NCAA men’s golf preseason rankings: Top teams, players for 2026-27

Oklahoma State returns all five starters from its 2025 NCAA Championship team for the second straight year, but is that enough to be ranked preseason No. 1?

Auburn has won two of the past three NCAA titles, though can the Tigers remain among the nation’s best after the departure of generational talent Jackson Koivun?

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Is there another men’s program worthy of topping Golf Channel’s preseason rankings?

Golf Channel’s Brentley Romine ranks his top 30 teams, projects this year’s All-Americans and top freshmen, highlights the best tournaments on the schedule and provides in-depth analysis heading into the 2026-27 season:

1. Florida

• 2026 NCAA Championship finish: Quarterfinalist (T-4 in stroke play)

• Returning: Jack Turner (Sr.), Luke Poulter (Sr.), Zack Swanwick (Jr.), Josh Bai (Jr.), Noah Kent (Sr.), Parker Sands (Jr.), Trevor Gutschewski (So.), Parker Severs (So.)

• Departed: Matthew Kress, Parker Bell

• Arriving: Jackson Ormond (Fr.), Austin Perkins (Fr.)

• Projected starting lineup: Turner, Poulter, Swanwick, Bai, Kent

Scouting report: The Gators, fresh off a second straight NCAA match-play appearance, remain arguably the deepest team in the country despite losing Kress to graduation. Kress started in all 13 events a year ago, but luckily for head coach J.C. Deacon, who called last year’s team “the best one that I’ve ever had,” he has a plethora of options to fill voids left by Kress and Bell. Let’s start at the top with Turner and Poulter, two preseason All-Americans who combined for nine top-10s last season. Poulter is now a two-time Walker Cupper, albeit his putting has been bugging him of late, while Turner had a strong spring and capped his summer with a quarterfinal appearance at the U.S. Amateur. Turner has been an All-American each of his previous three seasons, and with some extra self-belief he could easily move into first-team territory for the first time. Everyone has been waiting for Swanwick to truly break out; the Kiwi dominated qualifying last year but his scrambling and putting have held him back from winning actual tournaments. After that, it gets both fun and crowded for Deacon. Bai straightened out his swing path starting last winter, and then this summer, he won the North and South Amateur and lost to Turner in the Round of 16 at Merion. Sands showed a propensity to shine on the big stage last postseason, which was highlighted by a runner-up at the NCAA Columbus Regional, and like Bai, Sands also won a big summer title (Trans-Miss Amateur). Kent has the talent to be Florida’s No. 1, and a nice U.S. Amateur (Round of 32) shows he’s past some of the mental hurdles he dealt with the last year and a half since transferring from Iowa; he started just twice a season ago, but that will surely change. Gutschewski won the stroke-play portion of the North and South, though he’ll have to qualify better this season if he wants to get into the lineup. Ormond is super polished and has all the tools as a freshman, evidenced by qualifying for the U.S. Open and match play at the U.S. Amateur, where he nearly knocked off eventual champion Jack Whaley in the Round of 64. But it’ll be tough for either freshman to consistently crack the starting five.

2. Oklahoma State

• 2026 NCAA Championship finish: Semifinalist (T-4 in stroke play)

• Returning: Preston Stout (Sr.), Eric Lee (Sr.), Ethan Fang (Sr.), Gaven Lane (Sr.), Filip Fahlberg-Johnsson (Jr.), John Wild (Sr.), Colin Bond (So.), Brady Catalano (So.), Henry Guan (Fr.), Jaxon Bandelier (Fr.)

• Arriving: Ben Lathrop (Fr.)

• Projected starting lineup: Stout, Lee, Fang, Lane, Fahlberg-Johnsson

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Scouting report: It would’ve been easy to rank the Cowboys at No. 1 for the second straight preseason. The same starting five that won it all two springs ago and fell to Auburn in last season’s NCAA semifinals returns. That said, there are some concerns entering Year 3 with this lead group. Stout is unquestionably the best pro prospect in the game, but he looked out of sorts at Merion in missing the playoff by four shots. Before that, his summer schedule featured only pro events. With the Masters looming in April, a PGA Tour card virtually locked up via PGA Tour University and having accomplished everything you can already in college golf, Stout must avoid looking too far ahead and focus on continuing to sharpen his skillset with a massive target on his back. With Fang struggling for much of the past eight months or so, Lee feels like the new No. 2 man; he won the NCAA Marana Regional last spring, then qualified for the U.S. Open and made the cut. Lane’s good golf competes with anyone; he just needs to avoid the compound errors that cost him a 3-up lead at the turn in the Round of 16 at the U.S. Amateur. Head coach Alan Bratton is excited about the depth, which is something the last few teams didn’t have. Seven Cowboys qualified for this year’s U.S. Amateur. While Fahlberg-Johnsson is the incumbent fifth man, don’t be surprised to see the likes of Bond, Wild and Guan get plenty of playing time. Bond was the postseason sub last season after Wild underwent a back procedure; Wild, this squad’s glue guy, was granted a medical redshirt to give him an extra year of eligibility, and this summer, he won the Oklahoma Stroke Play. Guan redshirted last season as he put on weight, added speed and made some significant swing changes.

