An apparatus and method are provided to re-configure an existing low-jitter phase locked loop (PLL) circuit for fast start-up during system wake-up. During system start-up, a feed-back path of the PLL is disconnected to independently control the VCO frequency. This independently controlled VCO then injects energy into a resonator (e.g., a crustal oscillator) for its fast start-up. Once a resonance frequency of the resonator is detected and an oscillation builds up in the resonator, a VCO control voltage is stored. The PLL feedback is then restored and the stored VCO control voltage is applied to perform phase-locking operation. Since the PLL control voltage is already set to the desired operating point, the PLL lock time is very small.