Chambana Sun

Fighting Illini junior Max Herendeen has been named to the Fred Haskins Award Preseason Watch List, joining 24 other collegiate golfers recognized as top contenders for the award. The announcement was made through Haskins Award media partners Golf Channel and Golfweek.

Herendeen is a two-time PING All-American, earning second team honors in 2024 and honorable mention in 2025. He is the first Illinois golfer since Charlie Danielson to achieve back-to-back All-America recognition from the GCAA during his freshman and sophomore years. At the end of the 2025 season, Herendeen ranked No. 38 among NCAA players, second on his team, third overall in the Big Ten Conference, and first among conference underclassmen.

Herendeen advanced to the final round of stroke play at the NCAA Championship last season. He finished with a team-best scoring average of 70.85 and led head-to-head matchups with a record of 1023-179-28 (.843). He tied for most rounds in the 60s on his team with 14 and recorded two of Illinois’ three lowest individual rounds—shooting a 63 (-7) both at the John A. Burns Intercollegiate (where he placed fifth) and in the opening round of the Big Ten Championship. His top finish came at the Augusta Haskins Award Invitational, where he tied for first place with a score of 204 (-12) before finishing second after a playoff.

This summer, Herendeen made his PGA TOUR debut at the 3M Open and reached the Round of 16 in both the Western Amateur and U.S. Amateur tournaments. He currently holds a career-best ranking of No. 17 in the World Amateur Golf Rankings.

The Fred Haskins Award has been presented annually since 1971 to recognize college golf’s top male player as voted by fellow athletes, coaches, and members of golf media. According to organizers, “Past winners of the Haskins Award presented by Stifel have captured 33 major championships and more than 400 professional tournaments around the world.” The award is managed by the Haskins Foundation to honor outstanding performance each season.

“Named in honor of Fred Haskins, the award is managed by the Haskins Foundation to acknowledge the top male golfer at the end of the season and to match the ANNIKA Award presented by Stifel, which acknowledges the top female Division I collegiate golfer.”

The preseason watch list includes student-athletes from schools such as Texas, Oklahoma State, Auburn, Virginia, Arizona State, Notre Dame, Florida State, Vanderbilt and others alongside Herendeen representing Illinois.