Auburn University golfers Jackson Koivun and Josiah Gilbert have been named to the 35-player watch list for the 2026 Ben Hogan Award, according to an announcement from the Golf Coaches Association of America (GCAA) and the Hogan Foundation.
The Ben Hogan Award has recognized the top men’s college golfer across NCAA Divisions I, II, III, NAIA, or NJCAA since 2002. The award considers performance in collegiate, amateur, and professional events over a 12-month period. The selection committee includes more than 30 leaders from collegiate, amateur, and professional golf.
This year’s watch list features athletes from 26 universities representing 11 countries. Auburn is among five schools with multiple players on the list.
The process will narrow the field to ten semifinalists on April 16. Three finalists will be selected on May 12 and will attend a black-tie dinner at Colonial Country Club in Fort Worth, Texas on May 25, where the winner will be announced.
Koivun previously won the award as a true freshman in May 2024, becoming only the second freshman ever to do so and Auburn’s first recipient since Will Blackmon in 1994. Past winners include Rickie Fowler (2008), Patrick Cantlay (2012), Jon Rahm (2015, 2016), Sahith Theegala (2020), and Auburn associate head coach Chris Williams (2013).
Gilbert appears on the watch list for a second consecutive year.
Both Koivun and Gilbert are ranked in the top ten of the World Amateur Golf Ranking (WAGR) at the start of spring; Koivun is ranked No.1 while Gilbert holds No.10.
During fall competition, Gilbert secured two low medalist honors with wins at both the Honors Course Invitational and The Clerico tournament. Koivun made six cuts in seven PGA Tour starts over summer—finishing T11th, T6th, T5th, and T4th consecutively—and placed inside the top twenty in all three of his collegiate fall starts.
Auburn’s men’s golf team is currently ranked fourth nationally and begins its spring season February 5-7 at the Amer Ari Invitational at Mauna Lani Golf Club in Waikoloa, Hawai’i.
