AR
Arab golf history was made at the Memorial Tournament on the PGA Tour, as Moroccan golfer Adam Bresnu was presented with a 2025 Jack Nicklaus Award.
Bresnu made headlines earlier this year at the Hero Dubai Desert Classic by becoming the first Arab-born golfer to make the cut in a DP World Tour Rolex Series event, and continues to break new ground as an awardee of this prestigious amateur honour.
View this post on Instagram
The Nicklaus Award recognises the national player of the year at the Division I, II, III, NAIA, and NJCAA levels.
Adam, the NJCAA Ranked No. 1 golfer since at least 16 October, has finished inside the top nine in all 14 tournaments for the Wranglers, including five victories and five runner-up finishes.
View this post on Instagram
The sophomore from Rabat, Morocco, won the season’s first three tournaments, including the Don York Memorial and Folds of Honor Challenge, by a combined 15 strokes. He also secured second-place finishes in the season’s final three tournaments, including the NJCAA Division I National Championship.
The Odessa College men’s golfer was the only NJCAA Division I golfer to hold a 2024–25 scoring average below 70 (69.525), and he carded 18 rounds in the 60s. Bresnu is Odessa’s second Nicklaus Award recipient, joining Abraham Ancer (2010).
View this post on Instagram
Joining Bresnu as an awardee are David Ford of North Carolina, Adam Duncan of Colorado Christian, Jonathan McEwen of Washington & Lee, and Jack Whaley of Dalton State.
“This year’s group of winners once again demonstrates the incredible depth of talent in the collegiate game, which has led to parity at every level — evident in our Division I, II, and III recipients all being the first Nicklaus Award winners in their respective schools’ history,” said Nicklaus.
“You only need to look at the PGA TOUR right now to see how strong college golf currently is, and how that level of competition has prepared these players for success at the next level. The last five Division I winners of the Jack Nicklaus Award who have turned professional have all gone on to win on the PGA TOUR.”
Nicklaus, a Big Ten and NCAA Champion at Ohio State, helped to inspire and create the Jack Nicklaus Award in 1988. The award is now presented to the National Player of the Year in NCAA Divisions I, II, and III, as well as NAIA and NJCAA.
Follow Golf Digest Middle East on social media
Main Image: Harry Grimshaw
