CARLSBAD, Calif. – Ole Miss junior golfer Michael La Sasso conquered them all Monday at Omni La Costa’s North Course, becoming the second Individual National Champion in program history. La Sasso posted (277, -11) winning the championship by two strokes.
No. 3 Ole Miss finished just inside the cut line as a team, propelling the Rebels to match play for the first time in program history. Ole Miss finished at (1,163, +11) and shot (287, -1) in the final round of stroke play to edge past Florida State by one stroke.
It took all 72 holes but the Rebels managed to slip inside the top eight after the final round of stroke play. Ole Miss went off No. 10 tee to begin Monday’s round and the stretch of Omni La Costa’s North Course proved difficult once again.
As the Rebels made the turn, they sat four back of the projected cut line.
The team remained composed and were led by Tom Fischer on day four who posted four-under 68. Fischer breezed through the difficult stretch of 14-17, carding three-under 33 through nine holes. Fischer would go back-to-back on two and three and carded his sixth birdie of the day at the par 5 sixth.
La Sasso was two over-par when he made the turn and trailed Texas A&M’s Phichaksn Maichon by two.
He would par the first three holes on his back nine before getting back into red figures on four. Maichon would drop two strokes on five and six, and suddenly, La Sasso was back in front at 10-under.
He caught an incredible break on six when his drive hit the cart path twice and bounced back into the fairway. He would make birdie on the hole to stretch his lead to two with three holes to play.
He made an incredible par save on 16 after his approach flew the green. He would make par on 17 and stepped to the final tee box with a two-stroke lead.
Florida State needed a birdie at the last to force a playoff with the Rebels for the eighth and final spot for match play. FSU’s Luke Clanton hit an iron to about 15 feet and his birdie attempt just missed the hole. Clanton made par, opening the door for La Sasso who needed a two-putt to send the Rebels to match play.
He did just that securing the Individual National Championship and punching Ole Miss’s ticket into the quarterfinals.
It has been nothing short of an unbelievable season for La Sasso in his junior campaign. The Raleigh, North Carolina native led Ole Miss in 10 statistical categories, capped off by becoming the second player in program history to capture NCAA Division I Individual National Championship.
The First Team All-SEC selection was named to the PING All-Region Southeast team and is a finalist for the Haskins Award and the Jack Nicklaus Division I Player of the Year Award.
His 69.48 scoring average is the lowest in a season by a Rebel in program history.
La Sasso tallied the third most rounds under-par in single season with 25. His 30 rounds of par or better and 20 rounds in the 60s are the second most in a single season by an Ole Miss Rebel.
La Sasso broke through for his first collegiate win back in the fall at the Hamptons Intercollegiate. He posted (201, -15) winning the tournament by 11 strokes.
The spring began with an interesting turn of events when the team headed to compete in the Cabo Collegiate March 2-4. Prior to the first round, La Sasso stepped on a sea urchin and had over 20 spines removed from the bottom of his foot. He managed to play and shot two-under in his opening round despite struggling to walk the course.
He notched his second victory of the season in the team’s regular season finale at the Old Waverly Collegiate Championship. Alongside his teammate Tom Fischer, La Sasso carded (203, -13) which tied the individual low-54 in tournament history.
La Sasso helped Ole Miss to three wins this season, marking the most victories since 2016-17. The Rebels finished inside the top two eight times with La Sasso placing inside the top five in four of those events.
At the NCAA Tallahassee Regional, La Sasso helped Ole Miss secure their 13th NCAA Championship appearance (six individual, seven team) in program history. The No. 3 Rebels finished in second place with the runner-up finish marking the best in an NCAA Regional in program history.
La Sasso posted a final round six-under 66 to finish tied for second. His runner-up finish is the second-best placement in an NCAA Regional by an Ole Miss Rebel.
He was selected to represent Team USA in the 2025 Arnold Palmer Cup, marking the second straight year he will compete for the United States. On May 22, the Rocket Classic announced that La Sasso received a sponsor exemption to compete in its 2025 tournament, scheduled for June 25–29 at Detroit Golf Club. It will be La Sasso’s PGA TOUR debut after receiving a surprise invitation from tournament representatives.
The victory sends the 21-year-old La Sasso to Oakmont in two weeks for the U.S. Open, and to the Masters next April.
You can help your community
Quality, in-depth journalism is essential to a healthy community. The Dispatch brings you the most complete reporting and insightful commentary in the Golden Triangle, but we need your help to continue our efforts. In the past week, our reporters have posted 35 articles to cdispatch.com. Please consider subscribing to our website for only $2.30 per week to help support local journalism and our community.
You can help your community
Quality, in-depth journalism is essential to a healthy community. The Dispatch brings you the most complete reporting and insightful commentary in the Golden Triangle, but we need your help to continue our efforts. In the past week, our reporters have posted 35 articles to cdispatch.com. Please consider subscribing to our website for only $2.30 per week to help support local journalism and our community.
