In January 2024, Nick Dunlap became the first amateur to win a PGA Tour event since Phil Mickelson did so in 1991. In total, there have only been five amateur winners on Tour post-1950, but there could be a new name added to that list this weekend.
Michael La Sasso, the 21-year-old amateur from Raleigh, North Carolina, fired an 8-under 63 in Saturday’s third round of the 2025 3M Open at TPC Twin Cities. He made eight birdies — six of which came on the back nine — in an outing void of bogeys, vaulting him into a tie for second, one off the lead just before noon ET.
Amateur Michael La Sasso of the United States lines up a putt on the 16th green during the third round of the 3M Open 2025 at TPC Twin Cities on July 26, 2025 in Blaine, Minnesota.
It’s the lowest round by an amateur on Tour this season, topping the 64 posted by Jackson Koivun at the John Deere Classic earlier this month.
Advertisement
“We had a blast,” La Sasso said. “It’s nice being first out, nice and calm, greens are fresh. Definitely a little faster today. I had a good time. Kind of blitzed it there, kind of middle of the round. Yeah, it was a lot of smiling, so it was good.”
La Sasso was first out because he made the cut on the number at 5 under on Friday.
“I think that’s the earliest tee time I’ve ever had. My alarm went off nice and early this morning. But I think it’s nice, kind of same thing like nice and calm this morning. You really can get into a good groove especially with two guys, kind of find your rhythm pretty quickly. I thought it was great.”
La Sasso is a rising senior at Ole Miss and the reigning individual men’s NCAA National Champion. He’s appearing in his fifth PGA Tour event at the 3M Open on a sponsor exemption, having missed the cut in all his previous starts at the Barracuda Championship, the John Deere Classic and the Rocket Classic, as well as the U.S. Open, where he missed the cut.
Advertisement
But all of that is behind him now, and he seems to be settling in among the world’s best players, even though he’s still an amateur.
“Just trying to stay positive. Been like a little bit of a learning curve this summer so just trying to be able to go out and enjoy it. Kind of feels like everything’s amplified with everybody watching, so kind of just try to get used to it. Kind of just trying to learn, play good golf and kind of take away as much as I can from these guys because hopefully I’ll be here in a year to two years, so I’m just trying to learn how to do it and make the transition a little easier.”
Keep up with all the action from Saturday’s third round at the 2025 3M Open with our live updates page.
This article originally appeared on Golfweek: Amateur Michael La Sasso shoots 63 in third round at 2025 3M Open