feeling well. His father, Mike Thomas, recently retired from Harmony Landing in Louisville, Kentucky. Justin was just seven years old, hanging out in the Valhalla clubhouse, when Tiger Woods won the 2000 PGA Championship. He was in the gallery for the 2008 Ryder Cup, high-fiving Phil Mickelson as the Americans celebrated victory. But the best moments came when he won the PGA himself—at Quail Hollow in 2017 and Southern Hills in 2022. The embrace with his father, whose own father was also a longtime pro, made those victories unforgettable.
"I'm well aware everybody feels like it's the fourth major when it comes to all of them," Thomas said. But for him and Young, it's so much more than that. It's a tribute to the club pros who shape the game, one lesson at a time—and to the fathers who showed them what it truly means to love golf.