Class of 2026 Boys Individual Rankings
*Will be updated around the 1st of each month until signing day in Nov. 2025
United States and Canada
1. Blades Brown: Tennessee native Brown made a splash in his first PGA Tour event, the Myrtle Beach Classic, as he finished T-26th in his debut. Brown’s amateur resume is most impressive, claiming stroke play medalist honors at the 2023 US Amateur before bowing out in the round of 32 in match play. At this year’s Jones Cup Invitational, he flirted with the lead before finishing in a tie for 5th among the top college players in the country. Brown can also claim a 5th place finish in the 2023 Tennessee Open professional event and 9th place at the 2024 Terra Cotta Invitational. In 2023, Brown claimed victories at the AJGA Wyndham Invitational, the Elite Invitational, and the Tennessee Junior Amateur in 2023, as well as two open AJGA events. Top-10 finishes in 2023 include the Western Junior and the North & South Junior , and he started off 2024 strong with top-5 finishes at the AJGA Simplify Boys Championship and the Dustin Johnson World Junior.
2. Tyler Watts: Alabama's Watts' amateur achievements include breaking Gordon Sargent’s record as the youngest Alabama state Amateur champion in history in 2023, and a runner-up finish at the 2024 Terra Cotta. Watts found similar 2023 junior tournament success and raised the winner’s trophy at the Jones Cup Junior Invitational and the Southern Junior, in addition to an AJGA open event. He finished second at the Elite Invitational and notched top-5 finishes at the 2024 Dustin Johnson World Junior and the 2023 AJGA Junior Players Championship. Additional 2024 highlights include finishing tied for 2nd at the AJGA Mayakoba Invitational and a 4th place result while defending his Alabama Amateur title. We expect Watts and Brown to battle in tournaments for the next two years before they head to their colleges of choice.
4. Henry Guan: Texan Guan was the first 2026 grad to arrive on the scene back in 2022, with a victory at the 2022 AJGA Wyndham Invitational at age 13. After participating in the Wyndham and Junior Presidents Cups that year, he finished 2nd at the South Beach International Amateur against a strong collegiate field. He continued his success in 2023, amassing an impressive collection of top-10 finishes in high-profile events. Top-5 finishes include 5th at Terra Cotta Invitational and the Dustin Johnson World Junior, 2nd at the AJGA Wyndham Invitational, and 2nd at the AJGA Jack Burke Invitational. He capped off 2023 with a solid 6th at the AJGA Rolex Tournament of Champions. Guan has carded three AJGA Invitational top-10s in 2024 through June. Any college would welcome Guan’s consistency in their lineup.
3. Luke Colton: Texan Colton has started off 2024 with a bang. Colton won the Terra Cotta Invitational, a field littered with the top juniors, collegiate players on the verge of making their teams’ lineup, and some of the country’s top mid-ams. He began 2024 with a 5th place showing at the AJGA Simplify Boys Championship and carded two open AJGA top-3 finishes. He took the title at the Texas class UIL 5A state high school championship and the LJT Junior Byron Nelson, and he finished tied for 2nd at the AJGA Mayakoba Invitational. Colton had excellent top-15 showings at both the Northeast Amateur and the North & South Amateur. In 2023, Colton’s top finishes included a 2nd place finish at the Dye Invitational and runner-up at the AJGA Under Armour/Jordan Spieth Championship. His stock has risen at the perfect time.
5. Tyler Mawhinney: Florida's Mawhinney started 2023 with a 4th place finish at the AJGA Justin Thomas Junior Championship, then entered the class of 2026 top-10 conversation with a breakout win at the Scott Robertson Memorial. He notched a 10th place finish at the Junior PGA Championship before ramping up his game in the fall. He etched two AJGA Invitational top-10 finishes before ending 2023 with a victory at the AJGA Rolex Tournament of Champions. He’s started 2024 with top-15 finishes in the Dustin Johnson World Junior and the AJGA Wyndham Invitational, and finished 5th while defending his Scott Robertson title. We expect a strong summer from Mawhinney.
6. Phillip Dunham: Florida's Dunham has notched three wins since April of 2023, starting with a victory at the AJGA Spot X Hotel Junior Championship. He later took the 2023 Dye Invitational trophy home after a playoff and won the 2024 Sea Pines Junior Heritage in some challenging weather conditions. In addition to his runner-up finish at the AJGA Junior Players Championship, he garnered top-10 finishes at two other Invitationals: the Polo Junior Classic and the Rolex Tournament of Champions. He is another athlete whose game we expect to come around in 2024 after placing 4th while defending at the Dye Invitational.
