The postseason has arrived for the No. 7 LSU men’s golf team, and the road to a title begins in familiar territory: Sea Island Golf Club. Starting Wednesday, the Tigers will tee off in the 2025 SEC Men’s Golf Championship, a five-day battle that will shape their NCAA postseason momentum and national seeding.
Held on the renowned Seaside Course at Sea Island Golf Club in St. Simons Island, Georgia, the SEC Championship begins with 54 holes of stroke play from April 23 to April 25. The top eight teams will then advance to match play, held April 26 and 27, to determine who hoists the conference trophy.
Match play rounds will be broadcast on SEC Network and SEC+, with live scoring available throughout the tournament at Golfstat.com.
Here are the three most important things to watch as the Tigers begin their quest for SEC hardware:
Peaking at the right time
LSU enters the tournament riding a wave of strong performances. In their final regular-season test, the Tigers finished second at The Ford Collegiate in Richmond Hill, Georgia, a stacked field that included No. 2 Texas. LSU’s even-par team total of 840 left them just two shots back of the Longhorns, signaling the Tigers are hitting stride at exactly the right time.
Senior Algot Kleen, one of LSU’s anchors all year, finished tied for third individually at 3-under-par. Kleen has been a consistent force, and his ability to set the tone early in rounds makes him a vital leader heading into the postseason.
Not far behind was junior Alfons Bondesson, who shot 2-under and placed sixth. Bondesson has quietly assembled one of the most efficient seasons on the roster and is certainly a player to watch if LSU makes a deep run into match play.
Sophomore Jay Mendell and freshman Árni Sveinsson also delivered top-15 finishes at The Ford, proving this roster doesn’t just rely on one or two stars — it’s a complete team.
“We work hard as a team to represent you and LSU in a way that will make those that support us proud. We’re laying the foundation for even more success in the future,” head coach Jake Amos said following a TAF partnership that launched “Swinging Mike Club,” LSU Golf’s official booster.
Amos has a chance to make good on his January statement this week as his Tigers will compete for a deeply coveted SEC championship.
Deep field and loaded leaderboard
The SEC Championship will feature some of the best programs in the country. According to the most recent Golfstat rankings, five of the top 10 teams in the nation reside in the SEC: No. 1 Ole Miss, No. 2 Auburn, No. 4 Vanderbilt, No. 6 Texas A&M, and No. 7 LSU.
That means every round, every hole could swing the momentum one way or the other. The Tigers know what it takes to compete in this setting after last year’s advance to the quarterfinals before falling short in match play.
But this year’s group is older, deeper, and more battle-tested. Coach Amos, in his second season at the helm, has emphasized mental sharpness and closing ability, two traits that often separate SEC champions from early exits.
If LSU wants to claim its first SEC title since 2015, they’ll have to get through a field stacked with players who could just as easily be competing in a PGA Tour event. Many of the top players in this field are also expected to headline the NCAA Championships later this spring.
Sea Island history and a shot at redemption
Sea Island has been the site of both triumph and challenge for LSU over the past decade. The Tigers captured the SEC Championship there in 2015, a victory that propelled them into a deep NCAA postseason run and solidified their status as a national contender.
In more recent years, however, Sea Island has presented obstacles. LSU missed the match play cut in 2022 and exited in the quarterfinals in 2024. This year’s tournament offers a clear opportunity to alter that narrative.
Beyond the pursuit of the SEC title, the stakes include NCAA seeding implications. Top-performing SEC teams are likely to host NCAA Regionals beginning May 12, and a strong showing in Georgia could secure LSU’s position in that upper echelon, especially with the national championships scheduled for May 23 to May 28 in Carlsbad, California.
LSU will rely on Kleen’s experience, Mendell’s composure and the talents of Bondesson and Sveinsson. Together, they form one of the most well-rounded units in the conference, poised to make a significant impact.
