Reading time: 4 min
Key Takeaways
- Jackson Koivun’s rise: The 21-year-old American shot a record 259 at the 3M Open for his first PGA win.
- Jenny Shin’s patience: After ten years, she led wire-to-wire at the Scottish Open, defeating A Lim Kim by two strokes.
- Scottie Scheffler’s charge: Despite a Sunday 63, Scheffler couldn’t catch Koivun, finishing second.
The Weekend That Brought Two Stories Worth Telling
I’ve walked enough fairways to know that every tournament has a story beneath the leaderboard. This weekend, the PGA and LPGA gave us two that belong in the conversation for months to come.
First, Jackson Koivun. The kid is 21. He won the 3M Open with a 259 (–25). That’s not a score you play — that’s a score you earn after reading every green twice and trusting your hands when your head wants to interfere. He held off Scottie Scheffler, who shot a 63 on Sunday and still couldn’t reel him in.
Here’s the thing nobody talks about: Koivun did it with a swing that looks like it was built in a brown leather workshop. No gadgets, no gimmicks — just rhythm and a short game that reminded me of Hogan’s wedges. For only his third start as a pro, that’s not luck. That’s composure you find in older men who’ve taken their lumps.
PGA TOUR: 3M Open – Final Leaderboard
Koivun shot a final-round 66 to seal the deal. Three strokes ahead of Scheffler, who birdied five of his last seven to make a run. Hideki Matsuyama, Brian Harman, Chandler Phillips, and Denny McCarthy tied for third.
I’ve played that shot a thousand times — the one where you have a three‑shot lead and know one bad swing can let the whole field back in. Koivun never flinched. He drove it straight, his irons were laser‑like, and he made the putts that matter.
LPGA: ISPS Handa Women’s Scottish Open
On the other side of the pond, **Jenny Shin** reminded everyone that the game doesn’t owe you anything — but it rewards patience. The South Korean led from day one. At 33, she held a five‑stroke lead at midpoint and, even after a final‑round 75 (+3), won by two over A Lim Kim (68).
I walked the last nine of her round in my mind. A 75 on Sunday sounds like a stumble, but when you’ve been winning from the front since Thursday, it’s survival. And survival is part of the game that Bobby Jones figured out in 1928: you don’t have to be brilliant the last day — you just have to be smarter than everyone else.
Pauline Roussin‑Bouchard climbed into the top‑20, while Nastasia Nadaud finished T31. Nelly Korda settled for 16th, close to the final major of the season.
Why These Wins Matter
The game doesn’t owe you anything. Koivun’s win says that if you build your swing on fundamentals — grip, stance, alignment — you can beat anyone, even the world No. 1. Shin’s win says that persistence pays, even when a decade passes between trophies.
Walk the course. You’ll understand. These two players aren’t headlines — they’re the game itself, still teaching us after all these years.
Playing golf since before GPS rangefinders existed. Eddie covers the classic game — courses, technique, and the stories worth keeping.