Port St. Lucie, Florida – Bob Sowards, PGA, started the final round of the 2025 PGA Professional Championship looking up, significantly up, at the Corebridge Financial Team of 20 PGA Professionals looking to book their ticket to Quail Hollow in May. All he did next was shoot the round of the day and move up 39 spots to punch his ticket to his record-tying 12th career PGA Championship.
PORT ST. LUCIE, FL – APRIL 30: Bob Sowards hits his tee shot on the 18th hole during the final round of the PGA Professional Championship at PGA Golf Club on Wednesday, April 30, 2025 in Port St. Lucie, Florida. (Photo by Rachel Harris/PGA of America)
That 12th PGA Championship appearance ties Steve Schneiter for first all-time among PGA Professionals. Sowards’ first PGA was in 1997 as a young assistant pro at Muirfield Village Golf Club. Now, the Director of Instruction at Kinsale Golf & Fitness Club has played in the major championship across four different decades.
Sowards won the 2023 Senior PGA Professional Championship at PGA Golf Club with a final-round 6-under 66 to win by six strokes. In doing so, he became only the seventh PGA Professional to win the Senior PPC twice, thanks to his previous win in 2018. That victory in 2023 jumpstarted an incredible playing season that saw him make the cut at the 2023 KitchenAid Senior PGA Championship, a tournament where he’s had incredible success. In 2021 at Southern Hills, Sowards led for portions of the second round before finishing T-5 and cashing a six-figure payday.
Sowards playing accolades are essentially unequaled among modern PGA of America Professionals. He’s a multiple winner of national PGA Professional Player of the Year and Senior Player of the Year awards. In 2019, he was inducted into the Southern Ohio PGA Hall of Fame.