3. Auburn

• 2026 NCAA Championship finish: Won (first in stroke play)

• Returning: Josiah Gilbert (Sr.), Logan Reilly (So.), Cayden Pope (Sr.), Jake Albert (So.), Billy Davis (Jr.), Tyler Spielman (Jr.)

• Departed: Jackson Koivun, Jack Roberts (transferred to Clemson)

• Arriving: Hampton Beebe (Fr.), Alex Holder (Fr.)

• Projected starting lineup: Gilbert, Reilly, Pope, Albert, Davis

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Scouting report: Any time a program loses a generational talent like Koivun, a two-time national player of the year who led the Tigers to NCAA team titles in 2024 and last season, there is an expected drop-off. But the Tigers are still loaded with talent. This is Gilbert’s team now, and the first-time Walker Cupper is coming off another stellar postseason, where he posted top-7s at SECs, regionals and nationals. Reilly went 3-0 at the NCAA Championship and earned the title-clinching point, then took off like a rocket ship this summer, which culminated in him reaching the semifinals of the U.S. Amateur. Pope, aka “Paw Paw,” provides an invaluable veteran presence. Albert had three top-4s last spring, though he struggled at the Western and U.S. amateurs. Davis appears most likely to fill the starting spot vacated by Koivun, though he doesn’t have a top-10 anywhere since last fall’s Clerico event. Beebe, who reclassified from a 2027, has similar capabilities to Albert and Reilly in terms of providing immediate impact, and his Florida State Amateur victory shows he’s ready for college. With Koivun gone, Auburn might not win as prolifically as a team – that’s a lot of rounds in the 60s to replicate – but it will surprise nobody if they again find themselves competing for an NCAA title at La Costa.

4. Arizona State

• 2026 NCAA Championship finish: 20th

• Returning: Connor Williams (Sr.), Boston Bracken (So.), Fifa Laopakdee (Sr.), Bowen Mauss (So.), Peer Wernicke (Jr.), Bryan Newman (Jr.), Raul Gomez Montalva (So.)

• Departed: Michael Mjaaseth, Kent Karlstrom (transferred to Colorado State)

• Arriving: Nguyen Anh Minh (So.; transferred from Oregon State), Oscar Couilleau (Fr.), Kris Kim (Fr.)

• Projected starting lineup: Minh, Williams, Bracken, Laopakdee, Couilleau

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Scouting report: While the Sun Devils avoided missing its second NCAA Championship in three years, they did miss the 54-hole cut for the first time since 2019. But then again, they were trying to replace two superstars in Josele Ballester and Preston Summerhays; entering this season, Arizona State returns almost everybody while adding some potential All-American pieces. Minh was the diamond of this year’s transfer class after a standout freshman season at Oregon State, where he finished T-18 or better in seven of eight starts after joining the Beavers late in the fall. Following the retirement of Oregon State head coach Jon Reehoorn, Minh lands at Arizona State, which initially recruited him. Couilleau arrives on campus as a top-35 amateur in the world. Williams is the most decorated returner, and though he took a step back last season amid lofty expectations, Arizona State head coach Matt Thurmond predicts he will be “dangerous” this season. Laopakdee’s final season should be less of a whirlwind and allow him to focus on getting better – unless, of course, he wins the Asia-Pacific Amateur again and earns more major invites. In terms of upside, Bracken arguably has the most on this team; he hits the ball hard and has settled in after a slow fall, making match play at both the Western and U.S. amateurs. Mauss also made match play at Merion in addition to winning another Utah State Amateur. He tailed off last postseason, but he’s stronger and has better technique as he looks to assert himself as a regular starter. There are some wild cards behind those guys, including Wernicke, who endured a terrible sophomore slump, and Kim, a surprise signee earlier this month, though right now far from the player who won the 2023 British Boys and made the cut at the 2024 Byron Nelson at age 16. Like Deacon at Florida, Thurmond has a deep squad, which will be tested this fall at the Ben Hogan Collegiate, where they will be without a few starters because of international and pro competition; the hope is the Sun Devils don’t take too much of a rankings hit like Oklahoma State did last year, though that worked out OK.

5. Texas Tech

• 2026 NCAA Championship finish: DNQ

• Returning: Adam Bresnu (Sr.), Tim Wiedemeyer (Sr.), Connor Graham (Jr.), Ben Gregg (Sr.), Price Hill (Sr.), Simon Hovdal (So.), Brady McHenry (So.), Luke D’Alise (So.)

• Departed: Sean Keeling (transferred to Louisville)

• Arriving: Alvaro Pastor (Jr.; transferred from Tarleton State), Samuel Gonzalez (Fr.)

