Michael Thorbjornsen (Stanford Athletics Photo)

The senior standout has earned his PGA Tour card through the PGA Tour University standings. Heading into the NCAA Division I men's championship at Omni La Costa Resort in Carlsbad, Calif., it was down to either Thorbjornsen or Christo Lamprecht of Georgia Tech. To win, Lamprecht needed to win the championship, and Thorbjornsen had to finish outside the top two. 

Unfortunately, after the first round, Lamprecht was pulled from the Georgia Tech lineup due to a back injury, closing the race for good and giving Thorbjornsen his PGA Tour card.

Thorbjornsen may accept PGA TOUR membership upon turning professional, and he will be eligible for all open, Full-Field PGA TOUR events for the remainder of the 2024 and 2025 seasons.

Over the last two years, The Stanford senior posted three victories and made the cut in four professional events, highlighted by a fourth-place finish at the 2022 Travelers Championship.

Thorbjornsen is currently ranked No. 2 in the Golfweek/AmateurGolf.com World Rankings. He missed the whole fall season with a stress fracture in his back.

“PGA TOUR U is, I think, one of the best programs in all of sports,” Thorbjornsen told the PGA Tour. “What they’ve done, creating a pathway to the PGA TOUR and to these different Tours underneath it, it’s huge. It gives students and us golfers reasons to stay for four years, and you can’t really pass up on the opportunities that they present to you.”

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Thorbjornsen was complementary of Lamprecht after receiving his card.

“Christo has been a huge part in my success this spring pushing me, even though we’re not together and I rarely see him,” Thorbjornsen told the PGA Tour. “Finishing in that No. 1 spot is massive, so just doing everything you can every single day, making sure you’re getting one percent better every single day, is huge.”

Here is a brief rundown of what players get for their final position at the end of the season:

No. 1 ranked player -Earn PGA TOUR membership for the then-current season and will be placed at the end of the Top 5 Finishers and Ties from the Q-School category (i.e., eligible for open, full-field PGA TOUR events), beginning the week following the conclusion of the NCAA Division-I National Championship through the end of the current season; and earn PGA TOUR membership the season immediately following his finish in PGA TOUR University and will be placed in the category for the Previous Season’s Leading Finisher on the DP World Tour’s Race to Dubai and Korn Ferry Tour Points List, subject to reshuffles.

No 1-5: Earn conditional membership (as described below) on Korn Ferry Tour for the then-current season beginning the week following the conclusion of the NCAA Division-I National Championship through the end of the current season;

No. 6-10: Earn conditional membership (as described below) on Korn Ferry Tour for the then-current season beginning the week following the conclusion of the NCAA Division-I National Championship through the end of the current season;

No. 10-25: Earn membership on PGA TOUR Americas for the then-current season and will be exempt into all open, full-field Segment II – North America Swing events beginning the week following the conclusion of the NCAA Division-I National Championship through the end of the current PGA TOUR Americas season;