Buchanan Named to Final Haskins Award Fall Watch List

COLUMBUS, Ga. – Fighting Illini senior golfer Jackson Buchanan was announced Tuesday by the Haskins Foundation as one of 25 players named to the final fall watch list for the 2024-25 Haskins Award. The Haskins award is presented annually to the top male U.S. collegiate golfer as voted on by college golfers, coaches, and members of the golf media.

Buchanan, the reigning Big Ten Golfer of the Year, earned a spot on the preseason watch list in early September, along with preseason first-team All-America nods from both Golfweek and Golf Channel. Since then, he has led the 12^th-ranked Fighting Illini through a strong early-season slate including a team win to cap the fall schedule at the Steelwood Collegiate Invitational, plus a pair of runner-up team finishes at the Folds of Honor Collegiate and the Fallen Oak Collegiate Invitational. The Illini closed the first half of the season with an overall head-to-head record of 52-14-1.

The Buford, Georgia, native leads the Illini with a stroke average of 70.0 through the team’s first five tournaments of the season. He captured the fourth win of his collegiate career at Fallen Oak and added a pair of third-place individual finishes at Folds of Honor and the Steelwood Collegiate. His trio of top-three finishes are tied for the most in the nation, and with his T10 finish at the Windon Memorial Classic in late September, Buchanan recorded top-10 finishes in four of five events to open the year. He has recorded par or better in a team-leading 11 of 15 rounds, including six rounds in the 60s.  

Buchanan is currently No. 6 in the PGA Tour University rankings, No. 11 in the World Amateur Golf Ranking (WAGR), and 13^th in the NCAA Division I men’s golf rankings.