Amanda Balionis Highlights Unseen Struggles of Most Recent PGA Tour Winner: “Took Him 7 Years”

The 2025 John Deere Classic, held at the TPC Deere Run in Silvis, Illinois, once again lived up to its reputation as the PGA Tour’s quintessential summer stop. Nestled just a week before The Open Championship, this event drew a diverse field, all vying for a ticket to the season’s final major and valuable FedEx Cup points. However, the spotlight this week belonged to Brian Campbell, whom Amanda Balionis portrayed not just as a winner, but as a story of resilience.

Brian Campbell might not be a household name like some of his peers, but this year, the 32-year-old has carved a place for himself among the elite. He is one of the six players on tour to have had two wins this year, including the one in Illinois on Sunday. He shot a score of 20-under par over four days, but was forced into a playoff with Argentinian Emiliano Grillo. The playoff was tight as both of them battled it out till the last moment, and Campbell’s win sent the crowd into a frenzy. It was because his triumph at the John Deere Classic was about far more than the trophy—it was a triumph of perseverance.

Balionis, who was also impressed by the heartfelt win, took to Instagram during the tournament to highlight Campbell’s evolution. “10 years after making his professional debut at the @johndeereclassic @brian_campbell4 now walks away from today as a winner of the event that helped to start it all. Add in the fact that Campbell went to school not far from here and feels so at home here you know this one meant a lot,” Balionis captioned her post where she posted pictures of her interviewing Campbell post his victory. Campbell, although born in California, went to the University of Illinois for college. Spending nearly four years here, the win in Illinois was almost a homecoming for him.

“For those who don’t know his story: Campbell turned pro in 2015 and made it out to the PGA TOUR in 2017. He promptly lost his card after his rookie year and it took him 7 years to earn his way back. He now is a ✌️time winner with plenty of job security. Just awesome stuff,” Balionis also added. She highlighted that his journey has been far from easy, as he spent much of the last decade grinding on the Korn Ferry Tour. He battled a lot of doubt and injuries along the way, and it took him ten years to claim a title on the PGA Tour after turning professional in 2015, when he won the Mexico Open in February of this year.

It took Campbell nearly 187 starts across the Korn Ferry Tour and the PGA Tour to step into the winner’s circle after a decade. Campbell’s recent form had been erratic, with 8 missed cuts and most events yielding finishes outside the top 30. So when he entered last week at the John Deere Classic, very few expected him to contend, and he was taken aback by his victory, too. “It’s wild. If I’m honest, I didn’t see this happening at all this year,” Campbell said. He said he was “blank” after tapping in his last putt during the playoff to secure the win and the $1.5M winner’s purse.

This surprising win has now put Campbell among the elite winners’ circle, and Campbell now has an opportunity to enter the season-ending playoffs.

The road ahead for Campbell

Brian Campbell knew when he entered this week that his game was in the right place, but it was his mental game that needed tweaking —“I knew my game was in a good place. I was just focused on the right things and controlling what I can control, and focusing on myself.” And it is exactly this mentality he will need going forward. When he started this year, he was ranked 220th on the OWGR. But with two wins, he has now bumped up to 115th. With his shocking win on Sunday, Campbell is now ranked 28th on the FedEx Cup rankings and bumped up 31 places as a result.

His rankings imply that he now has a better chance at the Tour Championship in the season-end playoffs, and will also likely secure a spot at The Open Championship, which is just a week away. Campbell now also has a potential chance to play in the Ryder Cup with his current form, but it all depends on Keegan Bradley, who has the power to decide on the deserving spots for Team U.S.A. The win also grants him a two-year exemption on the tour, and with his OWGR boosted, he has rewritten his career arc.