Jackson Koivun announced himself as professional golf’s newest superstar after winning the 3M Open on Sunday.
Koivun performed remarkably well during the final round at TPC Twin Cities on Sunday, with Scottie Scheffler breathing down his neck.
The 21-year-old won by three from the world number one in the end, in what was only his third start as a professional on the PGA Tour.
Jackson Koivun is now being billed as a real challenger to Scottie Scheffler‘s crown, and the 30-year-old from Dallas will be well aware of the Auburn graduate’s pedigree.
Koivun is already being tipped to make the US Presidents Cup team in September.
It does seem like he is absolutely nailed on to become one of the best players in the game very soon indeed, if he’s not already.
Koivun needs to be very wary, though. Nothing is guaranteed in the game of golf, especially when you are competing at the very highest level of the sport.
And Matt Wolff’s fall from grace proves that.
Jackson Koivun needs to be wary of what happened to Matt Wolff
Koivun’s game is undoubtedly tailor-made to achieve huge success on the PGA Tour and, indeed, in the major championships.
However, the same could be said for Matt Wolff back in 2019 after he won on the PGA Tour for the first time.
Coincidentally, Wolff, now a LIV Golf player, won the 3M Open in what was just his third start as a professional, just like Koivun did on Sunday.
He then went on to play some incredible golf in the majors in 2020, finishing tied for fourth at the PGA Championship at TPC Harding Park and second behind Bryson DeChambeau at the US Open at Winged Foot.
However, Wolff has been on a downward spiral since 2021, after he was disqualified at The Open Championship.
Since joining LIV Golf, the 27-year-old has experienced all sorts of problems and is still waiting for his first win on the Saudi-backed league.
Wolff has completely lost his game since joining LIV in 2022, recording just five top-10 finishes over the past four years.
The Oklahoma State graduate appeared to have it all.
Golf analysts and fans labelled him as the next golfing superstar after his win at the 3M Open in 2019.
He had the world at his feet, but perhaps he was guilty of everything coming to him too easily.
Matt Wolff’s work ethic questioned: ‘A lot of talent, but the talent’s wasted‘
The 27-year-old has battled numerous back injuries, while his work ethic was publicly called into question by Brooks Koepka, his former captain on LIV Golf’s Smash GC team.
“I mean, when you quit on your round, you give up and stuff like that, that’s not competing,“ Koepka told Sports Illustrated.
“I’m not a big fan of that. You don’t work hard. It’s very tough. It’s very tough to have even like a team dynamic when you’ve got one guy that won’t work, one guy is not going to give any effort, he’s going to quit on the course, break clubs, gets down, bad body language, it’s very tough.
“I’ve basically given up on him. A lot of talent, but I mean the talent’s wasted.“
Those comments from Koepka sum up Matt Wolff’s approach to the game over the past few years.
Jackson Koivun cannot afford to fall into the same trap. The 21-year-old may feel like he has the world at his feet right now, but Matt Wolff’s career is the perfect example of what can go wrong when you take your eye off the ball.
Koivun does not come across as someone who believes everything will fall into place for him without putting in serious hard work every single day.
However, he has to maintain his hunger and drive over the next two decades or so, if he is to fulfil his outstanding potential.
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