PALM BEACH GARDENS, Florida — Jake Knapp is paired for the first time with four-time majors champion Rory McIlroy alongside defending champion Chris Kirk for the first two rounds of the Cognizant Classic at PGA National. The marquee pairing indicates the prominence Mr. Knapp has gained after capturing his first PGA Tour victory last Sunday at the Mexico Open.

“It’s very surreal, to be honest,” Mr. Knapp said during a press conference at the first tournament of the PGA Tour’s Florida Swing. “I’ve never met Rory, so I’m super excited to play with him. It’ll be cool to see his action in person. I’m sure there will be a bunch of people around.”

Mr. Knapp, who shot a three-under par 68 during Thursday’s opening round, is the one with the mustache and the mullet haircut he described as “something fun; something different,” he told the Sun.

The PGA Tour may have found something fun and different in Mr. Knapp, a 29-year-old rookie first-time winner, whose journey to the top of the leaderboard belies the idea golf is an individual sport.

His two-shot victory at the Mexico Open earned him not only $1.4 million in prize money but full exempt status through 2026, a spot in all remaining signature events — the Players, the Masters, the PGA Championship, and the 2025 Sentry.

His life-changing victory is shared with his family and friends at his hometown of Costa Mesa, California, where he first honed his skills at a public course, the Costa Mesa Country Club, before being given an honorary membership at nearby Mesa Verde Country Club in 2012.

A national television audience learned about his grandfather, Gordon Bowley, a Costa Mesa civic icon, who died from colon cancer in April 2023 at age 85. Mr. Knapp’s left arm bears a tattoo of his grandfather’s initials, G.S.F.B.

There is also his mom, Jennifer, dad Robert, and his older brother Ryan, a solid amateur golfer and former Mesa Verde Club Champion himself. Every Sunday the family gathers at a long table in the coffee shop at CMCC to connect about life. “Every Sunday they eat breakfast here,” a bartender at the club for 25 years, Omar Martinez, told the Sun. “Unless they’re watching Jake on TV.”

And there’s his long-time golf coach, John Ortega, who was at the Knapp home at Costa Mesa last Sunday when close friends and family gathered to watch Mr. Knapp live out his dream.

“We all had a lot of energy going in the right direction,” Mr. Ortega said. “It was a little tense at times. But he can do some stuff with a golf ball. When you watch him play, you know what I’m talking about.  He’s amazing.”

In his five PGA Tour events as a rookie, Mr. Knapp has made four cuts, adding a win to a tie for third at the Farmers Insurance Open.  His short game saved him last Sunday when he hit just two fairways. He now ranks 12 on the Money List, with $2,004,932 in earnings. “His performance has shown that he’s ready,” Mr. Ortega told the Sun. “You can say you’re ready all you want, but your performance speaks volumes.”

Mr. Ortega knew Mr. Knapp had a special talent in high school when he shot 61 in a U.S. Open qualifying event. “It was obvious at that point he had quite a bit of skill and the ability to shoot low scores when he’s on,” Mr. Ortega said.

It took time to develop into a champion, however. Mr. Knapp attended UCLA before turning pro in 2016 and sowed his seeds on the PGA Tour Canada where he won three times and the Korn Ferry Tour, where he temporarily lost his playing privileges and worked as a bouncer and bartender to make ends meet. Eventually, he persevered through injuries and the ups and downs of golf to earn his PGA Tour card by finishing 13 on the Money list in 2023.

With major talent moving to LIV Golf, the PGA Tour is looking for young golfers with good storylines ready to make their mark. Mr. Ortega thinks Mr. Knapp has the tools to become more than a one-weekend wonder.

“He’s very gritty, and he has a really good short game and hits it a mile,” Mr. Ortega said. “Guys who hit it far and have very good short games — that usually has a fairly positive outcome.”

Crowds will gather around televisions this weekend at Costa Mesa Country Club and Mesa Verde Country Club to watch Mr. Knapp continue his incredible start on the PGA Tour. They remember the child who would carry a golf bag bigger than he was around the course following his big brother.

“He’s a good kid from a good family and a great representative of our community,” a member of CMCC, Patrick McGonigle, told the Sun. “Those are the kind of people you root for.”

Mr. Knapp said he is focused on posting another good performance this week, but admitted it is difficult not to look ahead to his first appearance at the Masters. He vowed never to visit Augusta National until he competed in the tournament.

“I just didn’t have any interest in going to the course or anything like that until I’m playing in the event,” Mr. Knapp told the Sun.

The mullet at the Masters should be special.