Winter break is over, classes have resumed and some second-semester seniors may be on cruise control, savoring their final months of college before taking their diplomas and heading into the real world.

That also means the college golf season is back in full swing, and there’s no time for the seniors in the PGA TOUR University Class of 2025 to consider coasting to the finish line.

Between the race for the No. 1 spot, eligibility updates, TOUR exemptions, the chase for a TOUR card (or two) and the pursuit of a national championship, here are the top storylines to watch this spring in college golf.

PGA TOUR University Accelerated

At the start of last summer, Luke Clanton didn’t have any PGA TOUR University Accelerated points. Fast forward seven months, and the Florida State junior is two points away from securing his 20th point, which would get him his PGA TOUR card.

In eight starts on TOUR in 2024, Clanton made seven cuts with four top-10s, including runner-up finishes at the John Deere Classic and The RSM Classic to get to 17 points. Clanton secured his 18th point this past weekend at the Farmers Insurance Open, where he finished T15.

If Clanton remains No. 1 in the World Amateur Golf Ranking (WAGR) through Feb. 5, he’ll reach 26 lifetime weeks as the No. 1 player in WAGR, which will give him one point to reach 19 total. In order for a player to earn his TOUR card through PGA TOUR University Accelerated, he must earn 20 points by the end of his junior season. It was announced Wednesday that Clanton received a sponsor exemption into the WM Phoenix Open, where he can earn his 20th point with a made cut and secure his TOUR card.

While Clanton stole the amateur golf spotlight in 2024, he wasn’t alone on the stage. It didn’t take long for Auburn’s Jackson Koivun to take college golf by storm during his freshman season, as he led Auburn’s charge to the 2024 NCAA Division I Men’s Golf Championship, where the Tigers defeated Clanton and the Seminoles for their first team title in program history.

In addition to his national championship, Koivun took home the Nicklaus, Haskins and Hogan Awards, becoming the seventh player, and first freshman, to sweep the trifecta of honors in one season.

Koivun’s success has also translated to the TOUR, where he made the cut at the 2024 Memorial Tournament presented by Workday and last week’s Farmers Insurance Open.

With both players sitting at 18 points, it seems like it’s a matter of when, not if, the two collegiate phenoms will join Vanderbilt’s Gordon Sargent as players to earn their TOUR cards via PGA TOUR University Accelerated.

Race for the No. 1 spot

In addition to the race for 20 points in PGA TOUR University Accelerated, the seniors’ sprint to the No. 1 spot in the ranking is the tightest it’s been since the inception of PGA TOUR University in 2020-21. For the third year in a row, the No. 1 player in the Class of 2025 will receive his TOUR card and will be eligible for PGA TOUR Full-Field Events this summer starting at the RBC Canadian Open at TPC Toronto at Osprey Valley.

For the first time, three different players held the No. 1 spot during the fall season. Arizona State’s Preston Summerhays and Auburn’s Brendan Valdes held the No. 1 spot before North Carolina’s David Ford won the Williams Cup and took hold of the top position to end the fall season.

In addition to Ford, Valdes and Summerhays, Arizona State’s Josele Ballester, UCLA’s Omar Morales and Illinois’ Jackson Buchanan are all in contention for the No. 1 spot. Ballester sits at No. 2 after his win at the Fighting Illini Invitational in September, Morales holds the No. 5 spot after posting three top-10s in the fall, and No. 6 Buchanan has three wins on his record including the 2024 Fallen Oaks Collegiate.

The three fall No. 1s, as well as Ballester, are expected to square off at least twice this spring, the first time being at the Amer Ari Invitational in Kamuela, Hawaii (Feb. 6-8), and the second being at the Valspar Collegiate Invitational (March 24-25) where the Sun Devils, Tar Heels and Tigers are all in the field.

Eligibility changes

Finishers 2-10 in the ranking will now be fully exempt on the Korn Ferry Tour, a change from the past where finishers 2-5 were fully exempt and 6-10 had conditional status. Last season, Karl Vilips finished No. 10 in the ranking, which came with conditional Korn Ferry Tour status but left him an uncertain playing schedule. After starting the summer with two starts on PGA TOUR Americas, the former Stanford standout received a sponsor exemption into The Ascendant presented by Blue on the Korn Ferry Tour, where he registered a T13 finish. Three weeks later, Vilips claimed his first victory as a professional on the Korn Ferry Tour at the Utah Championship presented by Zions Bank and Intermountain Health, and he went on to finish 19th on the points list and secure his TOUR card in just 10 starts.

While Vilips made the most of his opportunity, the player who finishes No. 10 in the Class of 2025 won’t have to jump back and forth between tours.

Although players 6-10 will be fully exempt on the Korn Ferry Tour, there’s still a premium for finishing in the top five, as players 2-5 are exempt into the Final Stage of PGA TOUR Q-School presented by Korn Ferry, while finishers 6-10 are exempt into Second Stage.

Players who finish in the 11-25 slots still earn membership for Segment II of the PGA TOUR Americas season. The PGA TOUR University Ranking will end on May 26 following the individual stroke-play portion of the NCAA Division I Men’s Golf Championship.

TOUR exemptions

In addition to their pursuit of a national championship, seven players have already earned starts on TOUR this spring.

On the Accelerated side, Clanton has starts on TOUR penciled in at the WM Phoenix Open and the Valspar Championship, where he earned an exemption with his victory at the 2024 Valspar Collegiate. Koivun will compete at the Arnold Palmer Invitational presented by Mastercard, after his Palmer Cup teammates voted for him to receive the exemption as the player who best represented the values and beliefs of Arnold Palmer.

Virginia junior Ben James earned a spot in the field at the Valero Texas Open with his victory at the 2024 Valero Collegiate.

College of Charleston’s Kieron Van Wyk, who currently stands No. 40 in the ranking, is expected to tee it up at the Puerto Rico Open in March after receiving an exemption into the event with his victory at the 2024 White Sands Bahamas Invitational. Van Wyk became the first amateur to win on the APGA Tour at last week’s APGA Farmers Insurance Invitational at Torrey Pines.

Georgia Tech’s Hiroshi Tai won the individual portion of the 2024 NCAA Division I Men’s Golf Championship, Arizona State’s Josele Ballester won the U.S. Amateur Championship, and PGA TOUR University No. 20 Justin Hastings of San Diego State won the Latin America Amateur Championship. The three secured exemptions into the Masters Tournament after their respective triumphs and will make their debuts at Augusta National in April.

In addition to his invitations to the Masters, U.S. Open and Open Championship after his win at the U.S. Amateur Championship at Hazeltine National, Ballester also received a sponsor exemption into the WM Phoenix Open, Feb. 6-9.

Chase for 2025 National Championship

Auburn claimed the 2024 team title on the backs of Koivun and Valdes, while Tai emerged victorious in the stroke-play portion.

The 2025 NCAA Division I Men’s Golf Championship will be contested at Omni La Costa’s Champions Course in Carlsbad, California, May 23-28, the same site where the Tigers and Tai claimed their respective titles last season.

The final round of stroke play and the two days of match play will be broadcast on Golf Channel from May 26-28, where the Tigers will look to fend off a flurry of teams looking to dethrone the reigning champs. In the hunt for the national championship, Arizona State looks to avenge its early exit last season at the Rancho Santa Fe Regional after earning the No. 1 seed, Ole Miss is in the hunt for its first national title as a team after ending the fall as the No. 1 team in the country, while the likes of North Carolina and Florida State may be gearing up for one last run with their soon-to-be TOUR-bound stars.

The road to Carlsbad for the national championship has resumed, with a few pit stops on TOUR and plenty more to play for.