Miles Russell Isn't Tiger Woods, But The Hints Are There

ARDMORE, Pa. — There’s a penchant in our society to anoint the second coming the moment the messiah ascends to nirvana. Tiger Woods, as much as his disciples dream otherwise, has left the building, and like Elvis Presley being succeeded by The Beatles, a new sensation has arisen as golf’s next prodigy.

Miles Russell is 17 years old. He’s a rising senior in high school. He’s been compared to Woods since he was 15, which must be somewhat awkward considering Russell is good friends with Woods’s son, Charlie. Russell is golf’s chosen one. We’re just working on a name that sticks like King James.

How does U.S. Amateur champion sound?

After narrowly missing out on adding his name to one trophy bearing Woods' name, Russell is in striking distance to add his name to another. He’s advanced to the match play position of the U.S. Amateur. He’s six wins away from becoming the youngest winner in tournament history, a record once held by Woods. If he wins the Am, expect the comparisons to be sent into overdrive. Not that Russell notices.

“That’s pretty cool. But at the same time, I don’t care what other people think,” Russell said after I asked him what it’s like being compared to Woods. “I’ve got my group of people. I try to act correctly. Really just worried about one goal.”

Might as well be Al Davis. “Just win baby.”

It’s a mindset that took Tiger so far. Three straight U.S. Junior Amateurs. Three straight U.S. Amateurs. 15 major championships. 82 PGA Tour wins. The accomplishments are staggering. It’s fair to wonder if anyone will touch them in the next 50 years.

And yet, we all do it. We compare Scottie Scheffler to Woods, Rory McIlroy, Brooks Koepka, and anyone who even feels a waft of his greatness. It’s natural. It’s easy. It makes us feel something, good or bad. There is no in-between.

That’s why I asked Russell what it felt like being called “the future of golf” when he made the cut in the U.S. Open, ultimately finishing T39. His answer was very insightful then. He seems to be a tad more Tiger-esque now with his answers after a summer filled with success.

“It’s kind of crazy,” Russell said at Shinnecock. “I think the main thing is just keep enjoying it because if you’re not enjoying it you may not have much of a future in it. Just keep doing what we're doing and see where it takes us.”

Russell was the co-medalist at the U.S. Junior Amateur this year and advanced to the finals of match play, ultimately losing to Noah Maclauchlan. He was also the medalist at the prestigious Western Amateur and made the semifinals of match play. Last year, he made it to the quarterfinals of the U.S. Amateur. He’s already been named to the 2026 U.S. Walker Cup team.

No wonder Golf Channel’s Brently Romaine said scouts call him, “the best junior golfer that they've seen since Tiger Woods.”

All that success, all that hype, has led to a bit of Miles Mania at the USGA events he’s played this summer. When he drew a pairing with fellow young star Jackson Koivun in the third and fourth rounds of the U.S. Open, they had the biggest galleries on the course before the leaders teed off. At the Junior Am, Russell and Charlie Woods pulled more fans than the other groups combined. I asked a gallery guard where Russell was on the course today at the U.S. Amateur and he said, “Just look for the big group of people.”

Russell is a draw wherever he goes.

Tiger’s playing partners had to deal with that, while Tiger was well accustomed to it. Woods viewed it as an advantage. Russell isn't there. Yet.

“I feel like I’ve gotten to play around it enough now where it doesn’t bother me too much,” he said. “A lot of it is I just try not to even think they’re there and try just to block it out.”

Sounds like another great player who once stalked these fairways.

Add us as a preferred source on Google