Fred Garcia was stuck on the lesson tee at Cinnabar Hills Golf Club in San Jose, California all afternoon Saturday as his prized pupil, Jackson Koivun, lit up TPC Twin Cities in Blaine, Minnesota to the tune of 10-under 61. Fortunately, his wife recorded it so they could enjoy Koivun's brilliant performance that evening.
On Sunday, they were glued to the TV as Koivun held off World No. 1 Scottie Scheffler by three strokes to win the 3M Open, his maiden PGA Tour title, in just his third start as a pro.
“People have asked me, 'Did you see this coming?' And I go, 'Nothing that he does surprises me,' ” Garcia said in a phone interview with Golfweek on Sunday night. “We're so used to him doing great things.”
Garcia was in regular communication with Koivun, who he has taught since he was 12, all week. He recalled receiving videos of Koivun’s swing on the eve of the 3M Open from his caddie, David Flynn, and that Koivun had complained that it didn't feel great, but it was trending in the right direction. When Garcia asked Flynn for his assessment, he said, “It’s still not 100 percent but it's good enough.”
People are also reading…
Jackson Koivun likes to write reminders on his golf glove. Here's the original message from 2024. In winning the 2026 3M Open, he had the words trust, confidence and dominate.
Good enough for Koivun is better than most, especially given his velvety touch on the green. On Wednesday night, Garcia spoke to Koivun on the phone, who told him his putter was on the verge of warming up. "He said, 'It’s going to be a good week,' ” Garcia recounted.
Was it ever. Garcia watched Golf Channel’s early-round coverage Thursday as Koivun raced to a 64 and followed up with a ho-hum 68 on Friday to trail Michael Kim by four shots after Kim's otherworldly 59. Garcia figured Koivun was poised for a big weekend.
“After Friday's round, I texted him and he said, ‘Yeah, not the best day. I didn't have it,’ and I told him, ‘You know what the great players do when they're not hitting it very good? They shoot under par, and you shot 3 under.’ To me that was the big round for him," Garcia said. "To not have the so-called ‘A-game’ and still shoot 3 under, that kept him up toward the lead. And then Saturday, you know, he just went crazy on the back nine.”
Koivun played the last 10 holes of his third round in 9 under, including a pair of eagles, to build a three-stroke cushion on his nearest competitor and pull a touchdown ahead of Scheffler. Garcia talked to Koivun that night and marveled at the maturity of the 21-year-old as he dealt with sleeping on his first 54-hole lead on the PGA Tour.
“He sounded so good, so relaxed, so confident, and he goes, ‘You know, today's round's over. I'm just focused on tomorrow, and I just want to go out and see how much I can win by.’ It wasn’t the typical, I just hope I can win or hope I play well, nothing like that. He’s thinking about how much is he going to win by,” Garcia said. “That's his belief in himself. And to me, that's what has always separated him from everybody else.”
In case he needed a reminder, all he had to do was look at his glove. As highlighted on the CBS broadcast, Koivun had three words written on his golf glove: trust, confidence and dominate. It’s something he’s done since his freshman year at Auburn in 2024.
Jackson Koivun walks to the eighth tee during Sunday’s final round of the 3M Open at TPC Twin Cities in Blaine, Minn.
“I think the first time we ever did it, it was ‘Be yourself and have fun,' ” Garcia recalled, and it mushroomed into other words with short-game coach Josh Gregory responsible for the addition this spring of ‘dominate.’ “We talked about what are his goals for the eight tournaments left, including the NCAA’s, and he goes, ‘I just want to win every event and not just win but I want to dominate.' ”
He’s did just that, claiming six of his last 10 college events as Auburn won the national title for the second time in three years.
On Sunday, Koivun rolled in a short birdie putt at the first hole and was making things look easy with three birdies in the first six holes. He saved par at Nos. 7 and 9 when he missed greens in regulation and seemed unfazed as Scheffler made a late charge with 63.
“He had that look of calmness,” Garcia said. “To me, the bigger the spotlight, the more he shines. He's not afraid of the big moments. I knew this wasn't going to be too big for him.”
Garcia continued, chuckling at how after the round Koivun made note of hearing the crowd saying, “Scottie’s coming.”
“Knowing him, he used that as fuel,” Garcia said. “You don't poke the bear, you know.”
Garcia was at the John Deere Classic for Koivun’s pro debut last month and said the hype and hoopla proved to be a bit too much for him as he missed the 36-hole cut.
“It was just a whirlwind, and he was just not quite himself and he admitted he wasn't quite prepared for everything and it was a stressful two weeks (U.S. Open the week prior in his amateur swan song) and you could just tell that he was a little worn down and stressed, and he didn't play like himself,” Garcia said. “In retrospect, it was a good thing that he missed the cut because it kind of showed that there were some things that we all had to focus more on – plan better, schedule better, stuff that needed to be addressed, and he's addressed them.”
As Koivun reached the final hole at the 3M Open with a comfortable lead, Garcia said he was yelling at the TV for Koivun to hit 3-iron off the tee and take the water and other potential trouble out of play. Koivun didn’t listen, opting for driver. But reaching the water was of no concern as he hit about 6 inches behind the ball, recording the shortest drive on 18 all week at just 249 yards.
Koivun fights late Scheffler charge to claim 1st PGA Tour title at 3M Open
“His reaction was just priceless,” Garcia said. “He was laughing it off.”
Garcia has heard the chatter that despite just turning pro Koivun should be a pick for the U.S. Presidents Cup team in late September, and said it’s certainly one of his goals.
“He wants to be on those big stages, those big events,” Garcia said. “That'd be awesome if he's a captain's pick for the Presidents Cup, especially if he plays well in the coming events. Can you just imagine him paired with Scottie in a match?”
Garcia has watched Koivun progress in the game since he was 7 years old to the point that it seems silly to him for U.S. captain Brandt Snedeker not to take him. Garcia called his star pupil's work ethic second to none. He recalled how he had to make 100 straight 5-footers before he’d go home for dinner – he made 51 of 51 from inside 5 feet at the 3M – and more recently, how after winning his fifth straight collegiate title, he practiced on the putting green when he got back to Auburn by the light of his phone because he thought he should have won by more strokes.
“This is what he's wanted as long as I've known him,” Garcia said. “This will only give him more confidence, if that's even possible, to do even bigger and better things, greater things.”
