After finishing second at the 2022 NCAA Championships, the Sun Devils retooled over the summer with intentions of taking the next step. Although significant veteran presence has departed, Mjaaseth is built for the biggest stage.
He is one of seven on ASU’s roster, a smaller bunch than most national contenders and one of two freshmen, alongside highly touted Californian Luke Potter.
The Norwegian boasted significant junior accolades including being the European Young Masters Champion, the Norwegian U15 National Champion and he represented Europe in the Asia-Pacific Junior Championship. He’s also been a winner at the Norwegian national level.
For a guy who had spent his entire career winning, arriving at ASU meant a new platform to impress.
“He’s earned his teammates’ respect,” Head Coach Matt Thurmond said. ” Michael is pretty reserved, he doesn’t say much and he was pretty quiet the first few weeks. He earned their respect with how he is and who he is.”
As a child in Norway, Mjaaseth was a competitive alpine skier. He discovered golf later than most of his competitors while at a summer camp when he was 10.
For a mellow and independent personality, golf was the perfect fit.
“I think my maturity is something that helps me in my golf because I feel like I can handle my bad shots,” Mjaaseth said. “It’s something that I have worked on over the past few years.”
When he arrived in Phoenix over the summer, he was greeted at the airport by Associate Head Coach Thomas Sutton. Sutton was prepared to take him to get any and all home necessities; bed sheets, pillows, etc. Michael had everything he needed without any help.
He had everything he needed.
After Sutton dropped him off at the dorm and helped him unpack, he told Mjaaseth to call him in the morning when he was ready to go to the grocery store.
“By the early afternoon, I hadn’t heard anything so I gave him a call,” Sutton said. “I was like ‘hey Michael, you ready to go to the grocery store,'” and he said ‘oh I did that already.'”
That is just how he is.
“He’s like a 40-year-old in a 20-year-old body because he just seems that mature,” said senior Ryggs Johnston. “I think internally, he has a lot of fire about him that allows them to work well with the team.”
That calmness was apparent in…
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