At 32, he’s not your typical “new” PGA Tour star, but he’s certainly played like one this season.
Dylan Dethier: You’ve played really good golf in 2026 – 11th or better in seven of your first eight starts this season, including the Masters. What does it feel like to be in a race like this?
Jake Knapp: I mean, it obviously feels good. It doesn’t feel, like, crazy different; It’s not like I hit it exactly where I want on every shot or make every putt or chipping all the time. I just think I did a good job this season in analyzing what areas I could really benefit from the most – maximizing my practice time, closing in on the ball strike – and seeing the improvement has been great. Obviously, when you play well, you want to try to take advantage and win, but when you get into contention as much as possible, it’s also uplifting. Because golf is golf; strange things will happen to you. But when you know it’s, like, Hey, well played. This is the sign, really, that your work is kind of coming to fruition and then you will see results.
DD: When you say the ball hits, do you mark a specific distance with your irons or wedges?
JK:Yeah, like, 150 to 175 yards and even 175 to 200. It’s funny because that’s an area I’ve always felt comfortable. It’s not like I thought, Oh man, I’m terrible from this distance. It was like, okay, there’s room we can improve. Maybe it’s a bit of club selection or picking the wrong shot, or maybe it’s a mishit, but we can clean it all up. And I was into swing stuff, so I decided to go see a new swing coach, Boyd Summerhays, and he’s worked with a lot of good ball hitters in the past. He was a player, so he has a great perspective, and he’s not a big believer in needing to make these big radical changes just hoping that everything will be better in six months. I’ve never been technically crazy, even though I’ve been playing for so long I know what my swing looks like when I’m playing it right. But I sent him some older videos from when I shot well and new ones to see where I am now. I don’t always know what causes X, Y and Z, so he did a great job of helping me understand my swing even better, which was great.
DD: You’ve made some huge leaps in your professional career. I’m more intrigued by the first one. In your early years on the PGA Tour Canada, you had more missed cuts than marks and struggled to keep your card – and then suddenly you started winning. What happened between 2018 and 2019?
JK: When I first turned pro, I hadn’t changed much in my life. Like, I went back home (to Southern California) with my parents and basically all I did was go to the course all day, hit balls, play twilight, go to the gym at night. But I was also doing other things, like hanging out with my friends and going out on the weekends and doing things like I was a normal 20-year-old. I was kind of immature in that I just, like, didn’t know how much better I really needed to get. And I think after those first three years as a pro, playing in Canada, I was just like, Man, I feel like I’m a lot better than this, and still lose status on the Canadian Tour and not win any minitour events. At the end of 2018, I had an ankle injury playing pickup basketball, and that took me out for three months. I wasn’t able to go to Q-School that year, and so my only option was to come back and play in Canada. But this was a big change in my mind. Okay, I did this 110 percent. No pickup hoops, no men’s league softball. My contracts out of college were done. Technically, I could stop every time; I owe nothing to anyone. That’s when a lot of guys stop playing. I’m like, Well, I feel like I haven’t even tried yet. I owe it to myself to kick a few heels.
DD: Your golf pro since you were a kid, Tom Sargent, said that even when you were five or six years old you had a lot of pranks. Do you feel that is something you have then and something you try to maintain now as a professor?
JK: Yes, I think so. I mean, I wouldn’t describe myself as cocky or cocky or whatever, but I guess “swagger” is a good way to put it. I didn’t always have that sense of belonging, and it still took me a while every time I passed a level. But play your way into where you remember you’re supposed to be – I think that’s important.
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DD: There is a bit of irony that should come automatically from being one of the longest-serving drivers on the PGA Tour, which you joined in 2024. But you also put it fantastically. Have you made any big changes here?
JK: Not really. It’s funny, I always felt like I was a streaky putter. Some weeks I feel good, some weeks really bad. But I just put more attention towards it, more time into it. You can never spend enough time laying down, in my opinion. And then I spent more time reading the green, which helped a lot, because you can hit any hole you want – if you’re pointing it on the wrong line, you’ll miss putts.
DD: Left turn here: Do you know about the other Jake Knapp?
JK: I heard about him because when he was on Tour for the first time, I was tagged in posts about, like, a book he wrote.
DD: Sounds like an interesting guy. Helped invent Gmail. It’s called “Time Dork.” He’s also, like, 6 foot 7. He’s an expert in time management; that was the only real connection I could make, but time management seems like a big part of your job. are you ok And do you have any tips?
JK: I definitely think time management is huge, and I’m getting better at it. Your time is most important. This job is not like other jobs or even other sports where you have off days or off seasons. At least the way I see it, it’s not really holidays. Especially since I won’t go on Tour until I’m 29, it’s probably not realistic that I’ll have one of those.
25-year career on the PGA Tour, so I’m trying to make the most of it now. My rookie year I spent too much time on the golf course, too much time practicing during tournament weeks, where now I feel like I’m pretty good at listening to my body, understanding which days I can push it and which days I need to score and stay fresh. My rookie year I was gassed at the end of the season, playing too much and in all these new environments. I’m smarter about this stuff now.
DD: Do you feel like you’re learning from your peers, or are you focusing on yourself?
JK: I’ve always been pretty focused on what I do. That said, try not to be a sponge. I like to keep an eye on guys who are elite in a specific category — bunker play, iron play — and try to pick something up. But my freshman year, I said: “Okay, he’s a really good putter and he does exactly the same exercises every day. Maybe there’s something in that. Or the best ball strikers, Collin Morikawa or Tommy Fleetwood or Scottie (Scheffler) – it’s like, Man, these guys do the same simple things day in and day out. You can’t copy someone exactly, but that mentality, that approach, I’ve tried to work in my own game.
DD: You’ve had this progression throughout your career – you just keep getting better. But you haven’t played a ton of major championship golf. Is the next step, playing well in the majors?
JK: Yes, I think the competition in the majors is the be-all and end-all. And, for me, consistency is something I’ve been chasing since I was younger. But I’m getting there now – I’ve been making progress. I think my game is suited for those courses, though. I haven’t played in the British Open, but the harder the courses and the firmer and faster, I think I have an advantage there. So making sure I’m a little more prepared and ready for these weeks, realizing that, like, the US Open is going to be incredibly difficult – I know what I need to do now. And I’m ready for more.