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Miles Russell is making a name for himself in the golf world and he's just 15 years old. Already playing events on the Korn Ferry Tour, his latest performance vaulted the young player into the top five of the leaderboard. It took seven birdies in a 10-hole stretch to do it, showcasing a skill most young golfers don't really have yet.
That streak of good play isn't an outlier, though. He scored rounds of 68 and 66 over the first 36 holes to go eight under par. He was well within the cut line for the LECOM Suncoast Classic as a result.
At the time of writing, he's continued that hot streak by shaving off another seven strokes. He's 15 under through 17 holes in the final round, likely in line to earn a top 10 placement among some of the world's best amateur golfers.
Via Golf.com, Miles Russell only really wanted to make the cut:
“I’m kind of speechless. The goal was to make the cut and we made it, so we’ll see where the weekend goes.”
To potentially finish top 10 (a win is likely out of the question with Patrick Cover up by five strokes on the 15-year-old prodigy) would be something unexpected.
Miles Russell makes Korn Ferry history
At 15 years, five months and 17 days old, no one younger has ever made the cut for a Korn Ferry Tour event. Miles Russell's name is etched in the history books and could be there for a while.
“It’s a cool record to break. I don’t know how much longer — I mean, people are getting so good, so young. It could hold out for a week, you never know, but it’s pretty cool right now,” said Russell (Via Golf.com)
Most 15-year-old golfers don't play against this level of competition, but Russell is happy he's been given this unique opportunity.
“I knew it was going to be a good test to see where I am against some of the best. It’s definitely something I’ll remember even when times will get hard, I’ll remember it when that happens and go with the flow.”
There are still three years until Russell can potentially go pro, but he's on track to be an early entrant if he continues playing (and doing well) in this level of competition.
Via the PGA Tour, that's a goal of the young golfer's:
“I’ve always wanted to be able to do it. To have the chance to do it would be even cooler, and then to be able to do it would be awesome. I think it would just be cool to do something I love, and there’s not much more I love than this.”
No one can predict how the next few years will go, but Russell is already cementing himself as a force to be reckoned with in the future of this sport.
