If Jackson Koivun goes on to have the career everyone expects him to have, then his second-round 67 at the Bank of Utah Championship is likely to be long forgotten — a strip of film cut and left on the editing room floor, certainly not biopic material.
But, in real time, the 21-year-old keeps adding to his legend. And Friday afternoon, he penned his latest, thrilling chapter — an impressive stretch that saw him birdie three of the final five holes at the Black Desert Resort to make it to the weekend at 6 under.
With his back against the wall, Koivun found himself in the bunker off the tee at 18 and opted for a 3-wood — an aggressive choice that paid off with a circle as he watched his birdie putt fall in and raised his fist in celebration.
“Standing on the 9 tee with 10 holes to go I just told myself if I can make four or five birdies, I’ll be fine,” Koivun recalled after his round. “Obviously the cut got pretty deep at 6 (under), so I needed that birdie on 18. But I hit a pretty good drive, it just overturned just a little bit in that bunker. Didn’t have the greatest lie. But I pulled 3-wood and I was like, I’m going to go for broke here.
“I figured if I caught it heavy or something it would end up in the same spot as a layup,” he added. “Came out nicely, and then that chip was solid — just outside the gimmie range for the putt. It was pretty nerve wracking, but just happy to see it go in and fighting this weekend.”
SEE YOU THIS WEEKEND!
— Golf Channel (@GolfChannel) October 3, 2026
Standing on 18 tee, Jackson Koivun needed a birdie to make the cut at the Bank of Utah Championship.
Step up......!
Every shot from his final hole ⬇️ pic.twitter.com/Nx9jYf0j4r
After completing one of the most-decorated careers in men’s collegiate golf history, Koivun went on to win the 3M Open in Minneapolis this summer (world No. 1 Scottie Scheffler finished solo second, for what it’s worth) and then led the U.S. with a perfect 2-0-1 record at the Presidents Cup last weekend at Medinah.
He started his second round with a bogey at the 501-yard opening hole.
“This week it seems like I’ve been mentally pretty exhausted, just been struggling with some emotions this past two days,” said Koivun, who posted a 2-under 69 on Thursday after bogeying three straight holes on his front nine. “But there’s a lot of birdies to be made out on this golf course, and I feel like I’m hitting it great and hitting it well enough to go out there and execute and make some of those birdies. I’m really proud of the way I fought back on those last nine holes.”
His decision to play the 3-wood at 18 raised an eyebrow during the second-round’s live broadcast, and reporters were quick to ask if Koivun felt any hesitation with that decision.
“It’s something I do quite a bit and I’m comfortable with, obviously the lie wasn’t great but I figured if I just got on top of it and it would give me a pretty good look at a third shot,” he said.
Entering the weekend 11 shots off Austin Smotherman’s lead at 17 under, Koivun identified his putter as needing the most improvement over the final two rounds in Utah. He was quick to add though that his main concern leaving the course Friday was recovery.
“Rest is the most important thing for me right now,” he said.
