Dan Brown’s first full season juggling life on the PGA Tour and DP World Tour hasn’t gone remotely according to plan.
After months of wrist and shoulder injuries, inconsistent results and mounting stress, the 31-year-old Englishman has decided he won’t return to the PGA Tour for the remainder of the 2026 season. Instead, Brown will finish the year on the DP World Tour, where he hopes familiar surroundings can help him rebuild physically and mentally.
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Brown earned PGA Tour membership through the 2025 Race to Dubai, but injuries followed him almost immediately.
He tied for 19th at the Sony Open in January, yet later revealed wrist discomfort had already surfaced during that week. He continued playing through the issue, eventually learning scans showed significant fluid buildup.
The results became increasingly difficult to manufacture. Brown missed several cuts during the spring before tying for 13th at the Zurich Classic and making the weekend at the PGA Championship. His best major result came at The Open, where he tied for 18th.
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Then another problem arrived.
Brown developed a frozen shoulder around The Open and later needed an injection. His wrist flared again, forcing him out of the British Masters, and he subsequently withdrew during the opening round of the BMW PGA Championship at Wentworth.
The physical setbacks eventually began affecting him beyond the golf course.
“For the first time in a long time, I’ve actually felt really stressed,” Brown said, explaining that his decision was largely about protecting his mental health.
Rather than return to America and chase PGA Tour status while less than fully healthy, Brown believes staying in Europe gives him his best chance to reset.
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“It felt like it was the right decision to come back and play the DP World Tour for the rest of my year,” he said.
Brown now says he’s finally beginning to feel healthier again and believes a few solid rounds could quickly restore his confidence.
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For a player with two DP World Tour victories already on his résumé, the rest of 2026 is no longer about grinding through pain.
It’s about getting healthy enough to make sure 2027 doesn’t look anything like this year.
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