• Projected starting lineup: Bresnu, Wiedemeyer, Graham, Pastor, Gregg

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Scouting report: The Red Raiders never could achieve the depth that was projected at the start of the season, and as a result, they bowed out at regionals as a No. 2 seed and snapped their streak of five straight NCAA Championship appearances. The good news is that head coach Greg Sands will return everyone who logged action last season, including his dynamic trio of top-30 amateurs. Wiedemeyer, this summer’s European Amateur champion, is ranked 10th in the world, and Graham, now a three-time Walker Cupper, has been a fixture on the world stage the longest, but Bresnu, who transferred from Odessa Junior Collegiate last summer, arguably has the most upside. He rested up at the start of the summer to recharge and then caught fire at Merion, reaching the quarterfinals. The addition of Pastor from Tarleton State, where he won twice last spring and tied for fifth at the NCAA Marana Regional, gives Tech a fourth top-100 amateur. The fifth spot is anybody’s guess. Gregg posted 10 rounds in the 60s last season and has the most experience, but Hovdal, whose promise never materialized as a freshman, should challenge for starts, as well as McHenry and Hill, who played the first six tournaments last season before hurting his back. Outside of Florida and Oklahoma State, no team has a better chance of having three first-team All-Americans this season, and Sands is hoping that last year’s “shocker” will wake this team up to accomplish something no Tech team has before: win a match at the NCAA Championship.

6. Vanderbilt

• 2026 NCAA Championship finish: Quarterfinalist (third in stroke play)

• Returning: Will Hartman (So.), Jon Ed Steed (So.), Ryan Downes (Jr.), Michael Riebe (So.), Carlos Astiazaran (Sr.), Chase Nevins (Sr.), Bowen Ballis (Jr.)

• Departed: Wells Williams, John Broderick, Ben Loomis

• Arriving: Tyler Mawhinney (Fr.), Luke Colton (Fr.)

• Projected starting lineup: Mawhinney, Hartman, Steed, Colton, Downes

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Scouting report: Head coach Scott Limbaugh reckons he’s never been more proud of a team than when his Commodores bounced back from a 14th-place finish at the SEC Championship to win their fourth NCAA regional in six years and then qualify for match play – the eighth time in 12 years they’ve done so – with a third-place finish in stroke play at the NCAA Championship. Williams will be a sizable hole to fill, but in steps the No. 1 recruiting class in the country. Mawhinney lost to Miles Russell in the semifinals of the U.S. Junior this summer and fell a shot short of the playoff at the U.S. Amateur. Colton was the top-ranked player in the class during the signing period, but he’s been fighting a right miss. No doubt Colton will fix things at some point, but until then, Limbaugh has plenty of returners to fall back on. Hartman figures to be the leader of this squad after not making the lineup until mid-March as a freshman but then catching fire with five top-25s over his final six events, including a co-victory at the NCAA Athens Regional and T-4 at nationals. Steed was a nice surprise with six top-20s in 12 events while finishing the season as the second-highest ranked player on the team. Riebe was the antithesis to Steed, highly volatile with a win and two other top-11s in his first five starts before a disastrous postseason that included not making the lineups for SECs and regionals, then shooting 26 over and finishing 83rd at nationals, last among players who played four rounds. Riebe’s runner-up at the Western Amateur shows how good he can be, though Downes also won a tournament last year, had a decent summer after cleaning up his golf swing and brings more consistency to the back end of the lineup. Astiazaran is in the mix to start as well, so long as last year’s transfer from Pacific gets more comfortable carrying over strong qualifying play to tournaments. There will be growing pains with a still young roster, but at their best, the Commodores can hang with anyone.

7. Tennessee

• 2026 NCAA Championship finish: T-7 (lost in playoff)

• Returning: Jackson Herrington (Jr.), Bruce Murphy (Sr.), Chase Kyes (Soph.), Christian Pardue (Jr.), Luke Smith (Soph.)

• Departed: Lance Simpson, Josh Hill, Reed Lotter

• Arriving: Tyler Watts (Fr.), Pennson Badgett (Fr.), Rudy Sautron (Sr.; transferred from Nebraska)

• Projected starting lineup: Watts, Herrington, Sautron, Murphy, Kyes

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Scouting report: Tennessee is coming off its best NCAA Championship finish since 1980, a T-7 that saw the Vols’ season ended in the four-team playoff at La Costa. Simpson was a stalwart in the lineup, and yet, the Vols project to be much better on paper with the arrival of Watts, the second-ranked amateur in the world who will not only be the runaway favorite to win the Phil Mickelson Award as national freshman of the year but contend for player-of-the-year honors, too. Watts’ resume already includes wins at the Sunnehanna and Northeast amateurs, and this summer, he closed with a quarterfinal appearance at the Western and Round of 16 showing at the U.S. Amateur. A few years ago, Caleb Surratt was a first-team All-American as a freshman, and Watts enters college arguably more seasoned. He’s so good, however, that he could miss the first two fall events for Walker Cup and a potential PGA Tour start. Behind Watts is Herrington, who has started to re-tool his swing with Sean Foley and should be more present without major starts looming. Sautron was a big albeit expensive add after winning three times last season at Nebraska; he had a nice summer, highlighted by his victory at the Monroe Invitational, though he could miss some fall events because of pro starts as well. After that is where things get a tad murky, as Murphy is solid but doesn’t have anything better than a T-30 in three years of postseason events. Kyes’ results look like Murphy’s, though the sophomore did qualify for the U.S. Open this summer. Badgett isn’t on the same level of Watts, but he’s still a top-10 recruit, and there’s a chance he plays a lot.

