Welcome To The Koivun Show

Jackson Koivun has cemented his arrival to the PGA Tour with his first professional victory at the 3M Open. The 21-year-old former Auburn Tiger has had a summer many golfers couldn't even dream up, all coming together by outdueling the world's number 1 golfer & a few other major winners in getting that much-elusive first PGA title. Oh & he did so by breaking the tournament scoring record...not a big deal.

For the golf fans who don't keep a close eye on the college or amateur ranks, this explosion by Koivun is a total shock, but for those who are dialed into the game top to bottom, we all knew this was coming. In fact, some may say it's even somehow a year late. After a historic run last year as an Auburn Tiger sophomore & a summer of close calls as an amateur on the tour, though in smaller events...many experts had him forgoing his junior year to use his PGA Tour University status to get his card. Instead, Jackson went back to fine-tune his game a bit more, which could be the hook to his future documentaries.

In his junior season, all he did was win the national championship and the Fred Haskins, Jack Nichalaus & Ben Hogan awards (the Heisman & Naismith level for golf) for a second time before finally turning pro. So for context, he won a national championship June 3rd, teed off in the U.S. Open to a top 25 finish less than three weeks later, got a top 10 earlier this July (though again, he had 3 top 10s last year as an amateur), to now winning his first professional title in Minnesota over Scottie Scheffler himself. BUT this doesn't feel like a peak, instead, it's the summit to something even bigger ahead.

Koivun, though with only a few events under his belt, now has a legitimate chance at the FedEx Cup playoffs & the Presidents Cup this fall. Overnight, he has gone from the talks of golf's next generation quickly into 2027 major & Ryder Cup contention talk. His game is hard to find flaws in, as he can bomb it, chip it, & quietly be at his best on the greens with the flat stick. Of course, in today's game we know there will be growing pains, and also the depth of players to compete with could be getting deeper in 2027 with LIV falling apart; still, it's always exciting to see a young player pan out, especially after Luke Clanton, Nick Dunlap, & Caleb Surratt look to be struggling to find their lane. Josele Ballester, though on LIV, could also be right there as the next wave of players with Koivun.

On a Sunday with the lead, Koivun did not blink. Even with a charging Scottie Scheffler in his rearview, he found fairway after fairway, green after green. Today, though not a signature event or major, gave him valuable confidence & a breath of ease to get that first one under his belt. As the season wraps up over the next month-plus, he will be an easy one to root for as he goes from being the David against Goliath into our newest face of the game of golf. Welcome to the Jackson Koivun Era. Enjoy.