NASHVILLE, Tenn. — Luke List once remarked that he wished he had set bolder goals as a collegiate golfer. Considering the standard he set for all who followed, that explains a lot about how one of Vanderbilt’s most decorated golfers grew into one of the world’s best.
In a preview of what was to come, List competed in the U.S. Open before he even opened a notebook on West End. List narrowly missed the cut in the 2003 U.S. Open held at Olympia Fields in Illinois. Barely a week after graduating from Baylor High School in Chattanooga, he finished ahead of David Duval, Nick Faldo and Davis Love III, among other luminaries.
List didn’t slow down once collegiate opponents replaced professional legends. He became Vanderbilt’s first freshman All-American when he received third-team honors in 2004, capping a debut season in which he also received first-team All-SEC honors and helped the Commodores reach the NCAA Championships. Shortly after the college season, List finished second in the U.S. Amateur at Winged Foot Golf Club in New York.
List went on to earn first-team All-SEC and honorable mention All-America honors in each of his last three seasons at Vanderbilt. He was the individual medalist at the 2005 Mason Rudolph Championship, recording a blistering 7-under-par final round to clinch the title. That round of 65 barely made his personal medal stand. List’s round of 62 at the 2007 College All-American bettered his own program record by a stroke—a new record that stood for 15 years until Cole Sherwood’s 61 in 2022.
For some golfers, college is little more than a warm-up for joining a professional tour. And List, too, could have used his precocious credentials to enter the professional fray. The son of All-American swimmers at North Carolina, he chose instead to remain at Vanderbilt. He capped his four years by leading Vanderbilt back to the NCAA Championships as a senior and graduating with a degree in human and organizational development.
“Attending Vanderbilt University and receiving my degree in four years will always be something I value,” List told the Golf Coaches Association of America. “My parents were very supportive in my decision in staying all four years. I would encourage everyone to experience the full college life and realize the PGA Tour is not going anywhere. Once you finish school, you will be playing on your own. I really enjoyed having the opportunity to play on a team. There are so many experiences that I…
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