8. Arkansas

• 2026 NCAA Championship finish: 24th

• Returning: Erich Fortlage (Jr.), Gerardo Gomez (Jr.), Thomas Curry (Sr.), Niilo Maki-Petaja (Sr.), Cam Smith (Sr.), Willie Gordon (So.)

• Departed: John Daly II, Alex Yang, Rex Hargrove

• Arriving: Lev Grinberg (Fr.), Guus Lafeber (Fr.), Neo Berg (Fr.)

• Projected starting lineup: Grinberg, Fortlage, Gomez, Curry, Lafeber

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Scouting report: As this ranking predicted a year ago, Arkansas returned to the upper echelon of the SEC last season, though the Razorbacks, despite finishing the spring ranked eighth in the nation, missed match play at the NCAA Championship. Losing Daly is not insignificant, though head coach Brad McMakin brought in one of the top recruiting classes in the country, a trio of European talents all standing 6-foot-2 or greater and with lots of pop. Grinberg is a Mickelson Award contender and won the St. Andrews Links Trophy by seven shots this summer. Lafeber, whose dad Maarten won the 2003 Dutch Open on the European Tour, won last year’s British Boys, while Berg isn’t ranked highly in WAGR, but the 6-foot-5 Swede possesses crazy length: 192 mph ball speed and drives that are already leaving the Blessings’ 360-yard range. “I’ve never seen anything like it,” McMakin said. That said, they are freshmen, so it’s unlikely all three crack the lineup consistently. Fortlage and Gomez are the foundational pieces, each notching four top-5s last season, while Curry is another veteran presence and should be playing with a clearer head after deciding he won’t play pro golf but instead enter the finance world at season’s end. Much of Arkansas’ potential this season rests on Grinberg’s ability to adjust to college and be a racehorse for this team. If he can’t do that, Arkansas is probably destined to underwhelm again at La Costa.

9. North Carolina

• 2026 NCAA Championship finish: T-7 (lost in playoff)

• Returning: Carson Bertagnole (Soph.), Niall Sheils Donegan (Sr.), Sihan Sandhu (Jr.), Grant Roscich (Jr.), Ethan Paschal (Jr.), Misha Golod (Jr.), Mack Edwards (Soph.)

• Departed: Keaton Vo, Andrew Riley, Hampton Roberts (transferred to Clemson)

• Arriving: Preston Hage (Fr.), Asher Vargas (Fr.), Coltrane Mittag (Soph.; transferred from Oklahoma)

• Projected starting lineup: Bertagnole, Sheils Donegan, Sandhu, Roscich, Hage

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Scouting report: Credit to head coach Andrew DiBitetto and his Tar Heels for bouncing back from missing the NCAA Championship in 2025 and losing Haskins Award winner David Ford. Adding Bertagnole and Sheils Donegan helped North Carolina get into that four-team playoff at La Costa, and though they were unable to get through, the Tar Heels return that core, which also includes Sandhu and Roscich. Sheils Donegan didn’t go as deep at this year’s U.S. Amateur, but he still won a match and earned another Walker Cup nod for Great Britain and Ireland, while Bertagnole is trending massively thanks to a hot summer that included top-3s at the Northeast, Southern and Monroe, and match play at the Western and U.S. amateurs. Sandhu joined those two in winning last season while Roscich came close, losing to Sheils Donegan at the Tar Heels’ home event. North Carolina would be ranked higher if not for its major question in the five hole. Will it be Paschal, who has the most experience of the returners? Or will top-10 recruit Hage or Oklahoma transfer Mittag be the guy? The most likely is Hage, who won last year’s AJGA Ping Invitational and had a decent Western Amateur this summer, but that could change if Mittag, this summer’s Nebraska State Amateur winner, proves he can fit in with this squad.

10. LSU

• 2026 NCAA Championship finish: 12th

• Returning: Arni Sveinsson (Jr.), Jay Mendell (Sr.), Dan Hayes (Soph.), Noah McWilliams (Sr.), Hudson Lawson (Soph.), Dylan Kayne (Soph.)

• Departed: Matthew Dodd-Berry, Alfons Bondesson, Luke Haskew

• Arriving: John Doyle (Fr.), Austin Randall (Fr.)

