Who is Dan Brown, the first round leader at the 2024 British Open?

Dan Brown was the surprise name at the top of the leaderboard at the end of the first round of the 2024 British Open at Royal Troon and the little-known Englishman has continued to mix it with Scottie Scheffler, Shane Lowry and Xander Schauffele even though most expected him to fade away.

How did Brown qualify for the 2024 Open Championship?

The Yorkshireman only secured his place in his first major after making a 20-foot birdie putt on the 18th hole at a final qualifying event in West Lancashire (England) a couple of weeks ago.

Todd Hamilton and Ben Curtis are two unlikely Open Championship winners that immediately spring to mind and world No. 272 Brown is now hoping to join the club of left-field champions.

Dan Brown’s professional golf career: events, cuts made, tournament wins...

Incredibly, the 29-year-old is playing in his first ever major in just his second ever season on the DP World Tour/European Tour.

After playing in the KLM Open (also known as the Dutch Open) as an amateur in 2015, Brown took part in the European Tour Qualifying School in 2017 but failed to earn a card.

The following year, he struggled on the Challenge Tour, the second-tier professional Golf tour in Europe, which saw him drop down to the PGA EuroPro Tour for three seasons until 2021.

Brown made his way back up to the Challenge Tour in time for 2022, at the end of which he finally managed to claim a European Tour place for 2023, which was his first full season playing regularly at that level.

Since the start of last season, he has played in 46 events, making the cut on 32 occasions. And Brown has one victory to his name, winning the now discontinued ISPS Handa World Invitational in Northern Ireland in August 2023. That triumph earned him €234,297.57 (over $255,000), the biggest return of his career so far, although one which would pale in comparison to what he could make this week at Troon.

How much could Brown win at the 2024 British Open?

During his professional career to date, Brown has earned a total of €917,150.35 (just under $1 million). If he does the unthinkable at the 2024 Open, he will take home $3.1 million for four days’ work.