PGA Tour Champ Comes Clean

PGA Tour Champ Comes Clean on ‘Struggle Period’ as Girlfriend’s Tears Over $1.26M Payday Moves Golf CommunityFor a moment, it looked like a disaster. A tee shot on the second playoff hole veered right, heading straight for trouble—until fate, or perhaps just a lucky bounce, intervened. The ball clipped a tree, came off the cart path, and landed in the rough. This was the stroke of fortune that the 31-year-old Brian Campbell needed after 187 combined starts on the PGA Tour and Korn Ferry Tour. It was the kind of break that separates heartbreak from triumph and The Big Ten Player of the Year in 2014 for Illinois, buried a 3-foot-7-inch birdie putt to defeat 20-year-old Aldrich Potgieter from South Africa, for his first PGA Tour victory. This win marked a long-awaited triumph for Campbell after spending nearly a decade on the Tour and his long-time girlfriend Kesli Mckee had a difficult time controlling her emotions.Since turning pro in 2015, Brian Campbell hasn’t had the chance to compete in many tournaments on the Tour, with just 27 appearances over the past 8 years. But his triumph in the Mexico Open on Sunday not only brought him a much-awaited win but plenty of laurels and rewards. Apart from a $1.26 million first-place check, Campbell has earned a two-year Tour exemption, an invitation to the Players Championship and the Masters, and a spot in 2025’s remaining elevated Tour events. Naturally, he was overwhelmed following this stunning result.“I’m just literally freaking out now. To be in this position is unreal. I can’t believe it,” Campbell said. Before this week, Campbell had appeared in 159 events on the KornFerry Tour and another 27 on the PGA Tour, without notching a top 10. It had been a long road that was filled with challenges for the former collegiate standout.Having earned his Tour card in 2017, he lost it at the end of the season and spent the next eight years trying to get it back. He was ranked 74th in driving distance among the 77 players to make the weekend in Puerto Vallarta, where he eventually prevailed. In the winner’s press conference, on Sunday, Brian Campbell expressed his gratitude to his family and girlfriend for their unwavering support throughout his career.My family means everything. They are the sole reason why I’m here today. Without their support, I don’t know what I would be doing. They’re so special to me. They have supported me this whole time. It’s not all been good. I had a struggle period for many years. They’ve let me keep getting after it,” he said. Campbell also made sure to thank his girlfriend for her unrelenting support.Campbell added, “And Kelsi, I can’t say enough about her, she’s just my rock out here. I get to do what I get to do and she’s always there in my corner. It’s just been a blessing. Thank you so much.”Kelsi went through a rollercoaster of emotions as her boyfriend shot a final-round 1-under 70 in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico, to post 20-under par 264. When Campbell sunk the final shot to win, Kelsi let out a scream and fell to her knees, overcome with emotion. She then rushed onto the field jumping straight into Campbell’s arms and embraced him.Speaking afterward, she said, “It’s just one of those moments where you kind of don’t believe it at first. Like I think at first, I was like, ‘Is this actually happening?’ But then once it soaked in and once I realized, I was just like he’s worked so hard for this, and all I wanted to do was see him smile with the trophy and that was my dream. Just to see him happy. So happy.When I tell you how he’s worked, how he’s come literally from the bottom to here, and watching that process on the Korn Ferry Tour when he almost lost his status there. And to now see him win, all I see is just all the work he’s put in and this moment belongs to him.”