• Projected starting lineup: Sveinsson, Mendell, Hayes, McWilliams, Doyle

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Scouting report: After notching their best NCAA finish in nine years (12th), the Tigers are perhaps the most difficult team to rank entering the fall, as Sveinsson, a former top-10 amateur in the world, will miss the start of the season because of injury; his up-and-down year reached a low point at Merion, where he couldn’t keep his driver on the planet and withdrew after 11 holes of 11-over golf. The thought is that Sveinsson, although not as bulletproof as he once was, will return to form at some point, but until then, the rest of the Tigers already believe they can compete without him. Mendell has been testing equipment all summer, which explains his poor run from the Southern Amateur onward. He’s got two years of eligibility left, and his steadiness and leadership qualities should have him as LSU’s interim No. 1. McWilliams predictably struggled on his own this summer and played way too many events, but the thought is that once he gets back into the college structure, he’ll get right. Hayes flashed his potential with a third-round 64 at the NCAA Championship, and it wouldn’t take that big of a step to turn all those top-20s into top-10s. He and Doyle probably deserved closer Walker Cup looks for Great Britain and Ireland, so expect some extra motivation entering the fall. Lawson probably is the first man up in the five spot, and his four top-25s as a freshman show he’s a decent stopgap until Sveinsson is back to himself.

Nos. 11-30

11. Illinois: Leading scorer Ryan Voois has graduated, though the Illini figure to get a bounce-back Max Herendeen. The two-time All-American struggled last spring amid lofty expectations and was even benched for one tournament, but Herendeen capped his summer with Round of 16 appearances at the Western and U.S. amateurs. Six other players who logged at least 18 rounds, including Freddie Turnell and Dane Huddleston, are back as well, and freshman Le Khanh Hung is a top-200 amateur, so Illinois should at least outperform last season’s T-11 regional finish and No. 17 national ranking.

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12. Texas: No team in the country had to replace more than the Longhorns, who lost the Nos. 2, 5 and 6 players in the PGA Tou University (Christiaan Maas, Luke Potter and Tommy Morrison). Whether the Longhorns make a third straight match play at the NCAA Championship, however, hinges on what the lineup looks like behind returners Daniel Bennett and Matthew Comegys. Those two are potential All-Americans, but Jack Gilbert, Eduardo Derbez Torres and the rest of the roster have done little in college golf. Keep an eye out, though, on freshman Sterling Hurd, who is probably slightly ahead of fellow frosh Brooks Harper in terms of cracking the starting five out of the gates.

13. Georgia: Year 1 will be a little easier for first-year head coach Mookie DeMoss, who inherits one of the top recruiting classes in the country with Mason Howell, Hamilton Coleman and Drew Woolworth. Only Howell, though, should be counted on to play every tournament as the Bulldogs have arguably their most talented team in nearly a decade, led by Grayson Wood, James Earle and reigning British Amateur runner-up Matt Maloney. Clemson transfer Jackson Byrd has a high ceiling if healthy. And Georgia could find itself a top-10 team if Carter Loflin, fresh off a semifinal run at the U.S. Amateur, gets approved for a fifth year.

14. Pepperdine: Top-10s at regionals and nationals vaulted Willy Walsh onto the U.S. Arnold Palmer Cup team and Walker Cup radar, though he lost a little momentum as the summer wore on. Still, he’s a nice No. 1 to lean on, and head coach Michael Beard also brings in a very talented freshmen trio in Luke Ringkamp, Ayden Fynaut and Kailer Stone, who have all won big tournaments in the last year, including Ringkamp’s pair of AJGA invitationals and Stone’s Cal State Amateur win. The expectation should be that the Waves better their 16th-place finish at the NCAA Championship last May.

15. Oklahoma: The Jonathan Moore era begins following Ryan Hybl’s departure to Georgia Tech. The identity of the Sooners should remain, at least for now, as only All-American Jase Summy graduated. Following a breakout junior season, Ryder Cowan continued to ascend this summer by earning co-low amateur honors at the U.S. Open and making the Round of 16 at the U.S. Amateur. Reigning Big East champion Cayse Morgan is the top newcomer after transferring from Xavier.

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16. Texas A&M: The Aggie still have not failed to qualify for match play at the SEC Championship, but making the final eight at nationals has proven elusive since their last trip to the knockout stage in 2019. Four of five postseason starters return, led by Wheaton Ennis and Aaron Pounds, who combined for 10 top-10s last season. Shiv Parmar added four top-10s as a freshman, and Landon Ashcraft could be the next freshman contributor. However, if Kris Kuvaas can’t end his summer struggles, the Aggies will need to look hard for some scores at the back end.

17. UCLA: The Bruins turned an average season into a magical one by winning the Big Ten Championship and advancing to the final of the NCAA Championship as the 23rd-ranked team in the country. Kyle An has graduated, but everyone else is back, including Baylor Larrabee, an uber-athletic talent who made the Sweet 16 at the Western Amateur this summer and has All-America potential. Reigning Big Ten champion Josh Kim, Tyler Lorree and Alex Papayoanou all played key roles in the postseason, and Loree is coming off a summer in which he won the Hawaii State Amateur. Freshman Matthew Hull will be counted on, though it’s not a sure thing that he can fully handle a starting role right away.

