Class of 2025 Boys Individual Rankings
American
10/8: In preparation for our final 2025 rankings before signing day, we have been working hard on a new ranking system that is more objective. We have assigned point values to wins, top-5, top-10, and top-15 finishes in top junior and amateur events within a two year time span, with more points assigned to tournaments within the past year. AJGA open events and regional tournaments have been assigned lesser point values, and points are subtracted for finishes outside the top-20 in the top junior events. Points adjustments are considered for players who play less tournaments than others, and percentage of top finishes are evaluated.
3. Will Hartman: Vanderbilt North Carolina native and Vanderbilt-commit Hartman spent 2023 as the top player across all junior rankings metrics. Although he has slipped a bit in the rankings in 2024, he has consistently carded top-15 finishes in big events. Hartman found the winner's circle at the 2023 & 2022 Bobby Chapman Invitationals, and notched top-5 finishes in the following events: the 2024 & 2023 Junior PGA Championships, 2024 AJGA RLX Ralph Lauren Junior Classic, and the 2023 AJGA Team Taylormade Invitational and Junior Players Championship. Hartman found the top-10 on the leaderboard at the 2024 Junior Players and the top-15 at the 2024 Team Taylormade, Junior Invitational at Sage Valley, Terra Cotta Invitational, and the 2023 AJGA Simplify Boys Championship. Hartman qualified for the 2023 US Amateur and reached the semi-final of the 2023 US Junior Amateur.
5. Kihei Akina: Brigham Young Akina, who hails from Utah, has followed in his brother's footsteps and committed to Brigham Young University. Named the 2023 USA Today high school player of the year, Akina has shown very consistent golf in big-stage tournaments in the past two years. Like Riebe, he has been a model of consistency in 2024, with only two finishes outside the top-15 in junior events. His top-5 finishes include the 2024 Terra Cotta Invitational, the 2024 Junior Invitational at Sage Valley, the 2023 Junior PGA Championship and AJGA Rolex Tournament of Champions, and the 2022 Junior Jones Cup. He has found success in amateur competition with top-5 showings at the 2023 & 2024 Hawaii Match Play Championships, and a top-15 finish at the Sunnehanna Amateur. He made it to the round of 32 at the 2024 US Junior Amateur, and carded regional tour wins in his home state in 2024. Last but not least, Akina made the cut in a Korn Ferry event in his home state this year.
2. Michael Riebe: Vanderbilt Riebe, a Californian who is committed to Vanderbilt, notched some strong finishes in high-profile events in 2023, then became the model of consistency of top-10 finishes in 2024. Riebe only finished outside of the top-10 in junior events once in 2024, and the Commodores will be hungry to add his consistency to their lineup next fall. His top-5 finishes in the past two years include: the 2024 Junior PGA Championship, 2024 Western Junior, 2023 Junior Jones Cup, 2023 AJGA Invitationals Rolex Tournament of Champions, Ping, and Polo Junior Classic. The top-10s on his resume include the 2024 AJGA Simplify Boys Championship and the Wyndham Invitational, and his lone top-15 in 2024 was at the Junior Invitational at Sage Valley, along with the 2023 AJGA Jack Burke Invitational and 2022 Junior Jones Cup. Riebe narrowly missed qualifying for match play at the 2024 US Amateur and qualified for match play at the 2024 US Junior Amateur. One of his best accomplishments this year was a round of 16 appearance at the North & South Amateur, taking down the number one stroke play seed in the first round.
8. Chase Kyes: Alabama Kyes, who has been a top-10 presence in this class for years, clocks into our final list at #7 after committing to home-state Alabama. Though Kyes does not compete as much as some of the other 2025 graduates, he shows consistency of solid finishes. He finished in the top-5 at the 2024 Western Junior, and carded top-10 finishes at the 2024 AJGA Team Taylormade Invitational and the 2023 Wyndham Invitational. Kyes found himself in the top-15 at the 2024 Dustin Johnson World Junior and qualified for the 2023 US Amateur. In 2023, he advanced to the round of 16 at the US Junior Amateur, and followed that with a round of 64 appearance in 2024. In 2023 he also had a top-3 finish in an open AJGA event, in addition to several open wins in previous years.
7. Jackson Byrd: Clemson It was widely expected that Byrd, a Georgia native, would end up at Clemson, where his uncle is the head coach. Byrd is no stranger to success in big tournaments, as he burst unto the junior scene in 2021 by finishing 4th at the Junior Jones Cup and had respectable 11th place showings at the 2022 AJGA Team Taylormade and Wyndham Invitationals. He has carded top-5 finishes at the 2024 AJGA RLX Ralph Lauren Classic and the 2023 Junior PGA Championship. His top-10 finishes include the 2024 Toyota Junior World Cup, 2024 Junior Invitational at Sage Valley, and the 2023 Junior Players Championship. Byrd also finished in the top-15 at the 2024 Junior Players Championship, qualified for the 2023 US Amateur, and reached match play at the 2023 US Junior Amateur.
