Five Things to Know: Michael Thorbjornsen

1 - Massachusetts amateur

Thorbjornsen, a 20-year-old amateur from Wellesley, Massachusetts, got into the Travelers Championship as a sponsor exemption and shot 68-65 to easily make the cut. With three birdies in his first eight holes Saturday, he was suddenly just four shots behind 36-hole leader Xander Schauffele.

2 - College Cardinal

He recently finished his sophomore year at Stanford, where his best result was a runner-up at the Cabo Collegiate. He was named second-team All-American and tied for 32nd at the NCAA Championship, which he called a disappointment.

3 - Homegrown U.S. Open

For the last few years he had circled the U.S. Open at The Country Club in Brookline, about 15 minutes from where he grew up, and survived an 8-for-3 playoff to make the field. “It feels like a home event,” he said. Alas, the winner of the 2021 Massachusetts Amateur shot 77-69 to miss the cut by three.

4 -Beware the injured golfer

Although he is playing well, he’s not entirely healthy. “I'm kind of struggling with some wrist injuries right now,” Thorbjornsen said last week. “Going to the physio lab there helps a lot. I've been in there every single day. Maybe been in there longer than I have been on the course practicing.”

5 - Junior Presidents Cup experience

He played in the 2019 Junior Presidents Cup in Melbourne, and his mother, Sandra, played golf for Ursuline College in Pepper Pike, Ohio.