STILLWATER, Okla. – Fighting Illini senior Nick Hardy was honored by the Golf Coaches Association of America on Tuesday as he was recognized as a PING First-Team All-American. The honor is the second All-America nod for Hardy in his career. He is one of just 11 student-athletes in the nation to earn First Team All-America recognition.
The 2018 Big Ten Player of the Year, Hardy concluded a standout career for the Orange and Blue this year as he won his second Big Ten Individual title, and earned 11 individual finishes among the top seven players. Ranked at No. 12 in the latest World Amateur Golf Ranking, Hardy closed the 2018 campaign with a team-leading 70.61 stroke average, which also sets a new Illinois single-season stroke average record. Hardy was tabbed as the Big Ten Sportsmanship Award honoree this season, and was also named to the Haskins Award Watch List on March 8. He was a semifinalist for the Jack Nicklaus Player of the Year Award, and earned the fourth PING All-Midwest Region nod of his career.
Hardy and the 10th-ranked Fighting Illini men's golf squad concluded the 2018 campaign after advancing to the final round of stroke play at the NCAA Championships on Monday. The Orange and Blue carded a 7-over par 295 in the final round of play to finish 24-over par for the 72-hole portion of the event. Hardy tied for 32nd overall with a total score 4-over par.
Division I PING First-Team All-Americans
Shintaro Ban, UNLV
Broc Everett, Augusta
Doug Ghim, Texas
Nick Hardy, Illinois
Viktor Hovland, Oklahoma State
Theo Humphrey, Vanderbilt
Collin Morikawa, California
Chandler Phillips, Texas A&M
Justin Suh, Southern California
Norman Xiong, Oregon
Matthew Wolff, Oklahoma State
