LSU's Dan Hayes takes low medalist honors
BILOXI, Miss. (Oct. 20, 2026) – Three teams finished in a three-way tie for first place in the loaded field at the 4th annual Fallen Oak Collegiate Invitational.
Top-ranked Arkansas, No. 12 Illinois and No. 46 South Carolina finished the tournament at four-over in team play to take the championship. No. 9 Tennessee and No. 30 Wake Forest rounded out the Top 5 teams.
LSU’s Daniel Hayes took top medalist honors with a 5-under par for the tournament. He finished six groups ahead of Max Herendeen, the No. 5 player in the country, and had to wait it out to learn his fate. Herendeen walked off the 18th green and up to the clubhouse where Hayes waited to shake his hand, telling the Bayou Bengal his parred the final three holes to remain one stroke back. Lev Grinberg of Arkansas also finished at 4-under par in a tie for second place.
“It was very nerve-wracking. I’m not gonna lie,” Hayes said of the wait for Herendeen to finish. “The way the back nine works, there are a few easy holes and a few hard holes to finish, so it was hard to even guess what was going to happen. I guess I just had to sit here and keep my fingers crossed.”
Hayes said the windy conditions and cooler temperatures also made a difficult Fallen Oak course play a little bit harder.
“It definitely made it very, very hard. The course already as tough as it is, the conditions made it that much harder,” he said.
LSU coach Jake Amos praised Hayes for his toughness on the course.
“We had Arni Sveinnson win it last year and we got Dan winning it this year,” Amos said. “Our guys like this place. We didn’t play as well as we wanted to as a team, but (Dan) did great, a really professional round. We probably had the toughest tee times of the week and he deserved that.”
Mississippi’s three universities - Ole Miss, Mississippi State, and Southern Miss - hosted the NCAA event, with participating teams including Alabama, Arkansas, Florida State, Georgia, Illinois, Iowa, LSU, Ohio State, South Carolina, Tennessee, Wake Forest, and Wisconsin.
The 54-hole tournament took place Oct. 17-19 with a game-day atmosphere, including college and pro football airing on the jumbotron and spectators wearing team colors.
For more photos and logos, please visit our Fallen Oak Collegiate Invitational press kit.
CONTACTS
Mary Cracchiolo, Fallen Oak/Beau Rivage, 228.547.8473, mspain@mgmresorts.com
ABOUT FALLEN OAK
The Tom Fazio-designed Fallen Oak joins the heralded Shadow Creek as the only golf courses built by MGM Resorts International for its guests. Located 15 minutes outside of Biloxi at the edge of the DeSoto National Forest, Fallen Oak is exclusive to guests of Beau Rivage and has earned more than 30 national honors for a masterful design that epitomizes strategy from tee to green as it encompasses the area’s natural terrain and beauty. The 7,487-yard course features dramatic elevation changes rare for a Gulf Coast design and played host to the PGA TOUR Champions Mississippi Gulf Resort Classic for more than a decade. Since opening in 2008, Fallen Oak has received numerous compliments from many of the game’s legends for its beauty, design and the quiet elegance found in many of the world’s great golf courses. or www.beaurivage.com
