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Illinois Golf Rising Star Max Herendeen Set to Make PGA Tour Debut

Illinois men's golf junior-to-be Max Herendeen will make his PGA Tour debut Thursday at the 3M Open in Blaine, Minnesota
Jared Shlensky|
North Fort Myers resident John Berg has collected putters, drivers and irons in Illinois, the Miami area, Lake Okeechobee and now North Fort Myers. Fnp 012321 Rr Nf Golf Collector003
North Fort Myers resident John Berg has collected putters, drivers and irons in Illinois, the Miami area, Lake Okeechobee and now North Fort Myers. Fnp 012321 Rr Nf Golf Collector003 | Ricardo Rolon/The News-Press USA TODAY NETWORK - FLORIDA / USA TODAY NETWORK

Max Herendeen has had a remarkable two-year run at Illinois, and on Thursday the Illini golfer will make his PGA Tour debut at TPC Twin Cities in Blaine, Minnesota, at the 3M Open.

The two-time All-American led the Illini with a stroke average of 70.84 last year – the 10th-best mark in program history – while finishing third overall in the Big Ten and first in the league's underclassmen rankings.

In Herendeen's maiden PGA Tour voyage, he will be competing against Illinois golf alum Nick Hardy. A two-time Big Ten champion for the Illini, Hardy won the PGA Tour's Zurich Classic of New Orleans (teaming with playing partner Davis Riley) back in 2023. But Hardy is far from Herendeen's only competition outside the Twin Cities over the next few days. Also, competing will be top PGA pros such as Rickie Fowler, Max Homa and Sam Burns.



Herendeen is a long shot to make the cut, let alone win the tournament, but regardless of how he performs, playing at the pro level should only benefit him in the long run. And at the end of the day, don't be surprised if Herendeen struggles against the field. There are some really good golfers playing on Thursday, and quite frankly, we're not so sure Herendeen's game is quite up to par with the rest of the competition.

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Jared Shlensky
JARED SHLENSKY

Jared Shlensky is a contributing writer for On SI and a freelance play-by-play broadcaster. Jared was previously a sports betting writer for Yardbarker, an On-Air YouTube Personality for the Sports Geek and a minor league play-by-play broadcaster.

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