Men’s golf ranked No. 23 in Golfweek’s 2026-27 preseason rankings

The Cougars made their third appearance in Golfweek’s preseason top 30 since 2006.

Author Zach Halliday
Men’s golf ranked No. 23 in Golfweek’s 2026-27 preseason rankingsMen’s golf ranked No. 23 in Golfweek’s 2026-27 preseason rankings
Jaren Wilkey/BYU Photo

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — BYU men’s golf was ranked No. 23 in Golfweek’s 2026-27 preseason rankings, the magazine announced Monday.

BYU is one of five Big 12 teams in the top 30. This is the Cougars’ third appearance in Golfweek’s preseason top 30 since 2006.

Head coach Todd Miller enters his first year at the helm after 14 years as director of golf and seven years as an assistant coach. Associate head coach Spencer Dunaway joins Miller in his first season on the staff after playing for the Cougars from 2015-21.

BYU placed 18th at the NCAA Championship after earning three team wins and three individual titles during the 2025-26 season. The Cougars finished the season ranked No. 23 nationally in the Scoreboard rankings.

Kihei Akina hits a drive at BYU's photo day.

BYU returns several key players from last season, including Kihei Akina, who won the 2026 Phil Mickelson Outstanding Freshman Award after a standout 2025-26 season. He will join seniors Peter Kim, who has two collegiate tournament wins, and Angus Klintworth.

Sophomores Parker Bunn, whose top-10 finish at the NCAA Regionals helped the Cougars advance to the NCAA Championship, and Jackson Mauss round out the returning players from last year’s roster.

Sophomore Cooper Jones, who returned from a mission for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, will look to build on his 2023-24 freshman season, which included a tournament win and a top-20 finish in his Korn Ferry Tour debut.

Cooper Jones Action Shot

Transfer David Liechty also brings experience to the Cougar roster after two tournament wins for Utah Tech last season.

BYU adds three freshmen to complete its roster: 2025 Rolex Junior All-American Drake Harvey, who recently advanced to the U.S. Amateur Round of 16, and Utah Junior State Amateur champions Lincoln Markham and Austin Shelley.

The full list of Golfweek’s top 30 preseason rankings is listed below.

  1. Florida
  2. Arizona State
  3. Auburn
  4. Vanderbilt
  5. Oklahoma State
  6. LSU
  7. Texas Tech
  8. Tennessee
  9. North Carolina
  10. Arkansas
  11. Illinois
  12. Georgia
  13. UCLA
  14. Pepperdine
  15. Charlotte
  16. Alabama
  17. Florida State
  18. Texas A&M
  19. Oklahoma
  20. Stanford
  21. Ole Miss
  22. Georgia Tech
  23. BYU
  24. Texas
  25. Arizona
  26. Virginia
  27. USC
  28. Notre Dame
  29. New Mexico
  30. San Diego