What happens when a six-time PGA Tour winner trades proven equipment for a fresh start during the most crucial stretch of his career? For Max Homa, the answer came in the form of his most disappointing season yet.

The 34-year-old wrapped up his 2025 campaign at the Bank of Utah Championship with a candid Instagram confession. “2025 season is a wrap for me. Disappointing season. It’s not a true failure if u learn something from it, and boy did I learn a lot this year,” Homa wrote after finishing T9 at Black Desert Resort. The post marked the end of a brutal year that saw him plummet from elite status to barely hanging onto his Tour card.

Further, he added, “Looking forward to getting to work and making ‘26 my female dog. Huge thx to Utah and all the fans for showing out this week and making my last event of the year a fun one! #golf #pvo.”

The numbers tell a harsh story as well. Homa managed just two top-10 finishes across 24 tournaments in 2025. He missed eight cuts throughout the season. His earnings dropped to $1,636,827—a near 86% collapse from the $10.7 million he earned during his peak 2022-23 season. Even more telling, his world ranking crashed from 7th to 130th, the lowest it’s been since January 2020.

The season started with high hopes and fresh equipment. Homa signed a multi-year deal with Cobra Puma Golf and Lululemon in January, ditching his trusted Titleist clubs. He brought a new Cobra DS-Adapt LS driver and Limit3d irons to The Sentry for his season debut. The result? A disappointing T26 finish.

Things spiraled quickly from there. Homa withdrew from the Farmers Insurance Open after shooting an opening 77. Then came the nightmare stretch—five consecutive missed cuts through March. He shot 76-75 at The Genesis Invitational, 81-70 at the Arnold Palmer Invitational, and 79-71 at THE PLAYERS Championship. The new equipment never found its rhythm.

His strokes gained statistics painted an even bleaker picture. Homa ranked 147th on Tour with a -0.287 SG: Total for the season. Compare that to his peak 2022-23 performance when he averaged +1.104 SG: Total. His scoring average ballooned from 69.5 to 71.7 strokes per round.

The Masters in April offered brief hope with a T12 finish, earning him $462,000. However, that proved to be fool’s gold rather than a turnaround. His only top-5 came at the John Deere Classic in July, where he pushed through physical and mental challenges to finish T5 at 16-under par.

But wait, there is more.

Max Homa: From Ryder Cup hero to fighting for his Tour Card

The fall seemed impossible just two years ago. In 2023, Homa stood as Team USA’s brightest star at the Ryder Cup in Rome, posting a 3-1-1 record as the Americans’ leading point-scorer. He spent 59 consecutive weeks in the world’s top 10. He was the player everyone wanted on their team.

Fast forward to 2025, and Homa found himself in desperation mode during the fall season. He needed strong performances just to crack the top 100 and secure full playing privileges for 2026. The fall from grace was staggering—from Ryder Cup hero to fighting for basic Tour status in less than 24 months.

He clawed his way back with 5 top-25 finishes, including T19 at the Procore Championship and T18 at Sanderson Farms. Utah became his last stand. Despite dealing with a painful bone spur on his right ankle that required in-round medical treatment, Homa battled through. He posted rounds of 70-66-66-67 to finish at 15-under. The T9 result earned him $169,500 and pushed him to 93rd in the final FedExCup Fall standings.

“I kept thinking about my wife – she had a horrendous birth with our first son and she had major, major surgery, and there is just no way I could complain about a hurt ankle while I walked,” Homa said, referencing his wife Lacey’s difficult childbirth with their first son, Cam.

The season also saw Homa part ways with childhood friend and longtime caddie Joe Greiner in April. Then came the coaching carousel—splitting from Mark Blackburn for John Scott Rattan in October 2024, only to part ways with Rattan a year later.

Now Homa faces an off-season focused on surgery to remove the bone spur and potentially reuniting with Blackburn. At 34, he’s proven he has elite ability. The question is whether 2026 brings redemption or confirms his best days are behind him.