\n
\n Story Links
\n
\n
\n
<\/p>\n
VALDOSTA, Ga. \u2013 The Eastern Kentucky University men’s golf team is set to begin play at the 2026 Atlantic Sun Conference Championship, hosted by the league office, on Tuesday morning.<\/p>\n
The 12-team field will play 54 holes over three days at Kinderlou Forest Golf Club in Valdosta, Georgia, a par-72 layout measuring 7,517 yards. Tuesday marks the second consecutive year the championship has been held at the venue.
\nEKU will tee off on the back nine beginning at 8 a.m. ET Tuesday morning with staggered start times through 8:40 a.m. The Colonels are paired with Austin Peay and Central Arkansas for the opening round.<\/p>\n
The lineup for EKU includes senior Anders Larson<\/a>, junior Zach Watterson<\/a>, senior Justin Begley<\/a>, redshirt freshman Hristo Yanakiev<\/a>, and sophomore Jameson Corbin<\/a>. Freshman Jacob Lewallen<\/a> will travel with the team as an alternate if needed.<\/p>\n Larson enters the championship as one of the hottest players in the league, posting a 71.5 scoring average. He has recorded top-10 finishes in each of his last four events, including three top-five placements and one victory. As of Monday, Larson ranks as the ninth-highest rated player in the field.<\/p>\n In his most recent outing, the Pine Island, Minnesota, native carded a 54-hole total of 218 (+5) to finish ninth at the Bluegrass Collegiate, hosted by the University of Kentucky. Prior to that, he placed fourth (216) at the Memphis Intercollegiate, claimed medalist honors at the Seminole Intercollegiate with a 209, and finished fourth (211) at the Babygrande Donald Ross Collegiate.<\/p>\n Watterson, a Lee County, Kentucky, native, ranks second on the team with a 73.0 scoring average and has posted top-25 finishes in each of his last two events at the Bluegrass Collegiate and Memphis Intercollegiate.<\/p>\n Begley, a Manchester, Kentucky, native, is third on the team with a 74.2 scoring average. He tied a season-best finish of sixth place (218) at the Memphis Intercollegiate on March 31.<\/p>\n Yanakiev ranks fourth on the team with a 74.6 scoring average, while Corbin rounds out the lineup with a 75.3 average in events.<\/p>\n Last season, EKU finished 10th at the ASUN Championship with a 54-hole total of 873 (+9). Larson led the Colonels individually, tying for 13th place after a final-round 3-under 69 that included five birdies.<\/p>\n