Florida State junior Luke Clanton, the No. 1 player in the World Amateur Golf Ranking (WAGR), has been named the 2025 Ben Hogan Award winner presented by Baird. The honor, awarded to the nation’s top collegiate golfer based on performance in amateur, college, and professional events, places Clanton in elite company, and caps a season that showcased dominance across every level of competition.

Collegiate Brilliance
While Clanton’s PGA TOUR showings made national headlines, his college season was integral to his Hogan Award campaign. In just nine events this season, Clanton posted four individual wins, capturing titles at the:

• NCAA Southeast (Tallahassee) Regional
• Watersound Invitational
• Seminole Intercollegiate
• Lewis Chitengwa Memorial

In addition, he finished runner-up at the 2024 NCAA Championships, narrowly missing an individual national title. Across 25 collegiate rounds in 2024–25, Clanton maintained a scoring average of 69.36, nearly matching his school-record 69.33 set during his sophomore season. He now owns 20 career top-10s and sits second all-time at FSU in career scoring average (70.12), just short of John Pak’s record. 

His steady hand extended into the postseason as well, finishing T14 at the ACC Championship and winning his Regional by four strokes. Entering the season, he was named a Preseason First-Team All-American by both Golfweek and Golf Channel, and was a staple on the Haskins Award Watch List throughout the year.

Historic Run in the Professional Ranks
In parallel with his collegiate success, Clanton became a household name in pro golf circles. He made an impressive 10 cuts in 13 PGA TOUR starts, highlighted by:

• T2 – John Deere Classic
• T2 – RSM Classic
• 5th – Wyndham Championship
• T10 – Rocket Mortgage Classic
• T41 – U.S. Open

He became the first amateur since Jack Nicklaus in 1961 to record three top-10 finishes in the same PGA TOUR season, and at age 20, was the youngest runner-up in a TOUR event since Jordan Spieth in 2014. At the 2024 U.S. Open, Clanton became the first amateur in championship history to shoot back-to-back rounds in the 60s.

That success helped him secure a PGA TOUR card through PGA TOUR University’s Accelerated Program, a landmark achievement reached by only one other player before him: Gordon Sargent. Clanton will make his professional debut this summer at the RBC Canadian Open. 

A Resume of Honors

• 2024 McCormack Medal Winner (top-ranked amateur globally)
• 2025 Golden Nole Male MVP
• 2024 PING First-Team All-American
• 2024 Jack Nicklaus Award Finalist
• 2024 & 2025 ACC Golfer of the Month
• All-ACC and All-Southeast Region selections

He was honored alongside fellow finalists David Ford (North Carolina) and 2024 Ben Hogan Award winner Jackson Koivun (Auburn) during a black-tie event at Colonial Country Club in Fort Worth. Past winners of the Ben Hogan Award include Jon Rahm, Viktor Hovland, Rickie Fowler, and Patrick Cantlay, names Clanton seems destined to join in PGA TOUR contention.

Carrying On the Mission of the Ben Hogan Award
More than an individual honor, the Ben Hogan Award spotlights players who excel on the course while championing the sport’s values. The Hogan Trophy Award Foundation has contributed over $1.2 million to scholarships and golf programs, and this year supported Montreat College, whose golf facility was damaged by Hurricane Helene, and the Southern California PGA Foundation, whose junior programs were impacted by wildfires.

To follow the award and explore its impact on the game, visit TheBenHoganAward.org and follow @BenHoganAward on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram.

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