If the shoe fits: Jimmy Abdo, ranked 4,292 in WAGR, continuing Cinderella run at U.S. Amateur

USA Today

11 hours ago

THE JIMMY ABDO SHOW CONTINUES 🔥The DIII golfer representing @GustieGolf will play in the quarterfinals at the U.S. Amateur. pic.twitter.com/Qv8NaPFHtV
SAN FRANCISCO — Jimmy Abdo thought his putt needed to sit. He really didn't want to have to hit a second putt.
His approach into the final hole landed on the front right side of the putting surface. The flag was front left. The green sloped toward the front, meaning his ball would swing from right to left.
He raised his putter about a foot from the hole. There was no doubt.
Abdo drilled his birdie attempt on the closing 18th hole to win his Round of 16 match 1 up. A celebration ensued. Abdo, the Division III golfer at Gustavus Adolphus in St. Peter, Minnesota, who's ranked 4,292 in the World Amateur Golf Ranking, continued his run in the 2025 U.S. Amateur, knocking off Daniel Svard to advance into the quarterfinals.
He's not the most popular golfer this week at The Olympic Club. Nor is he ranked the highest. Nor could any of the other seven quarterfinalists point on a map where Gustavus Adolphus is. But the shoe continues to fit for Abdo, and his Cinderella run in the biggest amateur event in the world marches on for one more day.
"Being the underdog, I feel like there's way less pressure on me to perform well," Abdo said. "I feel like I can go out there and play pretty free. That's what we did for most of the holes out there."
Embracing that underdog role is the reason he was able to even make it into the U.S. Amateur in the first place.
He first started playing golf when he was about 3 years old. But even into high school, he wasn't starting during his sophomore year. Things quickly turned when he was a junior. He started working with instructor Luke Benoit. His scoring averaged dropped from from 77 to about 70. His high school team at Edina won the state championship.
"From sophomore to junior year, I gained 60 yards off the tee," he said. "It's just kind of all those things you learn as you keep going. Keep building and grow your team and grow the people around you."
Even as the game grew, the offers didn't come. He eventually chose Gustavas Adolphus for his first year of college, living in the school's practice facility. Last season, he had one win and a 73.7 scoring average in nine stroke-play starts. He even was named the Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference's Rookie of the Year.
He decided to enter the portal this summer, trying to get a chance at a Division I program. That's when he qualified for the U.S. Amateur via a 4-for-2 playoff. He thought that would entice some schools to take a chance on him.
No one called. The chip on his shoulder grew.
"This is my first time trying to qualify for the U.S. Am," he said. "I never felt like I was ready. Coming out of high school, I was never really recruited at all. That kind of adds into this underdog story where no one really believes I'm capable of playing good golf like this. I know I am, and I've had that confidence even when I was in high school."
He decided to withdraw his name from the portal. This week, he birdied three of his final six holes during stroke play and then advanced via a 20-for-17 playoff to get into match play.
In the opening round, he knocked off top 2025 recruit Logan Reilly, an incoming freshman at Auburn, and he became a quick fan favorite. Support from his home club back home was vibrating through social media, and Abdo felt that presence with him.
"When you're playing golf out there, especially in a twosome, you kind of feel alone," Abdo said. "It's just you and your playing partner. Knowing I've got hundreds of people and they're backing me, it kind of takes away that lonely feeling of golf. It's just kind of nice to know that I've got a team around me that wants to see me do well as much as I want to see me do well."
Then came Thursday, when he had a convincing 4-and-3 win against Wolfgang Glawe in the morning before taking his afternoon match with a birdie at the last. He gave a big fist pump before celebrating with his caddie. But Thursday's marathon was complete. Abdo is one of eight standing at The Olympic Club.
"Never back down from anybody," Abdo said. "Ready to play against anybody. I'm not even sure who I have tomorrow, but I'm ready to put up a fight against whoever it is."
The dance is still going and will be into Friday.