SAN FRANCISCO – Whereas Jackson Koivun was ready for his activate the seventeenth gap at San Francisco’s Olympic Membership golf course, a less-talented colleague sliced a ball that whizzed only some ft away from his head on a cloudy afternoon Monday.
Did it appear to rattle Koivun, who was decked out in navy blue pants and a crisp white shirt emblazoned with the Auburn emblem?
In no way.
In his return to Northern California, the 20-year-old San Jose native and top-ranked beginner on the planet completed 2-under 68 on the primary day of the U.S. Males’s Beginner championship.
“It’s great to be back,” Koivun stated, including, “Going over and being able to play well on the PGA tour was really fun. I’m happy to get back to amateur golf and try to build off those experiences.”
As he alluded to, Koivun completed tied for fifth on the Wyndham Championship, took half within the U.S. Open and positioned top-15 in two different PGA competitions this summer time.
Koivun is on a trajectory that would see him be part of different Bay Space luminaries corresponding to Johnny Miller, Ken Venturi, Roger Maltbie and — maybe — Tiger Woods as stars of {the golfing} world.
Lengthy earlier than the collegiate celebrity rocketed as much as the highest of the USGA Beginner rankings as a youngster, Koivun was only a baby rising up in San Jose, the place he took an instantaneous liking to the game.
“We gave him plastic clubs early on, but he didn’t really get serious until he was about eight,” Koivun’s mom, Meghan, stated whereas surrounded by buddies from their previous neighborhood on Valley Glen Drive. “By then, he’d been competing down at the Santa Teresa Golf (Club) course.”
Opposite to the generally reported assertion that Koivun relocated to North Carolina when he was a younger baby, the household truly didn’t transfer to Chapel Hill till the budding star turned 17.
With Koivun having dedicated to play for Auburn, his dad and mom determined that dwelling inside driving distance of their son was essential.
However regardless that Koivun loves dwelling within the deep south – choosing up fishing as a favourite non-golf passion whereas in Alabama – he nonetheless has a delicate spot for the West Coast.
“I’m still a Cali kid at heart,” Koivun stated.
The California child has dominated the nation’s hardest convention. Koivun had arguably the best season within the historical past of school golf as a freshman in 2024.
He turned the primary to ever sweep the Fred Haskins, Ben Hogan, Jack Nicklaus and Phil Mickelson nationwide awards whereas headlining Auburn’s first nationwide championship group.
As a sophomore, Koivun proved his dominance was no fluke. He repeated as SEC Participant of the 12 months and first-team All-American whereas being a finalist for the Haskins, Hogan and Nicklaus awards.
Although enjoying on the beginner stage, Koivun has racked up endorsements by way of Title, Picture and Likeness offers that pay him like a seasoned skilled.
Funding advisor Betterment, together with Titleist, FootJoy and Foresight Sports activities make use of him as a pitchman. Numerous retailers report the full endorsement valuation surpasses $1 million.
So why keep in faculty? Effectively, Koivun stated cash will not be every thing, and there are nonetheless issues he needs to enhance upon.
“NIL is definitely a little bit of a factor, but at the end of the day, if you want to go pro, (you can if) you’re ready,” Koivun stated.
His dad and mom stated the household’s inner conversations about whether or not to show skilled are “constant,” however that the ultimate determination rests with one individual.
“We’re weighing all of the pros and cons, and we’re building a good team around him,” Meghan Koivun stated. “But he’s the leader of that team, and it’s his decision, and ultimately, we’re going to support him in whatever he decides.”
Because it stands, Koivun is ready to return to Auburn for his junior yr. And if he dominates the remainder of the nation’s most prestigious beginner event, as anticipated, it would present why the child from San Jose is one of the best on the planet.
Different Bay Space names and faces
Koivun was removed from the one Bay Space native competing for the crown in San Francisco.
Jaden Dumdumaya, a rising sophomore at USC, was a dominant pressure at De La Salle Excessive, the place he received two North Coast Part and CIF state titles.
Pepperdine’s William Walsh, the son of legendary Serra Excessive soccer coach Patrick Walsh, had two birdies on the primary day.
Florida’s Matthew Kress, a senior, was as soon as a standout at Bellarmine. He helped lead the Bells to the West Catholic Athletic League group championship in 2018.
San Jose State’s Avinash Iyer (Dougherty Valley), USF’s Jacob Goode, Santa Clara College’s JP Odland and Baron Szeto (Campolindo) are additionally competing.
Fifteen-year-old Aston Lim, only a sophomore at James Logan Excessive, is the youngest participant on the competitors.
