Jackson Koivun: A Rising Star and His Dangerous Superpower

What felt like an inevitability has arrived: in just his third start since turning professional, Jackson Koivun is a PGA Tour winner.

As a two-time Haskins Award winner and three-time SEC individual champion, the 21-year-old Koivun entered the professional ranks with as much hype as just about any amateur in recent memory. In his spring college season alone, he won six times in 10 starts and never finished outside the top 10. The phrase “can’t-miss prospect” should be used sparingly in a sport as unpredictable as golf, but Koivun’s résumé made it an appropriate label for him.

Still, success in professional golf is rarely as inevitable as it seems. Many decorated amateurs turn professional with hefty expectations, only to find themselves searching for their first victory decades later. Fortunately for Koivun, he won’t have that problem.

After a back nine 8-under 28 on Saturday that included one of the best 3-woods you’ll see in professional golf all year, Koivun entered the final round with a three-shot lead. With his first chance to convert a 54-hole lead in his pro career, he never wavered.

The Auburn product set the tone early on Sunday, splitting the fairway on the first hole and stuffing the wedge to a foot. The tournament only really tightened on the ninth hole, as Scottie Scheffler had surged into second place while Koivun sized up a 15-foot par putt. A miss could have taken some of the wind out of Koivun’s sails and opened the door for Scheffler. Instead, Koivun buried the putt in the center.

“If I missed that, then I only had a two-shot lead where last time I checked I had a five-shot lead,” Koivun said after the win. “So making that was huge for my momentum, just helped me keep it rolling on the back nine.”

From there, Koivun never looked back. He carded a bogey-free 66 in the final round to beat Scheffler by three shots and finish five strokes clear of third place.

For the week, Koivun led the field in Strokes Gained: Approach and ranked third in Strokes Gained: Putting. Across nine starts in pro tournaments dating back to last year’s U.S. Open, Koivun hasn’t shown a glaring weakness in the bag. He is accurate off the tee with roughly Tour average ball speed, hovering around 176 mph. His current speed is sufficient to contend at the highest level and will likely increase as he physically matures. For reference, Scheffler’s average ball speed is just north of 178 mph. Koivun’s iron play is excellent, his short game is, at a minimum, adequate, and close followers of college golf insist he’s one of the best putters they’ve ever watched. Every indication is that the young phenom is the complete package.

Equally impressive might be what’s happening between his ears. Throughout the telecast on Sunday, the CBS team repeatedly praised his composure as he holed putt after putt and acknowledged the fans between holes. He looked every bit the part of a player who has made a habit of winning golf tournaments and who feels comfortable in contention.

“I would say my mentality,” he answered when asked about his best trait. “I feel like I've gotten a lot better over the past couple years of being able to beat guys with my mentality. Sometimes I watch guys hit on the range and I don't feel like I'm the most talented out there, but if I can go out there and believe and use my brain to my advantage, then that's definitely kind of like a superpower.”

Assuming he can stay healthy, Koivun’s biggest obstacle won’t be a particular weakness in his game. It will be managing insanely lofty expectations, both from the golf world and from himself.

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Three tournaments into his professional career, the conversation has already shifted to whether or not he should receive a Presidents Cup selection. To be clear, a captain’s pick is absolutely warranted should he play reasonably well over the coming weeks. The American side would be wise to start getting one of its most promising young talents acclimated to the team room.

At the same time, demanding immediate success from Koivun is an unrealistic expectation. The best golf is predominantly coming from players 27 and older. Every indication suggests Koivun belongs in the rare class of players capable of succeeding well ahead of schedule, but that does not mean his journey will unfold without its setbacks.

Over the next 12-24 months, Koivun could very well burn the golf world down. He could win a major next year and become the youngest champion since Jordan Spieth won the 2015 Masters at 21. Or, he could go through the natural growing pains that every golfer encounters in their professional career and find that the path to the top might be more difficult than it seemed on Sunday afternoon.

Given his pedigree and the display he put on in Minnesota this weekend, it’s reasonable to say that Jackson Koivun is the best prospect we’ve seen in at least a decade. It was true before this weekend, and it’s only more apparent now. Where he goes from here remains to be seen, and he deserves patience as he makes his way through the professional ranks, but there is no doubt Jackson Koivun has all the ingredients of a future superstar.

If this weekend is any indication, that future may arrive sooner than expected.