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3M Open: Why Minnesota is a totally underrated golf market

By Brandon Raper

BLAINE, MINNESOTA - JULY 05: Phil Mickelson of the United States plays his shot from the 13th tee during the second round of the 3M Open at TPC Twin Cities on July 05, 2019 in Blaine, Minnesota. (Photo by Michael Reaves/Getty Images)
BLAINE, MINNESOTA - JULY 05: Phil Mickelson of the United States plays his shot from the 13th tee during the second round of the 3M Open at TPC Twin Cities on July 05, 2019 in Blaine, Minnesota. (Photo by Michael Reaves/Getty Images) /
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The 3M Open marks the first time a regular PGA TOUR event has been played in Minnesota in almost 50 years, and that’s a half century of missed opportunity.

The 3M Open kicked off on Thursday, the 4th of July, at TPC Twin Cities. It marked the return of the PGA TOUR to Minnesota for the first time in almost half a century, and that’s fifty years that the biggest operation in golf has missed out on a massive opportunity.

I’ve lived in the North Star State for 25 years now, and before I came here, I thought the same thing as most people who’ve never been here. It’s the Mall of America, the eternal hope (and recurring disappointment) of the Vikings and Twins.

Oh, and hockey. Lots and lots of hockey. It’s always cold up there, after all, and many of the state’s great residents still won’t forgive Norm Green for taking the North Stars to Dallas, even though we’ve had the Wild since 2000.

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But as much as Minnesota is known for it’s righteously tough winters, we do our best to make up for it with some of the best summers you’ll find anywhere. And the land of 10,000 lakes also boasts nearly 500 courses, including some of the best tracks in the country. More Minnesotans (about one in five) play golf in our painfully truncated season than any other state, including year-round markets like Florida, Arizona and California.

So what kept the PGA TOUR away from Minnesota for so long? Certainly, there are plenty of challenges that have been presented over the years. Frankly, if you go back a decade or two, the reality is that existing tournaments were raking in money hand over fist, leaving few – if any – openings for a new event to roll in.

But even as the recession caused the entire golf industry to take several steps backwards in the later part of the 2000s, Minnesota has stayed ravenous in its passion for golf. We’ve hosted the Ryder Cup and Solheim Cup. We had the 2002 and 2009 PGA Championship (remember Rich Beem and Y.E. Yang?), and men’s, women’s and seniors’ U.S. Opens.

And all of those happened in the 50 years since the last time the PGA TOUR brought its show to Minnesota. And when those events came here, the people turned out in droves. Even this week, you heard Brooks Koepka talking about the crowd that showed up at TPC Twin Cities for a practice round early in the morning. We might not be the biggest market, but we play up to our competition.

So while this 3M Open might be several decades too late, it’s better late than never, as they say. This tournament week has gone off nearly flawlessly, and save for a few minor complaints about the course – thanks for all the rain, Mother Nature – feedback has been almost universally positive. It’s hard to imagine a better “first impression” than this holiday weekend has given us.

Next. Brooks Koepka questions course conditions at 3M Open. dark

Without fail, every time that Minnesota has had a chance to welcome the world’s greats in sports, the people have come through with flying colors. When it comes to golf, it’s no different. Here’s hoping that the golf community takes notice of a typically underrated community in the Twin Cities.

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