FORT WORTH, Texas – Fighting Illini All-America golfer Max Herendeen have been named to the 2025 Ben Hogan Award Watch List, announced Wednesday (Jan. 28) by the Fort Worth Colonial Charities (FWCC), the Friends of Golf (FOG) and the Golf Coaches Association of America (GCAA).
Herendeen, for the third consecutive season, is listed among the nation's top 35 collegiate golfers named to the watch list for the prestigious award. He is one of two B1G competitors on this year's watch list.
Herendeen closed the fall slate at No. 12 in the NCAA Division I player rankings. After finishing fifth to open the season at the OFCC/Fighting Illini Invitational at Olympia Fields Country Club, Herendeen added a pair of runner-up finishes at the Windon Memorial Classic and the Fallen Oak Collegiate Invitational. The Bellevue, Wash., native shot par or better in 11 of his 12 rounds during the Illini's fall schedule en route to a 294-23-5 head-to-head record and a 68.92 stroke average, on pace to break the Illinois single-season record.
Herendeen, a two-time PING All-American who earned second-team honors in 2024 and honorable mention accolades in 2025, is the first Illini golfer to collect back-to-back All-America nods from the GCAA in his freshman and sophomore seasons since Charlie Danielson in 2013 and 2014. He entered the 2025-26 season riding the momentum of a sensational summer that included his PGA TOUR debut at the 3M Open and was capped by Round of 16 appearances in match play at both the 123rd Western Amateur and the 125th U.S. Amateur. Herendeen has reached as high as No. 17 in the World Amateur Golf Rankings.
The Ben Hogan Award annually awards the top men's NCAA Division I, II or III, NAIA or NJCAA college golfer based on results from all collegiate, amateur and professional events played over the previous 12 months. An esteemed international selection committee, comprised of 40 leaders in collegiate, amateur and professional golf, votes during each stage of the process.
This year's 10 semifinalists, which could include individuals not on the watch list, will be unveiled Thursday, April 16. That group will be pared down to three finalists on Tuesday, May 12. The finalists will attend a black-tie dinner on Memorial Day (Monday, May 25) at the TCU Legends Club in Fort Worth, Texas, where the winner will be crowned.
2025 BEN HOGAN AWARD WATCH LIST
- Max Herendeen, Illinois, Jr., Bellevue, Wash.
- Daniel Bennett, Texas, So., Pretoria, South Africa
- Adam Bresnu, Texas Tech, Jr., Rabat, Morocco
- Mahanth Chirravuri, Pepperdine, Sr., Chandler, Ariz.
- John Daly II, Arkansas, Sr., Clearwater, Fla.
- Ethan Fang, Oklahoma State, Jr., Plano, Texas
- Josiah Gilbert, Auburn, Jr., Millbrook, Ala.
- Connor Graham, Texas Tech, So., Blairgowrie, Scotland
- Filip Jakubcik, Arizona, Sr., Holesov, Czech Republic
- Ben James, Virginia, Sr., Milford, Conn.
- William Jennings, Alabama, So., Greenville, S.C.
- Bryan Kim, Duke, Jr., Brookeville, Md.
- Jackson Koivun, Auburn, Jr., Chapel Hill, N.C.
- Fifa Laopakdee, Arizona State, Jr., Rayong, Thailand
- Bryan Lee, Virginia, Sr., Fairfax, Va.
- Eric Lee, Oklahoma State, Jr., Fullerton, Calif.
- Christiaan Maas, Texas, Sr., Pretoria, South Africa
- Jonathan McEwen, Washington & Lee, Jr., Portsmouth, Va.
- Michael Mjaaseth, Arizona State, Sr., Oslo, Norway
- Jacob Modleski, Notre Dame, Jr., Noblesville, Ind.
- Tommy Morrison, Texas, Sr., Dallas, Texas
- Gabriel Palacios, Utah, Jr., Guatemala City, Guatemala
- Luke Poulter, Florida, Jr., Orlando, Fla.
- Niall Sheils Donegan, North Carolina, Jr., Mill Valley, Calif.
- Will Sides, SMU, Sr., Tulsa, Okla.
- Lance Simpson, Tennessee, Sr., Knoxville, Tenn.
- Preston Stout, Oklahoma State, Jr., Richardson, Texas
- Jase Summy, Oklahoma, Sr., Keller, Texas
- Daniel Svard, Northwestern, Sr., Jarfalla, Sweden
- Árni Sveinsson, LSU, So., Garðabær, Iceland
- Cameron Tankersley, Ole Miss, Sr., Dickson, Tenn.
- Tyler Weaver, Florida State, Jr., Newmarket, England
- Tim Wiedemeyer, Texas Tech, Jr., Olching, Germany
- Connor Williams, Arizona State, Jr., Escondido, Calif.
- Wells Williams, Vanderbilt, Sr., West Point, Miss.
