Ranked 4,292nd in the world, Edina golfer Jimmy Abdo soars at U.S. Amateur
"Still kinda doesn't feel real," said Abdo, 1.5 days removed from arriving back in Minnesota. "Just from start to finish it felt like it was gonna be one of those weeks I'll never forget."
A native of Edina, Minnesota, Abdo plays Division III golf. This weekend's field featured all of the prestigious players in the college game. Abdo got through stroke play, his goal, then won in the rounds of 64, 32 and 16, before finally falling in the quarters.
"Yeah, we just kept playing some good golf. Took down some pretty big names. Obviously I surpassed my goal by a mile," he said. "Even beyond that, too, I made a big name for myself and put my name out there for a lot of people to see and hear my story."
Abdo wasn't even on the starting six at Edina High School until he was a junior. His best finish at the state tournament was 11th, which led him to start his college golf career last year at Gustavus Adolphus College in St. Peter.
"That's the really amazing thing about Jimmy and his game, a lot of people back down against tough competition and it actually allows him to go to the next level," said Scott Moe, Gustavus' head golf coach.
Abdo has been passed over by big college programs. He's learned to relish the underdog role.
"I think that's my favorite part about it. It's fun to be the guy that no one thinks belongs there or really can get the job done," he said.
Anonymous no more, Abdo's ranking will soon skyrocket. One week, opening big doors for the future.
"I honestly don't know. There's a bunch of things that could possibly happen and I haven't really made any full decisions yet, so I'm not 100% sure," he said.
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