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Six-time PGA Tour winner Max Homa carried his own bag for 36 holes—and then some—Monday in a U.S. Open final qualifier and then opted to not disclose the reason why he did it. He did drop a clue or two, however.
Homa, who has fallen from a career-high of sixth in the world, to 90th, lugged a black carry bag with his name, “MAX,” on the lower back pocket at Kinsale Golf and Fitness Club after competing this past weekend in the Memorial Tournament at nearby Muirfield Village Golf Club. After a promising four-under 68 in the opening round at the Memorial, a signature event on the tour, Homa struggled the final three days and closed with a 77 to end T-51 at 11-over 299.
His caddie since he and Joe Greiner parted ways before the Masters has been Bill Harke, but Harke did not come to Kinsale. Homa declined several offers to carry his bag, and he did not ask Kinsale if it could supply him with a caddie.
Asked if he had split with Harke, Homa replied, “I’d much rather talk about the golf than all the questions about the caddie.”
The golf was decent for Homa on day that began cool and a bit breezy and gave way to warm sunshine, but the California native gave away shots at the end of each round. He bogeyed his final two holes in the morning for a three-under 69 and then set himself up to advance without a playoff when he reached the par-5 ninth hole in two on what was his 18th hole of his second round. From 25 feet, his hard-breaking left-to-right putt wandered six feet left and below the hole. He then pulled the birdie putt, settling for a 70 and five-under 139 total.
This is what Golf's Longest Day is all about!
6x @PGATOUR winner Max Homa out here grinding 36 holes with his own bag on his back in an effort to play in his sixth-consecutive U.S. Open. pic.twitter.com/B3HsB33Znc
— U.S. Open (@usopengolf) June 2, 2025
He headed for a five-player playoff for one spot at the end of regulation that included fellow tour members Rickie Fowler, Eric Cole and Cameron Young, who also completed 72 holes in the Memorial, and journeyman pro Chase Johnson, a product of Barberton, Ohio and Kent State University. Young made birdie on the first playoff hole to advance. Homa moved on to a second playoff hole to determine the first alternate—and a likely spot at Oakmont—and four-putted the hole.
“That’s going to be probably painful,” Homa said before the, well, painful, playoff. “I haven’t carried my bag 36 holes in a while so I’m a little tired. I would assume college [was the last time]. Good thing is I played decent. I was on the line [for qualifying], so kind of the day flew by, but then when I missed that putt on 18 on the last hole, it all kind of hit and my legs are a little bit tired.
“A playoff will be lovely,” he said facetiously.
Asked how his attitude held up, Homa, 34, gave the only clue to why he toured Kinsale solo.
“Pretty good. Seems to be better than when someone’s standing next to me, for some reason, so I might need to just walk by myself more,” he said. “Maybe I just looked at it as a nice peaceful day by myself. Probably got to battle some demons and just kind of have nobody to lean on. So sometimes maybe that helps a little bit. There’s no one to … it’s just everything’s me. So just kind of like the battle of that maybe helped a little bit.”
Ranked 110th in the FedEx Cup standings, Homa is entered in this week’s RBC Canadian Open, where he can likely climb into the top 60 in the world rankings with a victory. Any player in the top 60 not otherwise eligible earns a berth into the U.S. Open at Oakmont.
Homa has missed the cut in five of his six U.S. Open appearances.
Pressed one last time why he carried his own bag Monday, Homa didn’t budge. “I wanted to carry for 36 holes,” he said, flatly, and walked away.
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