BATON ROUGE, La. – The No. 8 ranked LSU men’s golf team is set to tee of at the SEC Championship in St. Simons Island, Ga., April 22-26. The event is set to be played at the par-70, 7,005-yard Sea Island Golf Club.
Stroke Play Results | Match Play Results | Tournament Info
This marks the 25th year for the Southeastern Conference Championship to be contested at Sea Island Golf Club. The SEC has conducted its annual championship on St. Simons Island since 2001. The LSU men have won one conference tournament title (2015) since then.
The 2026 SEC Championship will mark the eighth consecutive in which the event will feature both stroke play (April 22-24) and match play (April 25-26). Three rounds of stroke play will occur the opening three days of the championship. For the sixth consecutive year, the final match play round will be televised live on SEC Network.
The championship match on Sunday, April 26, will be televised live on SEC Network at 7 a.m. CT. The semifinals on Saturday afternoon will be available live digitally on SEC Network+ at 12 p.m. CT.
The Tigers enter this week as one of 11 ranked teams competing in the conference finale. Last year the LSU men finished second overall in stroke play with a 29-under performance in three rounds. Their weekend in Georgia closed with a 2-3 loss in match-play quarterfinals versus Alabama. Entering the championship last season the Tigers were ranked No. 7 in the nation.
During the 2025-26 season, LSU has had some amazing performances seeing themselves ranked as high as No. 2 in the nation. In nine tournaments played the Tigers have finished top five in all, including three tournament wins. Their 2025-26 record is impressive sitting at 103-12-3 on the season. Entering this week’s tournament the Tigers have four men under the 70-stroke-average mark in Árni Sveinsson (69.52), Jay Mendell (69.63), Matty Dodd-Berry (69.96) and Noah McWilliams (69.63).
THE LSU LINEUP
Árni Sveinsson | Sophomore | Garðabær, Iceland
This season: 69.52 stroke avg. in 21 rounds | Career: 69.98 stroke avg. in 57 rounds
Sveinsson went into the spring season as a Haskins and Ben Hogan watch list member. He closed the fall season with a tournament win as an individual with a 13-under-203 performance at the Fallen Oak Collegiate Invitational. In five of his six other tournament appearances during the 2025-26 season, Sveinsson finished in the top 15, including a second-place finish at the Jackson T. Stephens Cup. Last time out he finished 14th overall with a nine-under week at the Augusta Haskins Award Invitational. The Icelander earned two SEC Golfer of the Week honors during the fall. He finished 2024-25 second on the team in stroke average at 70.25 for 36 rounds, making him third best in school history behind Sam Burns (2016-17) and Algot Kleen (2024-25).
Jay Mendell | Junior | Lafayette, La.
This season: 69.63 stroke avg. in 24 rounds | Career: 71.23 stroke avg. in 99 rounds
Mendell is having his best season yet as he’s finished seven-under or better in five tournaments. His best performance of the year came during the fall at the Bryan Bros Collegiate where he went 11-under 217 to finish T2. Last time out Mendell recorded a four-under 206 to finish T15 at The Ford Intercollegiate. This past year he was named All-Southeast Region by the Golf Coaches Association of America after a year in which her stroke average dropped from 72.36 in 2024 to 71.08 in 2025. In 36 rounds this past season, he averaged 71.08 strokes per round with 24 rounds under par.
Matty Dodd-Berry | Senior | Wirral, England
This season: 69.96 stroke avg. in 27 rounds | Career: 70.86 stroke avg. in 51 rounds
Matty has had some great outings this season, going three under or better six times so far. The best performance of his season was at the Fallen Oak Collegiate where he went 11 under to finish fourth overall. His last time out the Englishman went three-under 207 at The Ford Intercollegiate to finish T21. He appeared in 24 rounds this past season, averaging 71.88 with nine rounds of par or under. He finished 13th at the SEC Championships at 5-under 205 (67-67-71).
Noah McWilliams | Junior | Benton, La.
This season: 69.63 stroke avg. in 27 rounds | Career: 71.79 stroke avg. in 63 rounds
McWilliams has recorded four top-10 individual finishes during the 2025-26 season so far, topped by a T2 finish at the Bryan Bros Collegiate with an 11-under 202. Last time out he recorded a four-under tournament at The Ford Intercollegiate to finish T15. In regard to par, his best performance outside of the Bryan Bros Collegiate was a 12-under 204 at the Puerto Rico Classic to open the spring. He averaged 72.48 for 21 rounds with nine rounds of par or under this past season. The junior scored his first-collegiate win in the Bayou City Collegiate at 12-under par 204, against a field of 81 (67-66-71).
Dan Hayes | Freshman | Manchester, England
This season: 70.22 stroke avg. in 27 rounds | Career: 70.22 stroke avg. in 27 rounds
Hayes is five tournaments removed from his best performance of his young collegiate career as he went six-under 210 at the Puerto Rico Classic. He has five top-25 finishes through nine tournaments played this 2025-26 season. Last time out at The Ford Intercollegiate, Hayes recorded a one-under 209 to finish T26. The England native has earned three Freshman of the Week honors so far his inaugural season with the Tigers. He signed with LSU as the number one junior in Europe. Golf Channel tabbed him a preseason All-Freshmen entering the season.
THE LSU ALTERNATE IF NECESSARY
Hudson Lawson | Freshman | Haleyville, Ala.
This season: 71.88 stroke avg. in 24 rounds | Career: 71.88 stroke avg. in 24 rounds
Lawson filled in for Sveinsson at the Puerto Rico Classic to kick off the spring season, going nine under 207 to finish T14 for his best performance yet with the Tigers as a freshman. In his last outing Lawson recorded a six-over 216 to finish T49 at The Ford Intercollegiate. He was the 32nd ranked prospect in his class and has had a decorated junior career. Lawson was a first team all-state selection all four years of his high school career and was a National Golf High School All-American as a senior. Lawson also earned the North Alabama Player of the Year award in three consecutive seasons from 2022-2024.
PARTICIPATING TEAMS
Ranked: #1 Auburn, #3 Texas, #4 Florida, #5 Arkansas, #8 LSU, #11 Vanderbilt, #12 Ole Miss, #14 Tennessee, #16 Oklahoma, #17 Alabama, #25 Georgia
Unranked: Missouri, Mississippi State, South Carolina, Kentucky, Texas A&M
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