Auburn's Jackson Koivun wins Ben Hogan Award, only second freshman to earn the honor
Courtesy of Auburn Athletics
FORTH WORTH, Texas – Auburn men’s golfer Jackson Koivun won the 2024 Ben Hogan Award presented by PNC Bank, the Hogan Foundation announced Monday.
Koivun joins Oklahoma State’s Rickie Fowler (2008) as the only two freshman winners in the award’s history. He is the second Auburn player to win, joining Will Blackmon, who captured the honor in 1994.
The Ben Hogan Award honors the top men’s college golfer based on collegiate, amateur and professional events over the previous 12 months. A committee comprised of three dozen leaders in the golf world and past Hogan winners rank each of the three finalists to determine the latest recipient each year.
With a resume highlighted by an SEC Individual Championship, top 10 finishes in 11 of 12 starts, and a semifinal appearance at the 2023 U.S. Amateur last July, Koivun was an undeniable pick for this year’s trophy. He leads the Auburn lineup in wins (2), scoring average (69.25), birdies made (164) and rounds below par (26). With a 2-under 70 in the Tigers’ opening round of regional play a week ago, Koivun smashed the program’s single-season record for subpar rounds.
Koivun is also one of 10 players on the final watch list for the 2024 Fred Haskins Award, which will be announced Tuesday, May 28. Auburn junior Brendan Valdes is another Haskins finalist.
Recent winners of the Hogan include Ludvig Aberg (2022, 23), Sahith Theegala (2020), Viktor Hovland (2019) and Jon Rahm (2016). Tigers assistant coach Chris Williams is also a past winner as he was awarded during his senior season at the University of Washington (2013).
