The PGA Tour has experienced a rocky start this season. And we say this for several reasons. Firstly, Jay Monahan and Co. faced a severe backlash from fans shortly after the inaugural event of the 2025 calendar. Just after that, the tour was shocked by the dropped viewership statistics for The Sentry event which were 34% less than last year. That’s not all!

To make matters worse for Monahan, several PGA Tour professionals began withdrawing from the Sony Open in a row, making things more complicated in the absence of some big names. The fourth event, too looked like sinking just when a new face saved the 65th American Express. Interestingly, this was also pointed out by an elderly PGA Tour pro Charlie Hoffman after the second round at La Quinta. The 48-year-old remarked, “Geez, American Express saved this event; it was in dire straits for a few years.” 

But Hoffman did not stop there. He said, “It was a huge event as a kid growing up, obviously what Bob Hope did, and George Lopez tried to continue that tradition; he did an amazing job.” He continued,  “Then it just sort of slowly, I would say, went the wrong direction,” referring to how The Desert Classic lost its value after Bob Hope’s blood and sweat in the early days to grow the event. 

One cannot argue with the impact of the old man, especially considering AmEx’s long history. The tournament, previously known as The Desert Classic, would not be what it is today without Bob Hope’s contributions from 65 years ago. Hope was the one who hosted the event from its inception and started the tradition of inviting celebrities to compete alongside the professionals.

This helped the sport gain so much value that the event’s name was changed to the Bob Hope Desert Classic in 1965, and again in 1986, when it became the Bob Hope Chrysler Classic. Ironically, if we look at recent years, the rebranded event, now called The American Express, has seen significant challenges. Take this year for instance. The $8.8M tour saw several big-name players withdraw from the tournament, opting instead to participate in Tiger Woods’s technology-infused league, TGL.

Seeing that many fans also assumed the event would hit rock-bottom until a 17-year-old fired balls making headlines overnight! Yes, we are talking about Blades Brown. Brown was the youngest player in the American Express and impressed many with his round 2 birdies. Among the impressed ones was also Charley Hoffman who said shared his emotions during the post-tour press conference.

He said, “I would say this is a premier pro-am on the PGA TOUR now with the limited field over at Pebble, these are where guys want to play, that love the game of golf and support the game of golf,” referring to how Jay Monahan and Co. have hopes to rise back again.

Charley Hoffman expresses his impression of Blades Brown

Blades Brown is making waves in the golf world, and his impressive performance at the LA Quinta PGA Tour event has everyone talking. During the second round, the 17-year-old sensation scored eight under for the tournament, leaving co-leaders Charley Hoffman and Rico Hoey in the dust – eight shots behind, to be exact.

Interestingly, Hoffman, who’s 31 years Brown’s senior, was the U.S. team captain when Brown played in the 2024 Junior Presidents Cup at Royal Montreal. When asked about Brown’s impression of him, Hoffman had some revealing observations. “Yeah, he’s very polished,” the 48-year-old said. But what came next was even more impressive.

Hoffman shared a story about how he once woke up early to practice and work out before the team got up, only to find Brown already in the gym, putting in the work. “We’ll say 5:00 in the morning, I would go and work out because I had to get some work because I’m still playing, and he was in the gym, and he was in the gym working out,” Hoffman recalled. “I don’t know if I had that work ethic at 17 — I promise you I didn’t. I didn’t know what the gym was. I didn’t learn about that until probably my college golf coach.”

This incident left a lasting impression on Hoffman, who couldn’t help but admire Brown’s dedication. “He puts the work in, he’s a solid golfer, and obviously the future’s very bright for him,” the 4X PGA Tour winner said.