18. BYU: When you possess one of the best players in the country in Kihei Akina, you’re going to find success. How much, though, will depend on those behind Akina. Cooper Jones is the wild card, as he’s not competed for two years while away on his mission. He won a tournament for the Cougars as a freshman, so he’s got the potential to be a nice running mate with Akina. Add in Utah Tech transfer David Liechty and freshman Drake Harvey, who made the Round of 16 at the U.S. Amateur, and BYU should make it back to nationals for the fifth time in six years.

19. Ole Miss: I know what you’re thinking: the Rebels lost a lot of firepower. Yes, that’s true. But head coach Chris Malloy also brought in some crucial pieces, notably Louisville transfer Cooper Claycomb, freshman Tomas Restrepo and Barry transfer Eduardo Matarazzo, who had three top-5s as a freshman last year. Collins Trolio has taken some big steps with his game since late spring and figures to assume the leadership role left by his brother Cohen, Cameron Tankersley and Tom Fischer.

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20. Charlotte: Getting Justin Matthews, who finished top 30 at the RBC Canadian Open this summer, approved for a fifth year means that head coach Ryan Cabbage will have everyone back from the squad that ended last season ranked No. 20 in the nation but fell short in qualifying for its first NCAA Championship since 2015. Cabbage would like to see some more urgency from this group unlike last postseason, plus somebody from outside the usual top five push for starts.

21. Arizona: The Wildcats are probably still buzzing after not only reaching NCAA match play for the first time in program history but reaching the semifinals. But the task now is replacing graduates Filip Jakubcik and Zach Pollo, who combined for nine top-10s last season. Taishi Moto has All-America potential after making the Round of 32 at the U.S. Amateur and moving into the top 50 in WAGR. He’ll miss some action this fall to compete in the Asia-Pacific Amateur and Asian Games. Behind Moto, William Wistrand and Tianyi Xiong are solid pieces while UTRGV transfer Jorge Martin Sampedro and freshman Adam Fahey from Ireland will battle Czech Amateur winner Matej Baca for starts.

22. USC: After qualifying for their first NCAA Championship since 2019, the Trojans will be led by the standout duo of Jaden Dumdumaya, who won the Pacific Coast Amateur this summer, and Jack Buchanan, who was T-9 at the European Amateur and played in The Open this summer. The additions are strong as well – freshman William Hou, who is top 200 in WAGR, and two transfers who were No. 1 for their respective former teams, Deitrek Gill (Pacific) and Joshua Hong (UTSA).

23. Virginia: The Cavaliers won’t be better than last year after losing PGA Tour U No. 1 Ben James and two other All-Americans, Bryan Lee and Paul Chang. But there is a small chance Lee could be approved for a fifth year despite turning pro already. If not, there is still enough for Virginia to be a top-25 team. Josh Duangmanee will be the leader after two runners-up last season, while Hugo Le Goff comes in as a much-ballyhooed freshman. Behind them are some big questions, though keep an eye on George Mason transfer Vaughn McMeans, who had nine top-15s last season.

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24. Stanford: This is another program waiting to see how the NCAA ends up handling recent graduates, as the Cardinal has two departed players, Nathan Wang and Dean Greyserman, who have yet to turn pro and roster space. Bringing those two back into the fold would have Stanford pushing for a top-15 ranking. Jay Leng is suddenly a projected first-team All-American after rediscovering his putting and turning in the best summer of anyone in the world, winning the Western Amateur and losing to Jack Whaley in the final of the U.S. Amateur. Adding Rice transfer Daniel Zou and freshman Gio Binaghi of Italy will keep Stanford among the best in the ACC, though a return to match play at the NCAA Championship might be a stretch.

25. Florida State: Don’t fret if the Seminoles debut outside the top 50 in the rankings this October. Tyler Weaver is healthy after an oblique injury kept him out all summer, but he and U.S. Amateur champion Jack Whaley will miss the Seminoles’ fall opener because of the Walker Cup. With another player battling an illness, head coach Trey Jones might only have four players to start the season. Depth will be an issue, unless Jones brings in a player mid-year; he certainly has a good 2027 class to pull from.

26. Georgia Tech: The cupboard isn’t bare for Ryan Hybl, though his first roster at Tech won’t be nearly what he had at Oklahoma. Albert Hansson is the best holdover from the Bruce Heppler era, though Kale Fontenot could flourish as he fits the mold of players who have taken off under Hybl. Freshman Max Emberson, one of only two players Hybl brought with him, should play a lot, and a lot will be expected of transfers Carson Baez (Richmond), Henry Robards (Mercer) and Andrew Ferworn (North Alabama). If anyone can make this all come together, it’s Hybl.

