Jackson Koivun has had one of the best freshman seasons in college golf history. Over the course of his introductory season at Auburn, he has won several awards, including the Fred Haskins Award, which is widely considered the Heisman Trophy of college golf, the Ben Hogan and Jack Nicklaus Awards for his Player of the Year achievements, and last but not least the Phil Mickelson Freshman of the Year Award.
If all that wasn’t enough, Koivun helped bring the Auburn Tigers its first men’s golf national championship in school history. The 19 year old also currently holds the runner up spot under Gordon Sargent in the World Amateur Golf Rankings (WAGR).
Because of Koivun’s stellar season, he has the opportunity to receive a PGA Tour card by the end of the summer through the PGA Tour University Accelerated. Through PGA Tour University Accelerated, any college freshman, sophomore, or junior who is eligible can earn Tour membership and has the ability to play in all open, full-field Tour events.
Players earn Tour membership after they amass 20 points by the end of their third year of playing NCAA golf. After one season, Koivun holds 16 points and will be receiving his 17th in July when he competes in the Arnold Palmer Cup in Ireland.
The breakdown for Koivun’s current earned points is as follows: he received three points each for winning the Haskins, Hogan, and Nicklaus Awards, as well as two for the Mickelson, bringing him to 11. For his world No. 2 ranking in the WAGR, he earned four more points, which put him at 15 in total; if his strong strong form continues, he could be looking at a No. 1 spot in the rankings and receiving another point. Making the cut at the Memorial Tournament a couple weeks ago got him his 16th point. The Memorial was his first PGA start, which he got into when he won the Nicklaus award.
With 16 total points currently and a guaranteed 17th on the way, Koivun is three shy of getting his PGA Tour card before he starts his sophomore year in college.
He has many opportunities to earn those points during his summer schedule including amateur events. If he were to win the Western Amateur, he would earn two points. Winning the U.S. Amateur, which he was a quarterfinalist at in 2023, is three. He’s also in the field this week for the PGA Tour’s Rocket Mortgage Classic!
Though it seems unlikely that he will play in the Open Championship, it is worth noting that making a start in a major is worth a point, making the cut another, and finishing inside the top 20 will get you two points.
Even if he doesn’t get his card before the end of the summer, it is a matter of when, not if, Jackson Koivun earns his PGA membership and joins Gordon Sargent. Perhaps next summer there will be two new faces joining the Tour: Koivun and the winner of the 2025 PGA Tour University standings.
Photo Credit: Zac BonDurant (via Auburn Tigers)
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