Brandt Snedeker attended the Payne Stewart Award ceremony as a rookie. Now the honor goes to him

brand sniger a familiar name on the PGA tour has been recognized as the 2024 recipient of the prestigious pain stward award an honor that holds a special place in the hearts of professional golfers the award named after the late Payne Stewart celebrates a player who best exemplifies Stuart's values of character sportsmanship and charitable work for sneer receiving this award was not just a professional Milestone but also a deeply personal achievement rooted in his family's history and connection to the steuart Legacy snedaker now a season veteran of the PGA Tour was still a student at Vanderbilt University when Payne Stewart tragically passed away in a plane crash in October 1999 although snedaker never had the chance to meet Stuart his connection to the golfing Legend was more profound than a simple admiration from afar sneaker's family hailes from Springfield Missouri the same area where Stuart was raised his grandmother had a direct connection to Stuart's father a relationship that played a pivotal role in sneaker's own journey into the World of Golf my grandmother actually knew Stewart's father and that's how she became a golf fan stic or shared she didn't play golf herself but that connection inspired her to get me started in the game indirectly through Payne's father I found my way to golf at an early age it's amazing to think that a single interaction she had with Payne's dad led to me holding this award 37 years later it means so much to me the pain stward award ceremony has become one of the most anticipated events on the PGA tour known for its emotional tributes and the heartfelt speeches of its recipients sneaker's first first exposure to the award came during his rookie year in 2007 a year that saw him win the Windham championship and earn a spot in the Tour Championship the ceremony that year honored Hal Sutton and sniger then a young player full of ambition set a personal goal to one day be on that stage I attended the pain stward award ceremony every year I qualified for the Tour Championship snedaker recalled seeing these icons of the game My Heroes break down on stage as they recounted their Journeys and the impact they made on their communities was incredibly inspiring it reinforced what the tour is all about and what I aspired to be as a professional golfer the pain stward award is not just about Excellence on the golf course it's about the broader impact a player has on society their integrity and their contributions to the game Beyond just playing for sneaker whose career has been marked by consistent performance humility and a commitment to giving back this recognition serves as a testament to his dedication to these values