Pair of Dores Named to Hogan Award Watch List

Seniors Gordon Sargent and Jackson Van Paris were each selected to the 2025 Ben Hogan Award Watch List

FORT WORTH, Texas – Vanderbilt men’s golf seniors Gordon Sargent and Jackson Van Paris have been named to the watch list for the 2025 Ben Hogan Award. The joint announcement was made on Wednesday by the Hogan Trophy Award Foundation, the Friends of Golf (FOG), and the Golf Coaches Association of America (GCAA).

The Ben Hogan Award annually awards the top men’s NCAA Division I, II or III, NAIA, or NJCAA college golfer based on all collegiate, amateur, and professional events over the previous 12 months. Vanderbilt is one of nine schools that have multiple golfers on the watch list.

Sargent is ranked No. 5 in the World Amateur Golf Rankings coming into his final spring season with the Commodores. The Birmingham, Alabama, native earned his PGA TOUR card via the PGA TOUR University Accelerated program in October 2023. He decided to delay the start of his pro career by returning to Vanderbilt for his senior season. Sargent participated in three tournaments for the Dores during the fall portion of the 2024-25 campaign. The All-American carded under par in four rounds and held a scoring average of 71.44.

The 2022 NCAA Division I individual champion has been a finalist for the Ben Hogan Award three times during his Vanderbilt. Over the summer, the three-time GCAA PING First Team All-American played in both the 124th U.S. Open Championship and the 152nd British Open Championship after earning exemptions into both events as the 2023 Mark H. McCormack Medal winner. Sargent has won a school-record six tournaments during his time at Vanderbilt, while he has helped the Commodores capture 19 team titles in total. He enters the 2025 spring season holding Vanderbilt’s best career scoring average at 69.70.

Van Paris makes his debut on the Ben Hogan Award watch list after earning Preseason Second Team All-American honors from both GOLFWEEK and Golf Channel entering the 2024-25 season. The senior opens the spring ranked No. 7 in the WAGR. Van Paris led Vanderbilt in scoring average during the fall season at 70.00 through four tournaments. He finished under par in seven rounds and held an 18-hole low score of 66.

Over the summer, the Pinehurst, North Carolina, native teamed up with Sargent to represent the United States at the 2024 Arnold Palmer Cup at Lahinch Golf Club in Ireland. He went 2-2-0 to help the U.S. win its first Palmer Cup on international soil since 2018. Van Paris also posted a runner-up finish at the 2024 North & South Men’s Amateur.

An esteemed selection committee votes during each stage of the process. The selection committee is comprised of more than 30 leaders in collegiate, amateur, and professional golf.

This year’s list of 10 semifinalists, which could include individuals not on the watch list, will be unveiled Thursday, April 17. That group will be pared down to three finalists on Tuesday, May 6. The finalists will attend a black-tie dinner on Monday, May 19, at Colonial Country Club in Fort Worth, Texas, where the winner will be crowned.

The Ben Hogan Award has honored the outstanding amateur collegiate golfer at Colonial Country Club since 2002. Before its move to Fort Worth, the original Ben Hogan Trophy, which was awarded based on a different list of criteria, was issued at Bel-Air Country Club in Los Angeles beginning in 1990.

Over the years, recipients of the Ben Hogan Award have combined to accumulate 85 worldwide victories, including 68 PGA TOUR wins, and have amassed more than $450 million in prize money on the PGA TOUR. Additionally, the group has combined to make 17 Ryder Cup appearances and a dozen in Presidents Cups.

The Vanderbilt men’s golf team is in the midst of its first tournament of the spring, as the Commodores open Round 3 of the Southwestern Invitational on Wednesday afternoon. Vandy enters the day in fourth place on the team leaderboard, just five strokes off the lead. Fans can click the link here for live results.

For more information and exclusive content on the Vanderbilt men’s golf team, follow @VandyMGolf on Instagram and Twitter/X.