6. Carson Bertagnole: North Carolina-Chapel Hill North Carolina resident Bertagnole is staying close to home with the Tarheels, and has proved worthy of that commitment with a string of top-10 finishes in big events and a win at the 2024 AJGA Team Taylormade Invitational. He finished in the top-5 at the 2023 Junior Jones Cup, and his top-10 finishes include the 2024 AJGA Wyndham Invitational, 2022 Junior Jones Cup, 2023 Western Junior, 2023 Dye Junior Invitational , 2023 AJGA Mayakoba Invitational, 2023 Team Taylormade, and the 2023 AJGA Rolex Tournament of Champions. Bertagnole also notched top-15 finishes at the 2024 Junior Players Championship and the 2024 Terra Cotta Invitational, and qualified for the US Amateur. While he may not be a consistent as some of his competitors, he has come up with big results in many tournaments.
10. Brooks Simmons: Texas It's been a tight race for the 10th spot on our list, and Texan Simmons slides into the spot with some strong tournament results. Simmons has a collection of top-5 finishes in big events, including the Western Junior and AJGA Mayakoba Invitational in 2024, and the North & South Junior Amateur and the Mayakoba again in 2023. He recorded a top-10 finish at the 2023 Jack Burke Invitational and top-15s at the 2024 Wyndham and Ping Invitationals and the 2023 Junior PGA Championship. Simmons made a good run at the 2024 US Junior Amateur, reaching the quarterfinals, while he reached match play in 2023. Though he shows some inconsistency, he balances out his weaker tournaments with the strong finishes mentioned above.
9. Jake Albert: Auburn Auburn landed their first commit in Virginia's Albert, fresh off his win at the 2023 AJGA Jack Burke Junior Invitational. From November 2022 through April 2023, he carded four wins in regional tournaments. In 2024, Albert placed in the top-5 at the 2024 Junior PGA Championship and the 2023 Elite Invitational, and found the top-10 at the 2024 Western Junior, 2024 Scott Robertson Memorial, 2023 Wyndham Invitational, and the 2023 North & South Junior Amateur. His top-15 finishes include the 2024 Junior Players Championship and the 2023 AJGA Rolex Tournament of Champions. Albert was a strong 2nd at the 2023 Virginia Men's Amateur, and won the 2024 AJGA Lanto Championship.
4. Logan Reilly: Auburn Virginia native Reilly had a steady start to 2024 and continued to play better and better as the year went on. He was arguably the best player in this class in the 2024 calendar year. He made winning a habit, taking home the trophy at both the 2024 Virginia Men's Amateur and the Virginia Open professional event, as well as the Scott Robertson Memorial. He found himself in the top-5 at the 2024 AJGA Junior Players Championship and the AJGA Team Taylormade Invitational, with as additional top-10 at the 2024 AJGA Simplify Boys Championship. Reilly was in the top-15 at the 2024 Junior PGA Championship and qualified for the 2024 US Amateur. He won the 2023 AJGA Junior at Penn State and found success at the 2023 & 2024 Fox Puss Invitationals, an amateur event in Virginia. Auburn looks forward to adding another lineup challenger in Reilly to their competitive group of players.
*All photo creds to players' instagrams
International
Joshua Bai: Florida New Zealander Bai was a late addition to the Gators' recruiting class in July of 2024, and it is rumored that he will join the Gators in January of 2025. For several years he has been a fixture in the Elite Amateur Series, making cuts in several in 2023 & 2024. He recently made it to the round of 16 in match play at the North & South Amateur. Bai solidified his position as the top international recruit when he was runner-up at the 2023 US Junior Amateur, and made it to the round of 16 in 2024. In 2024 he finished 3rd at the prestigious Junior Invitational at Sage Valley, and won the 2023 Auckland Stroke Play Championship.
1. Henry Guan: Oklahoma State Texan Guan surprised everyone by reclassing from 2026 to 2025 and announcing his commitment to play for Oklahoma State. Guan arrived on the scene back in 2022, with a victory at the 2022 AJGA Wyndham Invitational at age 13, following that up 2nd at the South Beach International Amateur against a strong collegiate field. Over the past two years he has amassed a long resume of successes in high profile events. They include top-5s at the 2024 AJGA Mayakoba Invitational, and the following 2023 events: Jack Burke, Wyndham, and Terra Cotta Invitational, along with the Dustin Johnson World Junior. His notable top-10s include the 2024 AJGA Team Taylormade Invitational and Simplify Boys Championship, and the following AJGA Invitationals in 2023: Team Taylormade, Mayakoba, Simplify, and Rolex Tournament of Champions. Guan also found the top-15 on the leaderboards at the 2024 Terra Cotta, 2023 AJGA Ping Invitational, and the 2023 Junior Players. His most notable results in 2024 include a semi-final appearance at the Western Amateur and the round of 64 at the US Amateur. Guan also reached the round of 32 at the 2023 & 2024 US Junior Amateurs.
*Honorable mentions: Brooks Simmons, Bowen Mauss, Talan Harrison, Adam Villanueva