Living a dream, Luke Clanton set for debut at RBC Canadian Open

Luke Clanton is champing at the bit to make his professional debut this week at the RBC Canadian Open at TPC Toronto.

"It's something you dream for always, constantly," Clanton said Tuesday. "To kind of now be here and to call myself a professional is a little bit -- honestly, a little bit weird at first because I've always been an amateur.

"It's amazing. I'm just excited to come out here and compete. It's not about the money. It's not about any of the fame. It's about competing with these guys on Tour. It's something I've chased for my whole, entire life, and especially my family."

Clanton, 21, was the top-ranked amateur in the world before turning pro this week. The Florida native and Florida State golfer secured his automatic PGA Tour card at Cognizant Classic in The Palm Beaches on Feb. 28 via the PGA Tour University accelerated pathway.

Clanton recorded two runner-up finishes among four PGA Tour top-10 finishes in 2024, becoming the first amateur since Jack Nicklaus in 1961 with at least three top-10 finishes on the PGA Tour in a year.

Now, Clanton aims to build off that success in his first visit to Canada.

And what goal does Clanton have in mind as he begins the next step of his career?

"My only goal is to stay process oriented as much as I can," Clanton said. "You can look very far into the future and say I want to win majors and PGA tournaments. Obviously everyone wants to do that. To me, it's staying connected to my team, staying connected to my family, and staying connected to the process as much as I can. It's a very generic answer as everyone says, but it's something true."

--Field Level Media