27. Alabama: No player in the country had a bigger turnaround than William Jennings, who went from not breaking 90 in his first tournament two springs ago to winning three times and placing runner-up at nationals before earning a Walker Cup nod. The Tide have missed six of the last seven NCAA Championships, but adding a strong freshman duo in Bailey Sutter and Philip Dunham and College of Charleston transfer Miles Eubanks will give head coach Jay Seawell arguably his deepest team during that span.

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28. Cal: The Bears had a disappointing season, which they ended ranked 48th nationally, and yet they almost advanced to a third straight NCAA Championship. With French freshman Calixte Alzas joining a returning core led by potential All-American Ziqin Zhou and Xihaun Chang, Cal will be much improved from a rankings perspective.

29. Wake Forest: The Demon Deacons return six of their top seven players from last season, including three who won tournaments. Sage Bradshaw is an impact freshman, while Florida Gulf Coast’s top player, Nolan Harper, fell into Wake’s lap after Houston hired away Eagles head coach Andrew Danna in June.

30. Utah: The Utes debuted as No. 1 in the national rankings last October before eventually slipping to 37th and seeing their season end with a sixth at regionals. Most of Utah’s slide was due to Gabriel Palacios, who went from the nation’s top-ranked individual to losing his game in the spring. He’s figured it out since, however, and nearly made match play at Merion, so he and fellow senior Sergio Jimenez give head coach Garrett Clegg one of the best one-two punches in the Big 12. Jimenez will miss a couple fall events to play in Europe, which will give Clegg some opportunities to see what the rest of his roster can do.

Golf Channel’s Preseason Top 30

1. Florida
2. Oklahoma State
3. Auburn
4. Arizona State
5. Texas Tech
6. Vanderbilt
7. Tennessee
8. Arkansas
9. North Carolina
10. LSU
11. Illinois
12. Texas
13. Georgia
14. Pepperdine
15. Oklahoma
16. Texas A&M
17. UCLA
18. BYU
19. Ole Miss
20. Charlotte
21. Arizona
22. USC
23. Virginia
24. Stanford
25. Florida State
26. Georgia Tech
27. Alabama
28. Cal
29. Wake Forest
30. Utah

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Next 10: 31. TCU, 32. Clemson, 33. Purdue, 34. Houston, 35. North Carolina State, 36. Washington, 37. New Mexico, 38. South Florida, 39. Notre Dame, 40. Kentucky

Golf Channel’s Preseason All-Americans

FIRST TEAM

1. Preston Stout, Sr., Oklahoma State
2. Tyler Watts, Fr., Tennessee
3. Kihei Akina, Soph., BYU
4. Ryder Cowan, Sr., Oklahoma
5. Daniel Bennett, Jr., Texas
6. William Jennings, Jr., Alabama
7. Josiah Gilbert, Sr., Auburn
8. Jack Turner, Sr., Florida
9. Logan Reilly, Soph., Auburn
10. Jay Leng Jr., Jr., Stanford

SECOND TEAM

11. Carson Bertagnole, Soph., North Carolina
12. Luke Poulter, Sr., Florida
13. Adam Bresnu, Sr., Texas Tech
14. Max Herendeen, Sr., Illinois
15. Tyler Weaver, Sr., Florida State
16. Eric Lee, Sr., Oklahoma State
18. Tim Wiedemeyer, Sr., Texas Tech
19. Zack Swanwick, Jr., Florida
20. Lev Grinberg, Fr., Arkansas

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THIRD TEAM

21. Niall Sheils Donegan, Sr., North Carolina
22. Nguyen Anh Minh, Soph., Arizona State
23. Wheaton Ennis, Jr., Texas A&M
24. Tyler Mawhinney, Fr., Vanderbilt
25. Jacob Modleski, Sr., Notre Dame
26. Ethan Fang, Sr., Oklahoma State
27. Connor Williams, Sr., Arizona State
28. Willy Walsh, Jr., Pepperdine
29. Matthew Comegys, Sr., Texas
30. Connor Graham, Jr., Texas Tech

HONORABLE MENTION

31. Ziqin Zhou, Soph., Cal
32. Baylor Larrabee, Jr., UCLA
33. Harry Takis, Jr., San Diego State
34. Taishi Moto, Jr., Arizona
35. Arni Sveinsson, Jr., LSU
36. Will Hartman, Soph., Vanderbilt
37. Jaden Dumdumaya, Jr., USC
38. Boston Bracken, Soph., Arizona State
39. Jack Whaley, Sr., Florida State
40. Josh Duangmanee, Sr., Virginia

Golf Channel’s Preseason All-Freshmen teams

FIRST TEAM

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Tyler Watts, Tennessee
Tyler Mawhinney, Vanderbilt
Lev Grinberg, Arkansas
Oscar Couilleau, Arizona State
Luke Colton, Vanderbilt

SECOND TEAM

Mason Howell, Georgia
Hugo Le Goff, Virginia
Preston Hage, North Carolina
John Doyle, LSU
Luke Ringkamp, Pepperdine

