Michael Brennan plays a practice round that Rickie Fowler predicted years ago

LOS ANGELES – When Rickie Fowler was looking for a player to round out his Tuesday practice round with Justin Thomas and Jordan Spieth, amateur Michael Brennan was happy to fill the fourth spot.

Brennan, who is entering his senior year at Wake Forest, qualified for the U.S. Open with an unlikely par save in a sudden-death playoff. It was one of the highlights from last week’s Final Qualifying, otherwise known as Golf’s Longest Day.

Brennan’s approach in the playoff came to rest in the thick grass lining a bunker, forcing him to address his ball with one foot in the bunker and one atop it. He chopped out a high flop shot that stopped about 6 feet from the hole. He sank the putt to earn his spot in the U.S. Open field.

The shot spread wide on social media, and it also allowed Brennan to live out a long-awaited dream. He was around 9 years old when he dressed as Fowler for Halloween. He wore an all-orange outfit, white belt and flat-brim cap, as well as a wig to emulate Fowler’s long hair.

The picture found its way to Fowler, who signed it and wrote, “Look forward to playing a practice round with you at the 2025 U.S. Open! Keep up the good work!!” before sending it back to Brennan.

The autograph has been hanging in the family basement since, and the opportunity to play with Fowler, which came two years earlier than anticipated, has served as an inspiration over the years.

“Focusing on the day-to-day can be pretty tough. You can get down pretty easily and up pretty easily,” Brennan said Tuesday afternoon after their practice round. “Trying to keep an even keel and making sure you are focused on something down the road like this has been great for my development and progress.”

Brennan has developed into the world’s 14th-ranked amateur and an All-American at Wake Forest.

Both he and Fowler are both represented by Wasserman Golf, which made it easier to make the practice round a reality. They were connected on a group text and found that Tuesday afternoon worked well for both. Brennan even sank a birdie putt on the final hole to give he and Fowler a victory over the indomitable duo of Spieth and Thomas.

Fowler dressed up as World Golf Hall of Famer Fred Couples for one Halloween as a kid. He’s since become friends with Couples. Now Fowler is playing with guys who looked up to him.

“It makes me feel a little older,” he joked. “That’s really what it’s all about, being in a position to make a positive impact on people’s lives. To have the following, the fans I’ve had the past 14 years is awesome. To see someone who looked up to me and now has passed me -- he’s a bit taller than me -- to be playing a U.S. Open is really cool.”