Michael Thorbjornsen’s rise has drawn attention from golf fans who have watched him surge from a standout junior player to a polished young pro. Although he has no PGA Tour title under his belt, he has delivered multiple strong performances since turning pro in 2024. He rose to glory at the 2018 U.S. Junior Amateur at Baltusrol Golf Club. Thorbjornsen defeated the then-nation’s No. 1 amateur, Akshay Bhatia, and established himself as an elite star. However, many viewers who take notice of his rapid climb are often confused about his nationality.

Born on September 16, 2001, to Thorbjorn Thorbjornsen and Sandra Chiang, the youngster hails from Cleveland, Ohio. So, the simple answer is that Michael Thorbjornsen is an American. In fact, he has also represented Team USA in the Junior Ryder Cup and the Junior President’s Cup. The American golfer debuted at the events in 2018 and 2019, respectively. While Thorbjornsen’s participation in these events speaks volumes about him being an American, his family roots are diverse.

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Michael Thorbjornsen’s family roots and religion

Michael Thorbjornsen’s father, Thorbjorn Thorbjornsen, is from Norway. Hence, his nationality often confuses people. Thorbjorn, who also goes by the name Ted, is an engineer who got obsessed with the technicalities of swinging. Therefore, a PGA Tour article also states that Ted is Michael’s longtime swing coach.

As for his mom, Sandra Chiang, she is from Zimbabwe. She was born and brought up in Harare, Zimbabwe. She then went to Norway, where she married Thorbjornsen’s father. However, she then moved to Cleveland, Ohio, when she was 23, shortly after marrying Ted. And on top of that, Sandra was a collegiate golfer herself at Ursuline College. Ted encouraged her to take up golf for networking, and she found out that she is a natural, as is her kid, Michael Thorbjornsen.

Although his parents are from Norway and Zimbabwe, Michael is an American professional golfer. But there’s no public information available on what religion he follows. Being a natural like his mother, the PGA Tour pro started swinging golf clubs when he was just 8 years old, and then moved on to make his mark in collegiate golf.

Michael Thorbjornsen’s collegiate golf career

Michael Thorbjornsen attended Stanford University, just like Tiger Woods, Notah Begay III, Tom Watson, and Rose Zhang. He started playing golf when he was just two years old. Thorbjornsen’s golf career before turning pro has been nothing short of outstanding. Before attending Stanford University, he attended Wellesley High School.

“He enjoys big moments,” said Stanford men’s golf coach Conrad Ray about Michael Thorbjornsen. “Tough shots or stressful situations don’t seem to affect him as much as other players.” And it seems that Ray was right about the American golfers. Thanks to his 2018 victory at the U.S. Junior Amateur, he became eligible for the 2019 US Open. And while most amateurs fail there, Thorbjornsen was able to make the cut. He became one of the two youngest to do so. He carded rounds of on par and two over par to make the cut. However, his final two rounds were not that great, as he finished 20 over par after four rounds.

After joining Stanford University, his game only improved. Thorbjornsen maintained high scoring averages of 72.09, 70.66, 69.26, and 70.49 as a freshman, sophomore, junior, and senior, respectively. He won seven amateur titles, including the 2022 Fighting Illini Invitational and the 2023 Pac-12 Championships.

His performance at Stanford propelled him to No. 1 in the PGA Tour University rankings, a pathway specifically designed for NCAA players. This got him a pro card for the rest of the 2024 season and the 2025 season. And since then, he has been impressing fellow pro golfers and fans on the PGA Tour.

Michael Thorbjornsen’s personal life and lifestyle

There’s not much information available about Thorbjornsen’s personal life and lifestyle. However, it seemed like he was looking for a girlfriend. “I mean, every I you see all the girlfriends and the wives and the different players, and I’m just eating lunch by myself sometimes. I’m like, damn, like this sucks,” Thorbjornsen admitted about single life on the Tour. He said that he has found a solution in Luke Clanton, as both of them are single.

While his comments hint that he might be looking for the love of his life, his Instagram handle shows that he is largely focused on golf. His account is filled with posts on golf courses. Even the initial posts shared before he turned pro include his college golf teammates and friends.

A recent Instagram post where he is seen outside the golf course shows that he is interested in many other sports, too. The carousel post is captioned, “Slow is smooth, smooth is fast 🏎️.” The post features him enjoying himself with his friends. But besides that, there are two images in the carousel, one of a tennis court and the other of a baseball field. This hints that Michael Thorbjornsen enjoys watching different sports, but is a hardcore fan of playing golf as an American golfer on the PGA Tour.