Luke Clanton squatted down and begged for his ball to go, watching it climb higher and higher through the South Florida night sky. He was waiting to find out what TV viewers were already well aware of – that the drive he just uncorked touched 191-mph ball speed and was going to soar more than 325 yards in the air and secure a win for his team in the Optum Golf Channel Games last month.

It was a reminder of Clanton’s surprising speed, which has been a signature element of the recently turned pro’s remarkable success. Clanton was among the 15 longest players on the PGA TOUR a year ago, despite standing just a hair over 6-foot and weighing a sinewy 165 pounds with a waistline in the low 30s.

So, as Clanton discussed his offseason priorities in an interview with PGATOUR.com at The RSM Classic last November, it came as a mild surprise when he pointed to weight gain as his top focus. In an era of golf in which distance is often a prerequisite to success, almost every player is searching for more of it. One of the easiest ways to do it? Get bigger and stronger. Yet Clanton was quick to point out that his motivation to bulk wasn’t speed-related. A full offseason of stuffing every crumb of food into his mouth had another major benefit he hopes will lead to a surge in his sophomore season: stamina.

“I just need to help the body out, recovery-wise,” Clanton said from the practice putting green at Sea Island, protein shake in hand.

If there’s something Clanton learned in an abbreviated rookie season on TOUR in 2025 it was that the golf wasn’t the hardest part. It was keeping his body, and mind, fresh enough to endure weeks and weeks of travel. So his goal over the offseason? Gain 10-15 pounds, not for speed but for sustainability.

Clanton would like to get to around 180 pounds when the bulking program is over. Despite consistent workout routines and food always at a player’s disposal during the season, it’s often hard for golfers to just maintain their weight during a PGA TOUR season. Chalk it up to the constant walking, stress of contention and never-ending travel; it’s not conducive to weight gain. It usually promotes weight loss and the accumulation of minor injuries and fatigue. The adjustment is particularly stark coming straight out of college golf, which features a much less rigorous schedule.

That acclimating period tracks with Clanton’s first season as a member, and what came before it. Much of his success on TOUR was before he officially acquired membership. He had a pair of runner-up finishes during a hot stretch during the summer of 2024 while away from college. That put him on the brink of status through the TOUR’s University Accelerated Program, which he secured early in 2025 with made cuts at the Farmers Insurance Open and the Cognizant Classic in The Palm Beaches. He turned pro in June and began playing full-time at the RBC Canadian Open, but the regular cadence didn’t yield consistent results. Clanton made eight of 13 cuts but registered just one top-30 finish. It was partly the fickle nature of the sport, as he couldn’t align all parts of his game in the same week. It was also partly the burden of travel, and the toll it put on his body and his mind.

“Travel is the hardest thing out of all of this,” Clanton said. “You know, I think, the golf kind of stays the same, but traveling in and out three weeks in a row, four weeks in a row, it's definitely different.”

Clanton sat out only two weeks of the Regular Season after he turned pro and they weren’t by choice. He just didn’t qualify for the U.S. Open or The Open Championship. He played another six times in the FedExCup Fall, intent on accumulating as many reps as possible. The RSM Classic marked his 18th event of the year, by far the busiest spurt of his young career.

When he makes his season debut at the Sony Open in Hawaii, it will offer a first glimpse at how successful Clanton was. The hope is that any added weight won’t affect the DNA of Clanton’s swing. That’s always the risk in adding mass, but Clanton is confident it will only lead to positive results, producing similar distances and ball speed with less effort.

“I have a great trainer, Joe Russo, who’s been helping me out a lot,” Clanton said. “I mean, I'm 165 pounds, so I know if I put on a few pounds, maybe if I have had to swing at 80%, now I can swing at 60%, and have the same number.”

The bulking plan is standard to anyone who has done it. A lot of food and a lot of lifting. The lifting isn’t new to Clanton, who said he’s always enjoyed the gym. The eating is a different story

“We're going to be just shoving down food, man. It's going to be brutal,” Clanton said. “I'm going to be honest with you. We were talking about calorie intake and how many meals I need and I was like, it's got to be five meals a day. So I'm going to feel fat for a couple weeks, but I'm excited, I mean, that's something that I've always kind of wanted to do and I've never really had time to do. So this offseason will be fun, just a lot of food.”

While much of the population has spent the last several weeks lamenting their eating habits over the holiday break, Clanton’s conscious should be clean. It’s all part of the plan.