Next Up: Miles Russell, 17, Qualifies for 2026 U.S. Open

Hardcore golf fans know his name. Casual golf fans are about to. 

He is Miles Russell, the 17-year-old top-ranked junior golfer in the world and one of the 43 players to earn a spot in the 126th U.S. Open on Golf’s Longest Day. Russell advanced through Final Qualifying at BallenIsles Country Club in Palm Beach Gardens, Florida, surviving a three-for-two playoff to punch his ticket to Shinnecock Hills.

Russell’s résumé at the junior level is already astounding. At age 15, he became the youngest player to win AJGA Player of the Year, breaking a record previously held by Tiger Woods. He has won the Junior PGA, Junior Players, and Sage Valley Invitational, three of the premier events in junior golf. He also posted back-to-back top-five finishes in the Jones Cup Invitational the last two years and reached the quarterfinals of last summer’s U.S. Amateur at age 16. 

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Against older and more physically developed competition, Russell has consistently played to a level rarely seen for someone his age. Golf is a sport prone to recency bias and hyperbole, but it is not an exaggeration to say that Russell is the most promising amateur prospect in decades. Earlier this year, in fact, an agent who specializes in evaluating talent told me Russell is the best junior golfer he has ever seen. 

Similarly, in a January episode of the Fried Egg Golf Podcast, Andy Johnson asked Will Zalatoris who the most underrated golfer in the world is. “He’s one of the most naturally gifted kids I’ve ever seen…Every time I’ve been around this kid, I’m just like, ‘Wow, you are 16 or 17 and you’re doing stuff Tour pros can’t even do,” Zalatoris responded in reference to Russell. 

The kid is good. Like, really good. 

Still, expectations should be tempered for how Russell might perform in his major championship debut next week at Shinnecock Hills. He is just 17 years old and has another year of high school ahead of him. The best golf in the world is being played by professionals in their late 20s through mid 30s. Nonetheless, Russell’s performance at Final Qualifying only reinforces the extraordinary talent the young lefty possesses. 

On a pressure-packed day, Russell fired 71-67 despite making a triple bogey in his first round and a double bogey in his second. He threw away multiple shots and still advanced, an indicator that he was, at the very least, one of the most talented players in the field despite his young age.

As for whether Charlie Woods — Tiger’s son and a fellow Florida State commit — will remain on the bag next week after caddying for Russell in the qualifier, Russell said that is “to be determined.” 

Whoever is carrying the bag, Russell’s major championship debut will be one worth watching.