JJ Spaun is embracing a new stage this week as he continues to impress on his BMW PGA Championship debut.
The American has emerged as a household name around the world over the past 18 months and is one of 11 of the top 20 on the Official World Golf Ranking teeing it up at Wentworth Club.
During a breakthrough 2025, he won his maiden Major Championship at the U.S. Open and sealed three runner-up finishes and six top tens on the PGA Tour to automatically qualify for the US Ryder Cup team for the first time at Bethpage.
While he was already a PGA Tour winner, his play-off defeat to Rory McIlroy at THE PLAYERS Championship last March brought him to wider global awareness as he rose from outside the world's top 50 to inside the top ten at the year end.
Another win at the Valero Texas Open has since followed, and while he has played on the DP World Tour before - including the Rolex Series stage at the Genesis Scottish Open - making his bow over the world-renowned West Course in a historic tournament on the other side of the Atlantic is a long-held ambition fulfilled.
"I would say it's top drawer, is that what you guys say around here?" said Spaun of his intial reflections. "I love it. I think the facilities are great.
"The club's great. There's three courses here. Everything is top of the line, and that's why it's the flagship event on the DP World Tour and it's been a great start to my initial start here at Wentworth."
Spaun opened his week with a 70 on Thursday but went four shots better in the second round as he eagled the par-five 18th for a second day running and mixed eight birdies with four bogeys to climb to eight under through two rounds of the $9million tournament.
While he was left to reflect on "a strange couple of days" on the course, including a 4:30am wake-up call ahead of his second round, the 36-year-old was feeling at ease in his surroundings.
"My family and I actually vacation over here in the wintertime," he reflected. "So any excuse to come to the UK and England, especially, we try to make it happen.
"It's nice the way the schedule worked out for me this Fall to be here. This is an event I always wanted to play. I'm glad it worked out and I'm off to a decent start.
"I definitely feel like I'm going to plan a little bit more of a global schedule or a European schedule moving forward in the Fall time. So it's been lovely so far.
"The community's great. The spectators and fans are great. The boys on this tour are great. The support's awesome. It's been a brilliant time so far."
