Young stars surge up leaderboard at 3M Open

BLAINE, Minn. – It’s not exactly a “Hello, world” moment but it’s close.

Granted, Matthew Wolff and Collin Morikawa didn’t turn pro with the same kind of fanfare as Tiger Woods did in 1996 when he opened his press conference at the Greater Milwaukee Open with those words. Shoot, neither of them was even born when Woods made his debut.

But surging to the top of a crowded leaderboard at the 3M Open on Saturday just three starts into Wolff’s pro career and four into Morikawa’s certainly made it seem like an introduction of sorts. And the two clearly have the talent and the tools to play at the next level despite their relative youth.

Wolff, who most recently made headlines when he won the NCAA individual title in May, is barely a month removed from his sophomore season at Oklahoma State. Morikawa, on the other hand, made it through all four years at UC-Berkeley, getting his business degree just last month.

In the third round of the inaugural TOUR event at TPC Twin Cities, the two twentysomethings – Morikawa is the elder by two years at 22 – were nothing if not fearless. Wolff fired the third 62 of the week while Morikawa shot a 64 to join his friend in the final pairing on the final day.

The two are tied for the lead with Bryson DeChambeau at 15 under, one stroke ahead of PGA TOUR rookie Wyndham Clark and Canadian Adam Hadwin. They’re poised, prepared and propelled by the success of friends like Viktor Hovland, another former Cowboy just out of school who closed with a 64 and tied for 13th at last week’s Rocket Mortgage Classic.

“Who knows where this is going to take us but we’re just trying to make the most out of the summer,” Morikawa said. “I mean, this is awesome to be out here. This is what we’ve always wanted, and to be in this position, it’s going to be exciting tomorrow.”

“We’ve known each other for such a long time,” agreed Wolff, who grew up 30 miles from Morikawa in southern California. “… So, it’s really cool to see their success as well and I think that kind of fired me up to be able to go out and try to catch them.”

On Sunday, though, Wolff, Morikawa and the 25-year-old DeChambeau, another prodigy who already has five TOUR wins including the Shriners Hospitals for Children Open this season, will be the hunted. And the ever-analytical DeChambeau thinks that experience might play to his advantage.

“All I know is there’s going to be some pressure,” he said. “I won a couple of times out here. I know how to get it done. Doesn’t mean I’m going to get it done tomorrow – just means that I know what to do, especially when I’m firing on all cylinders.”

Wolff was the first to post a number on Saturday, surging into the picture with a string of five straight birdies to finish off a front-nine 29 and a sixth one at the 10th. He said he felt like he’d been too strategic of late and made a conscious effort to just “rip driver,” and playing partner Tom Lehman came away impressed.

Lehman, who is 40 years older than Wolff and stands 9 under, even went so far as to say the young man with the unique swing – he picks up his left foot on the takeaway and uses the ground for power – reminded him of John Daly.

“Different swings, different styles but the same type, the same kind of jaw‑dropping way of playing as John Daly when he first started,” Lehman said. “… He could hit it with the club so far beyond parallel, and combine that with a really beautiful putting stroke, you say, boy, this guy is sensational.

“Matthew Wolff is the same kind of player, tremendous speed. He has a swing that's unique, but the uniqueness I think of it is such an advantage to him because the fact that he swings in a way where he keeps the face square for so long through impact, almost no face rotation, so you don't see wild shots from him.”

Morikawa was steady on Saturday, too, hitting 12 of 14 fairways and all but one green in regulation. He was in the mix at the Travelers Championship, eventually tying for 14th – and nearly won on the Korn Ferry Tour as a 19-year-old amateur, losing to Ollie Schniederjans in a three-way playoff.

“Obviously tomorrow, you know, I want to finish it off,” Morikawa said. “I’m not here just to enjoy it, make the cut. I’m here to contend and win. Thankfully, through three rounds I’ve put myself in that position. I’ve got to keep doing what I’ve been doing, and tomorrow should be fun.”

A win on Sunday would give either player a two-year exemption on the PGA TOUR and 500 FedExCup points, fast-tracking him into the FedExCup Playoffs.

Short of that, though, special temporary membership could be on the line – Wolff would need to finish runner-up alone while Morikawa could reach it with a solo third or four-way tie for second or better. That would allow either player to accept unlimited sponsor exemptions like the ones that got them into the field at the 3M Open.

And if a player garners enough non-member FedExCup points to equal or better No. 125 at the end of the Wyndham Championship, he earns his TOUR card for next season. If the non-member points leave a player between No. 126 and 200, he’d qualify for the Korn Ferry Tour finals, where the top 25 money winners also get their TOUR cards.

Wolff and Morikawa are trying not to get ahead of themselves, though. It’s cliched but they are taking it one round at a time and are anxious to see how they fit in when the final putt drops on Sunday.

“I just learned that, you know, these guys are obviously really good like all the PGA TOUR commercials and stuff say, but at the end of the day I belong out here and I don't need to change anything in my game to play with the guys out here,” said Wolff, whose best finish in his two pro starts is a tie for 80th.

“I think that's what I struggled with the first couple weeks, I was always trying to look for that little extra something and I feel like this week I've really just been myself and it's worked out.”

Morikawa agreed. “I mean, it is golf out here,” he said. “It’s on a lot bigger stage but our games played well through the spring. We’re going to have to remember who we are, what brought us here.”

And see how good they can be.