Ushering in a New Era for Men’s Golf

“I want you to know that also I will not make age an issue of this campaign.” — President Ronald Reagan, October 21st, 1984.

While the former president was in no way referring to the 2026 Ivy League Men’s Golf Champions, the Harvard Crimson, he certainly embodied the Crimson’s sentiment as the young team hoisted the 2026 conference trophy in Springfield, N.J.

The championship marks Harvard’s first since 2017 and secured the Crimson an automatic qualification to the NCAA Regionals, which will be held May 18-20 in Athens, Ga., at the University of Georgia Golf Course.

Yet the team’s road to glory was not without tribulation.

Following victory in Springfield, all six members of the Ivy Championship team, junior Jonathon Hartono, sophomore Ieuan Jones, sophomore captain William Ma, individual Ivy League Champion sophomore Barry Zhang, freshman Isaac Ahn, and freshman Morgan Riley, expressed their shared elation while outlining the rigorous journey of their 2025-26 Ivy campaign.

Beyond just being the youngest team in the Ivy League, the Crimson charted through the brutal Cambridge weather and a complete overhaul to stand victorious.

In part due to poor weather and busy academic calendars, Harvard shifted to indoor work and heavy studying following its runner-up finish at the Georgetown Invitational in early October, according to Jones, an all-Ivy League second-teamer who went +1 to secure fourth place at the conference tournament.

“Our season usually ends in the fall, right after our last tournament, and then it’s kind of just everyone trying to get as much as they can in at the indoor and taking care of studies and that.”

“We start back basically the week of getting back to school,” Jones added. “But, we’re pretty much limited to indoor until Spring Break, where we go to wherever for a week and get some practice out in the warm conditions.”

Despite the limitations of indoor practices, Hartono, the oldest team member and the only upperclassman on the roster, emphasized that the team was dedicated to a rigorous training regimen.

“Every time in the offseason when I walked in [to the indoor facility], there was always somebody practicing,” the junior said.

This commitment to improvement marked a difference from prior seasons, when Hartono noted that “whenever I walked in, it was just me, and when I left, it was also just me.”

The junior also outlined how the team culture has changed, particularly in the players’ dedication to the program, compared to when he was a freshman.

“When I came in as a first-year, we had three seniors. One was trying to go pro, Brian Ma, and the two others were looking into professional employment,” the junior said. “I think those guys worked hard, but nowhere near as hard as the sophomore class and this freshman class. The hunger for success, I think, is very high with this group, and it’s really cool to see it pay off in the last two weeks.”

The allure of an individual result is undeniable, but for the Crimson this season, players seem to be working more toward team goals than personal achievements.

“That reflects my mindset as well,” individual Ivy champion Zhang said. “I think I definitely prioritized the team win a lot more over my individual title. I cared about it, but the team winning was like 99% of my week. So honestly, going into the playoff, I wasn’t too stressed or anything.”

Although he was not quick to brag, Zhang was the leader for the Crimson at the Cutter Creek Intercollegiate, which, amid other strong individual performances, was clear evidence that the work described by Hartono has paid dividends in Zhang’s results this season.

Harvard would not be the champion without a strong combination of individual play, though, with two pivotal performances coming from Ahn in rounds one and three of the Ivy Championship, where he shot even par.

However, for fans tracking the Crimson’s results after the second round, Ahn’s record looked much more nerve-wracking, as a difficult second round put him +10 going into the third.

“Round two was different from the other rounds because it was about 40 degrees cooler, so it was freezing and also the rain the whole time, and for me personally, I just wasn’t as prepared as I would’ve liked to be for the weather,” reflected Ahn.

But that didn’t paint the whole picture, because by the sixth hole, the conditions were miserable.

“By that point, my entire bag, everything I owned, was soaked, playing with like wet grips, clubs slipping out of my hands,” Ahn explained.

Yet, fortunately for Ahn, despite the individuality of golf, one of the few people able to help him had exactly what he needed: a dry towel.

“I walked into the next par three where Coach was, and he just asked me if I needed anything,” Ahn said.

“Here he came, like a savior with a perfectly dry bath towel,” the freshman said, crediting his coach for looking out for him.

“I think that perfectly sums up how much the program and our coaching staff are in support of us,” Ahn said. “With all that backing behind us, it makes it easy for us to be focused on our goals and to work towards that.”

Harvard’s coaching staff’s efforts, led by head coach Kevin Rhoads, did not go unnoticed, as the group was honored with the title of Ivy League Coaching Staff of the Year. For a team as young as the Crimson, that all-Ivy support network is undeniably a critical factor in its ability to grow and perform this season.

Recovering from a +10 round and difficult weather conditions isn’t an inherent skill for a golfer, especially one in his first collegiate season. It’s something that takes experience and support to navigate.

“For a team as young as three freshmen (including freshman Reese Jensen, who advanced to the U.S. Open final qualification round during the Ivy Weekend) that we have coming into college golf, and getting your foot into Harvard, into all the classes, into the limited practice we have, is very different from the general junior golf scene that you are used to,” explained Hartono.

“I think it’s really rare to see freshmen, especially in the Ivy League, perform well,” the junior added.

So with all of the difficulties outlined, how did they do it?

A supportive culture, and as the sophomore captain, who went +3 to secure fifth place at the conference championship, described it, “the guys’ intrinsic desire.”

“This is a group that loves golf, and when you love golf that much, you’re going to be willing to work hard, put in the hours, early mornings, late nights, practicing outside of scheduled practice time, however you can to get better,” Ma said, praising his team.

With the team’s automatic qualification for the regional round, the Crimson will tee off next on Monday, May 18, at the University of Georgia’s golf course in an impressive field of 13 teams, including No. 1 Auburn and No. 12 Illinois.

“We want to keep on working hard and keep on getting better and see if we can do something special at regionals,” Ma added.