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Norman Xiong, golfing phenom compared to Tiger Woods, is ready to take on the pros

By David Salituro

LOS ANGELES, CA - SEPTEMBER 10: Norman Xiong of the United States team plays his tee shot on the 12th hole in his match against Scott Gregory of the Great Britain and Ireland team during the afternoon singles matches in the 2017 Walker Cup at the Los Angeles Country Club on September 10, 2017 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by David Cannon/R&A/R&A via Getty Images )
LOS ANGELES, CA - SEPTEMBER 10: Norman Xiong of the United States team plays his tee shot on the 12th hole in his match against Scott Gregory of the Great Britain and Ireland team during the afternoon singles matches in the 2017 Walker Cup at the Los Angeles Country Club on September 10, 2017 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by David Cannon/R&A/R&A via Getty Images ) /
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He has already been compared to Tiger Woods. Now amateur golfer Norman Xiong is ready to show he has what it takes to play against the pros.

Norman Xiong, the 19-year-old amateur golfing phenom, believes he is ready to prove himself against the pros.

Xiong, a San Diego resident, announced Wednesday that he is leaving the University of Oregon after two years to turn professional. He will make his pro debut at U.S. Open sectional qualifying on Monday.

Despite his youth, Xiong has already compiled an impressive resume. He has won six of his last 14 college tournaments, including the Western Amateur. He was also a member of the victorious U.S. Walker Cup team last September, with a record of 3-0-1.

With this success has come the accolades that go with it. He was NCAA Freshman of the Year last season, and is the favorite to win the Haskins Award as national player of the year and Nicklaus Award for top Division I player this season. Xiong ended his college career with an 11th place finish at the NCAA Championships on Monday.

“It’s definitely bittersweet. I know I’m going to be really sad about leaving my friends. The guys at Oregon are basically my best friends now, and (coach) Casey (Martin) has taught me so much,” he told the San Diego Union-Tribune. “But I know i’m ready, maturity-wise. I know I’m ready for the next stage of my career.”

Xiong already has high expectations. Oregon coach Casey Martin believes there is only one player who compares to Xiong at the same age: Tiger Woods. Martin is familiar with both, having played with Woods at Stanford in the mid-1990s.

“From what I’ve seen, at this age, I don’t know if I’ve seen another 19-year-old in my 12 years of coaching that’s where he is. Obviously the only player that I would defer to would be Tiger,” Martin said in an interview with Golfweek. “But everyone else that’s come out recently, I’m not saying he’s going to do what they’ve done, but I think at this stage he’s every bit as good or better than anyone you could put in there.”

Xiong was born in Guam in 1998 to parents who were originally from China. He moved to San Diego when he was six with his mother, Jing, and uncle James, according to a Union-Tribune profile. While his mother worked as a waitress, Xiong spent his time at the First Tee program at Pro Kids Golf. James Xiong is the only golf coach he has ever had.

“He had a goal in his mind, and he shared with me what he thought I could become,” Xiong said. “And because he believed in me, I believed in me as well. I knew that, deep down, in the future, I’d have a chance.”

Martin has seen Xiong mature into a well-rounded player. ““When he came in, he would go for every pin — and quite frankly he could pull it off a lot,” Martin told Golfweek. “But now he’s been more willing to lay up or play to the fat side of a green. He’s more refined.”

Xiong made his PGA Tour debut in January at the Farmers Insurance Open in his native San Diego. He missed the cut after rounds of 72-74. He has already accepted a sponsor’s exemption into the Barracuda Championship in August. Xiong has six tournaments to earn enough money for a PGA Tour card. Otherwise, he will go to Web.com Tour qualifying.

Doc Redman, the reigning U.S. Amateur champion, also announced he is leaving Clemson to turn pro. He is making his pro debut at the Memorial Tournament this week. Redman has already made two cuts on the PGA Tour this season as an amateur, at the Arnold Palmer Invitational and RBC Heritage. By turning professional, however, he forfeits exemptions into the U.S. Open and Open Championship.

Xiong and Redman join a list of top young pros who left school early and made an immediate impact. Jordan Spieth turned pro after his freshman year at Texas, and Justin Thomas two years into his career at Alabama. Then there is Xiong’s former Oregon teammate, Aaron Wise, who won the AT&T Byron Nelson two weeks ago in just his 26th PGA Tour start.

Next: Complete List of U.S. Open Winners

Xiong is quite to deflect the Tiger comparison. But he doesn’t completely reject it, either. “Casey doesn’t say it, just to say it,” he said.

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