BLAINE, Minn. – To much of the golf world, Kurt Kitayama’s peak came two years ago, when he stunned the field at Bay Hill Club & Lodge to capture the Arnold Palmer Invitational presented by Mastercard, his lone PGA TOUR title at the time.

Kitayama doesn’t see it that way.

That victory in Orlando was indeed a career-defining moment – a flash of brilliance that announced him as a contender capable of holding his nerve against the world’s elite. But in Kitayama’s own estimation, it was less the product of a fully realized game and more the triumph of sheer tenacity – a performance stitched together through resilience rather than refinement. He survived errant tee shots, absorbed the sting of a triple bogey on Sunday after an out-of-bounds drive, and leaned on his putter to bail him out. It was a win marked by grit, not necessarily by completeness.

The aftermath proved as much. The confidence spike from Bay Hill didn’t translate to consistency. Kitayama missed seven cuts over the remainder of that season, managed just four top 10s in 2024 to miss the FedExCup Playoffs, and posted only two top 10s so far this year. He entered the year struggling to string together consistent performances, showing flashes on a not-yet-stable foundation.

But what mattered more to Kitayama was the evolution of his game. And quietly, steadily, it came. The driver that had once betrayed him became an asset. In 2023, the year of his Bay Hill win, Kitayama ranked 126th in Strokes Gained: Off-the-Tee, 42nd in Driving Distance, and a lowly 154th in Total Driving. This season? He sits at 12th in SG: Off-the-Tee, seventh in Driving Distance, and 42nd in Total Driving, a stark improvement in all three categories.

“I'm hitting it straighter and am more comfortable pulling out driver on holes I would have never hit driver on, and I think that's been the key,” Kitayama said Saturday at the 3M Open, where he carded an 11-under 60 in the third round to match the course record at TPC Twin Cities. “Overall, I’m a more complete, more consistent ball-striker. I just feel more comfortable over tough shots. … I feel more comfortable hitting the hard shot.”

So when Kitayama teed it up Sunday, trailing Akshay Bhatia and Thorbjørn Olesen by one, the player who emerged was not the same one who clawed to victory at Bay Hill. This was a steadier, surer Kitayama – one who trusted not only his instincts but also the meticulous work he had put in to rewire his game.

Kitayama birdied his opening two holes, then chipped in on the third to make it three in a row, a clear signal that once he pressed down the accelerator, it wasn’t coming back up. He tacked on three more birdies for a front-nine 29, ultimately finishing with a 6-under 65 and a one-stroke win over Sam Stevens. With just two bogeys on his card, his round unfolded with the poise of a player no longer surviving on grit alone but thriving on a complete arsenal of skills.

“What I’ve been working on is starting to show,” Kitayama said after his victory. “My ball-striking kind of dipped a little bit earlier this year, and now it's starting to come into form. Last year I hit it really well and my putting kind of let me down. Now it's starting to feel a lot better, I’m starting to see some results there.”

The win brings Kitayama to 53rd in the FedExCup, well inside the top-70 threshold for the FedExCup Playoffs, and in the mix for the top 50, which would earn him tee times in next year’s Signature Events.

And he did it all alongside his brother, Daniel, who has caddied for Kurt intermittently over the years. Daniel stepped in for the week while Kitayama’s regular caddie, Tim Tucker, reunited with Bryson DeChambeau. For Kitayama, the switch wasn’t a disruption but rather comfort – a reminder of his roots, and a quiet sense of calm amid the tension of Sunday.

“This win's going to be extra special having him on the bag,” Kitayama said. “It’s a very cool experience and really happy he's part of it.”

By the time the final putt dropped, it was more than just another win. It was a reclamation, a statement that his game is no longer propped up by fleeting moments of brilliance but anchored by balance, maturity and trust.

This wasn’t Bay Hill 2.0; it was something deeper. Kitayama’s triumph at the 3M Open reflects not only a shift in form but also a shift in identity. He is now a player who steps onto a tee box with the conviction that he can hit any shot required, even the daunting ones. He doesn’t have to wonder if the shot is in him; he knows it is. And perhaps most importantly, the person he's proving it to is himself. Not to the critics or the numbers or the volatile rhythms of the FedExCup, but to himself.

In a sport where confidence is both fragile and fleeting, that might be the most enduring victory of all.