Why Sam Burns’ infant nephew was top of mind after winning Sanderson Farms Championship

Sam Burns might end up being the PGA Tour’s next big thing. And if he is, he’ll climb the ranks with his family close to his heart.

Burns won the Sanderson Farms Championship on Sunday after blistering his way around Country Club of Jackson, where he finished 22 under, one shot better than runners-up Nick Watney and Cameron Young.

The 25-year-old shot 5-under 67 in the final round to secure his second career victory on Tour.

As he walked off the No. 18 green, he embraced his wife, Carolina Campbell, with a kiss. And in the front of his mind was his newborn nephew, Burns Walker, who is battling spinal meningitis at Children’s Medical Center in Dallas.

“He won’t remember because he’s only like 5 or 6 weeks old,” Burns said, “but I’ll definitely remember it, and our family will remember it. I’m just really thinking about my sister, her husband, their family and what they’ve experienced.”

Spinal meningitis is a serious infection that targets fluids around the brain and spinal cord. Outcomes can be positive if it is caught in time. Walker has been in the hospital for two weeks, Burns said, and it could be “a decent while” before he is out.

“So, yeah, just ask everyone to keep them in their thoughts and prayers,” Burns said.

Burns wore yellow on Sunday as part of the Jack Nicklaus-led initiative between the PGA Tour and Children’s Miracle Network Hospitals, which invited players to wear the color Nicklaus made famous in support of their local children’s hospitals.

The irony wasn’t lost on Burns.

The emotional victory was his second win of the calendar year, along with the Valspar Championship in Miami. He entered the day one shot behind leader Sahith Theegala but surpassed him with a final round that included seven birdies and two bogeys.

“I think last year having those experiences around the lead, I think those were really important for me,” Burns said. “I learned a lot. Having that under my belt today, that experience, was definitely helpful. Coming down the stretch, felt a lot different than I have in the past. Not necessarily more confident, but just in a better state of mind. (My) thinking process is much better. Those experiences definitely helped.”

Burns, a Shreveport native who played at LSU and currently lives in Monroe, told reporters his goal for this week and this season was to continue to fine-tune the things he needed to improve on and “we’ll see what happens.”

“It’s definitely come full circle,” said Burns, who made his PGA Tour debut in 2017 at the Sanderson Farms Championship. “This is one of my favorite events on Tour. I always enjoy coming here being close to home, and for (tournament director) Steve (Jent) to give me that opportunity as a kid coming out of college (in 2017) was really special to me.”

Going into the tournament, Burns had similar sentiments and said he was a fan of the course in Jackson with its Bermuda grass. His previous best finish in Jackson was a tie for third in 2019.

Now, as the latest champion, he hopes it brings him a lot more wins in the future.

“Being so close to home, it’s only two and a half hours from where I live now and having friends and family here is really cool,” Burns said. “… It meant a lot to me and, God willing, I’ll be able to play here for the next 20 years.”