Mason Howell Wins The U.S. Amateur
The third youngest winner of the Havemeyer Trophy will join USA's Walker Cup team at Cypress Point. Plus, Scheffler wins again and intrigue grows as Ryder Cup Captain's picks loom.
Olympic Club’s Lake Course takes golfers on one of the most unusual, taxing, and cruel rides in championship golf. The tree-lined course that’s built on sand doesn’t appear special from the air because so much of its ingeniousness as a championship venue depends on the property's tilt toward Lake Merced.
The relentlessness of its unlevel stances, heavy seaside air, remaining overhanging trees, and subtle green slopes, exacerbated by the land bias, has conspired to wear down most of the game’s greats. Throw in how fast the fairways get when the sun comes out for it’s daily twenty minutes, and a seemingly lush-looking tree-lined slog can ripen in a short time.
West coast-raised golfers and the assorted converts to Pacific sea breeze golf have embraced the Lake’s quirks whenever the club has kindly opened its doors to dozens of championships.
So was it a surprise that an 18-year-old from Thomasville, Georgia beat a 19-year-old from Dickson, Tennessee, to win the U.S. Amateur?
A little bit. But when Mason Howell drove into the 12th hole rough and used a fairway downslope to run his approach onto the green—his eighth time on the hole for the week—he closed out Jackson Herrington and made clear this U.S. Amateur champion was a quick convert, old soul, or some combination of both with gobs of talent and the youthful energy to remain focused on a course that wears most adults down.
“My name next to these other names on this trophy is unbelievable,” said Howell. “To be next to somebody named Tiger, that’s an unreal feeling.”
That he was even in match play was a miracle after bogeying the second hole in Wednesday’s 20 for 17 playoff just to have a shot at the Havemeyer Trophy and all that goes with it: a gold medal, Masters and U.S. Open invites, a Walker Cup spot at Cypress Point, and a place in golf history as the championship’s third-youngest winner, replacing Tiger Woods for that honor.
“To be ahead of Tiger in something, that’s something that not a lot of people can say.”
Howell emerged a 7&6 winner despite bogeying his first two holes in Sunday’s better weather. He did not wait long to right the ship by going up two through five holes. Howell then opened up a 4-up lead after Sunday morning’s final. Herrington lacked the complete game he displayed in holding off hometown favorite son Niall Shiels Donegan in Saturday’s semifinal.
“I just played terrible, can’t lie,” said Herrington, the runner-up a year ago in the U.S. Amateur Four-Ball. “I hit some good shots like the one [on No. 12 in the afternoon 18] that didn’t even end up close…I didn’t know what I was doing, and I couldn’t figure it out.”
After Herrington airmailed the 12th green from the fairway following Howell’s match-closing run-up shot, the future Georgia golfer rolled his birdie putt to one foot, and Herrington conceded the hole.
“He is just wise beyond his years and so mature for his age,” said Jimmy Gillam, Howell's caddie as well as his short game and high school golf coach. “[He] has the tools that all the best players have, but most importantly, has it between the ears. It’s really impressive and awesome to be a part of his life… I knew from the first moment I met him that he was special. He’s just such a hard worker, and he’s always focused.”
Gillam serves as the assistant pro at Glen Arven Country Club, where Howell becomes the fifth USGA champion associated with the course that produced four different U.S. Women’s Amateur champions: Beatrix Hoyt (1896, 1897, 1898), Frances Griscom (1900), Mary Lena Faulk (1953) and Megan Schofill (2023).
Also a member at Glen Arven: Harris English, a two-time runner-up in majors this year and 2025 Ryder Cup qualifier.
Howell heads home to high school but he does get to come back to Olympic Club in a few weeks for the U.S. Walker Cup team’s first round as a group. Then it’s off to Cypress Point to represent his country.
“At the end of the day, I still have to go sit in a classroom for eight hours these coming months,” Howell said of school that’s already started. “Just got to soak this up and really enjoy this one with friends and family.”
Also…
After Howell’s win, the USGA and Captain Nathan Smith announced the final additions to the team in addition to the champion: Stewart Hagestad, Jacob Modleski, Tommy Morrison, and Jase Summy. The Quad will look at the rosters tomorrow after the R&A announces the GB&I team at 2 p.m. BST.
Olympic Club received rave reviews from players for both setup, conditioning, and as a test. Ben Kimball oversaw a setup that featured much wider landing areas (32 acres from 24 in 2021). The par 70 Lake still held its own as proven by the 74.870 scoring average in stroke play qualifying. The Lake’s non-poa, creeping bentgrass greens that have driven players to hard alcohol and who knows what else after past championships, also received raves. Congratulations to Director of Golf Maintenance Troy Flanagan, Lake Course super Kyle Moore, and the Ocean Course’s Jaren Kief.
