What happened to Richard Bland’s brother? All you need to know about Heath Bland's battle with cancer

The final round of the 2024 Senior US Open was delayed due to bad weather, throwing many players off their mark. However, Richard Bland rose to the occasion as he emerged victorious after a sudden-death playoff with Hiroyuki Fujita after four holes.

The LIV Golf star became the third player in the PGA Tour Champions history to win in his first two starts as a senior and have them both be Major championship victories. Richard Bland joins Arnold Palmer and Alex Cejka as the only players to accomplish this feat.

Richard Bland has credited his brother, Heath Bland, on several occasions for being his source of motivation and inspiration. Six years ago, Heath Bland was diagnosed with a life-threatening form of lung cancer.

Richard Bland's brother is now 55 years old and is undergoing treatment to battle the cancer. Following the LIV Golf player's victory at the 2024 Senior PGA Championship, Richard Bland gave away his Major championship trophy to his brother to lift his spirits. Bland said that his brother should be undergoing lung cancer surgery soon and is expected to recover promptly. He was quoted as saying to NBC (via LIV Golf):

"He should be getting his lung cancer surgery soon and it shouldn’t be too invasive. He’s in good spirits and very positive throughout. (The Senior PGA title) wasn’t mine; it was his. Maybe I can win this one for me."

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Richard Bland on his 2024 Senior US Open victory

Richard Bland was in a head-to-head competition with Hiroyuki Fujita for the 2024 Senior US Open title this week. The two were tied leading up to the third sudden-death playoff hole. Despite finding the bunker on the last hole, Richard Bland came in clutch with an incredible up-and-down save from the sand to take home the Major championship trophy and record two wins in his first two starts on the Champions Tour, both being Majors.

Here's what Richard Bland had to say to the PGA Tour about his record-creating victory at the 2024 Senior US Open.

"To get this one as well, to go two for two, is beyond my wildest dreams. I was just hoping going into the PGA that I was good enough to contend; I hadn’t played against these guys. But to be here with two majors – I’m at a loss for words at the moment. To be in that bracket, I’m probably doing a little disservice, to be honest with you. To be in that kind of bracket is very, very special and something you can only dream of."

Richard Bland started the final round of the Major five strokes behind Hiroyuki Fujita. The Japanese Tour star, however, had a rocky start to the day carding in three bogeys on the first four holes before play was suspended due to bad weather.

As play resumed, Bland stepped onto the course three shots behind Fujita. Here's what the 2024 Senior US Open champion had to say to the PGA Tour about his competitor.

"We were chasing him all week. He had the lead pretty much wire-to-wire. I was just thankful to get into the playoff."