Ole Miss men's golf is taking confidence and the program's first 1 Seed into Tallahassee Regional

Chris Malloy has done a lot of good things in his 11 years as the Ole Miss men’s golf head coach but there was one accomplishment that had still eluded the program.

Turns out that box can be checked off now after the Rebels earned the program’s first 1 Seed in the NCAA Tournament, which starts on Monday. Ole Miss heads to the Tallahassee Regional and the Seminole Legacy Club with the goal of getting to California and the NCAA Championships later this month.

The regional runs from May 12-14. Despite being one of the four 1 Seeds the Rebels are not able to host at their home course, or the Oxford Country Club. Though the early discussions of how to make that possible in the future are underway, though still very preliminary stages.

Back to this year. Throughout the golf season which covers both the Fall and Spring athletic seasons the Rebels were as high as the No. 1 team in the country and went down to No. 3. But earning the 1 Seed is a testament to what Malloy has done in assembling his 11th team at Ole Miss.

“Anytime you can do a first in program history, you know it’s special,” Malloy said. “It’s a big deal to all of us. We know it doesn’t get us anything other than a good tee time, number one seed. We got to earn it from this point forward.”

There has been plenty of success this season in getting the 1 Seed. Twice this year the Rebels posted the second-lowest 54-hole score in program history.

Malloy also credits the depth of his five-man team. Starting with junior Michael La Sasso who posted his first two collegiate wins this season. He won the Hamptons Intercollegiate in the Fall then followed up with a victory in the regular season finale at the 2025 Old Waverly Collegiate Championship, which Ole Miss won as a team by a 33-shot margin.

La Sasso shared that title with junior Tom Fischer, which is a major example of the depth of the Rebels roster Malloy speaks to.

“It hasn’t been just Mike. It certainly has started with Mike. He’s probably been our most consistent player,” Malloy said. “But it can be any week. Saw Tom Fischer get his first win tied with Mike a few weeks back at Mississippi State’s event. We are so deep one through five that I think that’s the key. This time of year, whether it be with regionals and then once we get out to California for finals, you’re going to need five guys that are playing solid golf and you’re going to need to be able to lean on any five of those guys.”

As for the Tallahassee Regional Ole Miss leads a field that includes fellow Southeastern Conference foes Georgia (4 seed) plus 2 seed and host Florida State and 3 Seed San Diego State.

Malloy is not a stranger to the course. He was once an assistant coach at Florida State before coming to Ole Miss. Plus the Rebels have played Seminole Legacy Club, winning the Seminole Intercollegiate by five strokes last year.

Having familiarity of course from the head coach and the successful experience by the players is a strong mix for confidence entering this week’s regional.

“I think it puts driver in our hands a lot, which our team is very well off the tee,” La Sasso said. “It’s kind of just like smart golf. You know, you kind of got to pick a location. Club selection is a pretty big deal out there. I think that’s something that we do well as a team is kind of think through a golf course pretty well and I think that course allows for that.”

Ole Miss is looking to get back to its first NCAA Championships since 2022. The Rebels were one shot shy of making the cut and advancing out of the Stanford Regional a year ago.