7. Sterling Hurd: Texan native Hurd made a habit of finishing in the top-10 in 2023, which gained him invitations to more high profile events in the fall. He captured two AJGA open wins in July of 2023, including the Arnold Palmer Invitational, and took advantage of his new Invitational status with top-10 finishes and the Junior Players and the PING. Hurd started off 2024 with a win and a runner-up finish on the Legends Junior Tour, followed by a 6th place showing at the Dustin Johnson World Junior and a top-10 finish at the AJGA Team Taylormade Invitational.
10. Coltrane Mittag: Nebraska’s Mittag is a name that is consistently lingering on the leaderboard. His game was hot in June and July of 2023, notching a win at the Junior North & South, 3rd at the AJGA Under Armour/Jordan Spieth Championship, 4th at the Western Junior, and 7th at the Bubba Conlee Tournament. Quite an impressive month of golf! After a 4th place finish at the Bobby Chapman Junior Invitational, he has lingered in the top-15 in early 2024 tournaments, and placed 8th at the AJGA Mayakoba Invitational. Mittag is one to keep an eye on this year.
9. Asher Vargas: Texan Vargas had a banner summer of 2026, highlighted by a win at the AJGA Wyndham Invitational and a 2nd place finish at the Junior PGA Championship. His resume also includes a runner-up finish at the AJGA Thunder Bird Heather Farr Classic, a top-15 finish at the AJGA Mayakoba Invitational, and two top-5 & two top-10 finishes on the Legends Junior Tour since the fall of 2023. His game has peaked at the perfect time in recruiting season, and we expect more great results from Vargas in the next year.
8. Mason Howell: Georgia's Howell has jumped into the top-10 conversation with fantastic play in 2024. He began the season with top-10 finishes at the Dustin Johnson World Junior and the AJGA Mayakoba Invitational. He claimed the runner-up position at the Wyndham Invitational and made it to the final match in the AJGA RLX Ralph Lauren Junior Classic. Sandwich a 5th place finish at the Western Junior in between for a solid stretch of golf. He has shown steady improvement from his 2023 season, in which he placed 5th at the Elite Invitational and played in the US Junior Amateur.
Ones to watch: Smith Summerlin, Hamilton Coleman, Alex Zhang, Sahish Reddy, Drake Harvey, Pennson Badgett
8/30 : It was a banner month for our top-5 North American players, who continue to separate themselves from the rest in this class. It's honestly hard to rank them in order because they all have shown stellar play. In August, Henry made a fantastic run to the semi-finals at the Western Amateur, while Blades Brown made it to match play. Tyler Watts and Luke Colton made the 36 hole cut. Tyler Mawhinney prevailed as champion at the Canadian Amateur, and continued his hot month with a round of 16 appearance at the US Amateur. Henry Guan and Lev Grinberg also qualified for match play. Asher Vargas enters our top-10 after a stellar summer of golf.
Internationals
Giovanni Binaghi, Italy: Junior Invitational at Sage Valley champion Binaghi is one of the top international recruits in the 2026 class. He notched a 15th place finish at the Junior PGA Championship and had top-15 finishes at the Junior Orange Bowl and the First Tee Miami Doral Junior Classic last winter. In 2023 Binaghi had two 3rd place results in Italian amateur events, and a 2nd place finish at a professional event in Switzerland. He won two Italian events in 2022.
Louis Klein, Czechia: A top prospect from Czechia, Klein finished second at the Junior Invitational at Sage Valley in 2024, right after a 6th place finish at the Dustin Johnson World Junior. In 2024 he owns one win and two 4th place professional finishes in his home country, and made match play at the US Junior Amateur. Klein had two wins in his homeland in 2023, in addition to several top-4 finishes in amateur and junior events.
Hugo Le Goff, France: Le Goff has proven himself in the US and throughout Europe, recently qualifying for match play at the US Junior Amateur and finishing 5th at the 2023 AJGA Junior Players Championship. Le Goff won the 2023 CJGA World Junior Challenge and notched a 3rd place finish at the 2023 R&A Boys Amateur as well as three top-5 finishes in French amateur events in 2023.
Lev Grinberg, Ukraine: Grinberg has long been a fixture on the US circuit in addition to international events. He made it to the round of 16 at the 2024 US Amateur and finished 7th at the Orlando International Amateur at the end of 2023, following a top-30 finish at the South Beach Amateur and 8th place at the AJGA Junior Players Championship. Grinberg placed 1st at an amateur event in Germany in 2022 and took home the trophy at the 2024 Grand Prix de Merignies. Most impressive was his 9th place finish at the 2024 Amateur Championship