Circled on the calendar

AUGUST/SEPTEMBER

Aug. 31-Sept. 1: Visit Knoxville Collegiate, Fox Den CC, Farragut, Tennessee
Sept. 7-9: Folds of Honor Collegiate, American Dunes GC, Grand Haven, Michigan
Sept. 12-13: Sahalee Players Championship, Sahalee CC, Sammamish, Washington
Sept. 13-15: Inverness Intercollegiate, Inverness Club, Toledo, Ohio
Sept. 14-15: Vuori Invitational, Rancho Santa Fe (California) GC
Sept. 14-16: Jackson T. Stephens Cup, PGA Frisco (Texas)
Sept. 18-20: Olympia Fields/Fighting Illini Invitational, Olympia Fields (Illinois) CC
Sept. 28-29: Ben Hogan Collegiate Invitational, Colonial CC, Fort Worth, Texas
Sept. 28-29: Bryan Bros Collegiate, Solina GC, West Columbia, South Carolina

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OCTOBER

Oct. 3-5: Blessings Collegiate Invitational, Blessings GC, Fayetteville, Arkansas
Oct. 4-5: Fighting Irish Classic, Warren GC, Notre Dame, Indiana
Oct. 5-6: Hamptons Intercollegiate, Maidstone Club, East Hampton, New York
Oct. 5-6: Cullan Brown Collegiate, Lexington (Kentucky) CC
Oct. 12-14: St. Andrews Links Collegiate, St. Andrews Golf Links (Jubilee/Old), St. Andrews, Scotland
Oct. 12-14: Big 12 Match Play, Salt Lake CC, Salt Lake City, Utah
Oct. 17-19: Fallen Oak Collegiate, Fallen Oak GC, Suacier, Mississippi
Oct. 18-20: Williams Cup, Eagle Point GC, Wilmington, North Carolina
Oct. 26-28: East Lake Cup, East Lake GC, Atlanta
Oct. 31-Nov. 1: Steelwood Collegiate, Steelwood CC, Loxley, Alabama

JANUARY/FEBRUARY

Jan. 25-26: Southwestern Invitational, North Ranch CC, Westlake Village, California
Feb. 4-6: Amer Ari Invitational, Mauna Lani Resort (North), Kamuela, Hawaii
Feb. 13-14: Gators Invitational, Mark Bostick GC, Gainesville, Florida
Feb. 15-17: Watersound Invitational, Watersound Club, Panama City, Florida
Feb. 28-March 2: Cabo Collegiate, Twin Dolphin Club, Cabo San Lucas, Mexico
Feb. 28-March 2: Las Vegas Collegiate, TPC Summerlin, Las Vegas

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MARCH

March 6-8: The Hayt, Sawgrass CC, Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida
March 8-9: Desimone Invitational, Lake Merced GC, Daly City, California
March 8-9: Louisiana Classics, Oakbourne CC, Lafayette, Louisiana
March 15-16: Tiger Invitational, AU Club, Auburn, Alabama
March 15-17: Pauma Valley Invitational, Pauma Valley (California) CC
March 15-17, Black Desert Collegiate, Black Desert Resort, Ivins, Utah
March 21-22: GameAbove Players Collegiate, TPC Sawgrass (Dye’s Valley), Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida
March 22-23: Valspar Collegiate, Floridian GC, Palm City, Florida
March 25-27: The Goodwin, Stanford (California) GC
March 30-31: Maridoe Intercollegiate, Maridoe GC, Carrollton, Texas

APRIL

April 2-4: Mason Rudolph Championship, Legends Club, Franklin, Tennessee
April 3-4: Augusta Haskins Award Invitational, Forest Hills GC, Augusta, Georgia
April 4-6: Calusa Cup, Calusa Pines GC, Naples, Florida
April 10-11: Tar Heel Intercollegiate, UNC Finley GC, Chapel Hill, North Carolina
April 12-13: The Ford Collegiate, The Ford Field and River Club, Richmond Hill, Georgia
April 12-13: Lewis Chitengwa Memorial, Birdwood GC, Charlottesville, Virginia
April 12-14: Western Intercollegiate, Pasatiempo GC, Santa Cruz, California
April 16-17: Thunderbird Collegiate, Papago GC, Phoenix
April 21-25: SEC Championship, Sea Island GC (Seaside), St. Simons Island, Georgia
April 22-26: ACC Championship, Maridoe GC, Carrollton, Texas
April 26-28: Big 12 Championship, Big Easy Ranch, Columbus, Texas
April 30-May 2: Big Ten Championship, Baltusrol GC, Springfield, New Jersey

NCAA REGIONALS

May 17-19

Ak-Chin Southern Dunes, Maricopa, Arizona
Karsten GC, Stillwater, Oklahoma
Pfau GC, Bloomington, Indiana
Tennessee National, Loudon, Tennessee
The Rawls GC, Lubbock, Texas
TPC Myrtle Beach, Murrells Inlet, South Carolina

NCAA CHAMPIONSHIP

May 28-June 2

Omni La Costa Resort and Spa (North), Carlsbad, California