MEDINAH, IL — Meghan Koivun didn’t notice the custom Footjoy golf shoes emblazoned with tiny American flags until the very end of her son’s practice round.
"They get so much stuff," she marveled.
And then it occurred to the mother of the next great American golf star what this might mean for her once the 2026 Presidents Cup is over.
"He's playing the Utah event next week,” Meghan Koivun said, “and I don't know where this stuff is gonna go."
Jackson Koivun began Thursday, Sept. 24, as the biggest curiosity playing in the biennial team match-play event at Medinah Country Club.
The 21-year-old captain’s pick had one of the most decorated amateur careers since Tiger Woods and
became the first college golfer in history to claim all three national player of the year awards twice while at Auburn. He had three top-10 finishes in PGA Tour events playing as an amateur last year, qualified for the past two U.S. Opens and then won the 3M Open in his third PGA Tour start after officially making his pro debut in July.
Koivun is the second-youngest player chosen for the Presidents Cup behind Jordan Spieth in 2013, and U.S. team captain Brandt Snedeker bypassed several veterans with extensive PGA Tour credentials. It's the latest sign that Koivun could be golf's next big thing and he is perhaps providing the Americans with a template for nurturing young players that can be emulated for international team competitions moving forward. But in addition to those stakes, there are Koivun’s steaks. It’s the best meal he can make right now, his mom said while watching with her son during Wednesday's practice session.
She and her husband helped Koivun move in to a new house in Florida earlier this month. It was George Koivun who introduced his son to the sport as a 4-year-old growing up in Northern California. It was Meghan Koivun who often took him to the course day-after-day.
They don't yet see him the way everyone else in the golf world does.
"I still get crazy phone calls," Meghan Koivun said. "The other week he had to go to the DMV. 'Mom, what do I do?' He's learning about room service."
"He still needs us," George Koivun added.
In that way, how Jackson Koivun is viewed by his older Presidents Cup teammates is very much in line with how he's viewed at home.
He is the rookie who was gleefully teased when forced to pose for a formal photo with everyone else's wives since he's the only single golfer in the competition. When Koivun was the last player to board the bus for the team's first practice session this week, "we gave him so much crap," Wyndham Clark said. Koivun still can't believe he's in the same group chat as Scottie Scheffler and the rest of the PGA Tour's top golfers.
Justin Thomas and Russell Henley have served as mentors, with Thomas picked by Snedeker to be Koivun's partner during Thursday's four-ball session. This week, Thomas told Koivun, is an "out-of-body experience … and a lot of other 21-year-olds would kill for that feeling."
"When you've got so many people watching and there's such a small group of guys, there's pressure on you," Koivun said. "But I love pressure."
His family is still figuring out how far that might take him.
Koivun "just loved being first," his mother said. "There's nothing spectacular about him until he gets out here."
But surveying the 9th hole at Medinah Country Club, Koivun's parents were reminded once again of the circles their son now runs in.
Collin Morikawa, Thomas, Clark and Koivun had each lined up their balls for a long putt at the edge of the green to close their practice round. As they spoke amongst one another, George Koivun quickly realized the situation his son had suddenly encountered.
"Now," he said, "there's some money on the line."
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Jackson Koivun might be golf's next star. He still calls mom for help.
