The United States has finalized its 10-player roster for the 51st Walker Cup Match, adding Kihei Akina, Ryder Cowan, Josiah Gilbert, William Jennings, Stewart Hagestad and Jay Leng Jr. for the Sept. 5-6 competition at Lahinch Golf Club in County Clare, Ireland.
The six selections, announced Sunday by the USGA Teams Selection Committee working group, join Ethan Fang, Miles Russell, Preston Stout and Tyler Watts, who were named to the team in July. Seven members of the completed U.S. roster are ranked among the top 10 in the World Amateur Golf Ranking.
“These six players have earned their spots and are terrific additions to this year's team,” U.S. captain Nathan Smith said. “With the roster now complete, I'm excited to turn our full attention to getting ready for Lahinch Golf Club.”
The Americans will arrive in Ireland with three players who competed in the 2025 victory over Great Britain and Ireland at Cypress Point Club. Fang went 1-2-1 in that match, Hagestad finished 2-1 and Stout posted a 2-2 record as the U.S. won 17-9.
The complete 2026 USA Walker Cup team
Kihei Akina
Ryder Cowan
Ethan Fang
Josiah Gilbert
Stewart Hagestad
William Jennings
Jay Leng Jr.
Miles Russell
Preston Stout
Tyler Watts
Meet the six final selections
Kihei Akina
Akina, of Alpine, Utah, capped his first season at BYU by winning the Phil Mickelson Award as the nation's top collegiate freshman. The Big 12 Freshman of the Year tied for eighth at the NCAA Championship, finished second at the Big 12 Championship and won both the R.E. Lamkin Invitational and Bridgestone Collegiate Invitational.
His results extended beyond college golf. Akina made the 36-hole cut at the PGA Tour's Wyndham Championship, tied for 16th at the Puerto Rico Open, reached the quarterfinals of The Amateur Championship at Royal Liverpool and advanced to match play at the U.S. Amateur. He also participated in the U.S. National Development Program's 2026 Elite Amateur Program after previously representing the 2025 U.S. National Junior Team.
Ryder Cowan
Cowan, a rising senior at Oklahoma, earned low-amateur honors at the 2026 U.S. Open at Shinnecock Hills, where he tied for 23rd at 5-over 285. He reached the championship after shooting 6-under 138 in final qualifying at BallenIsles Country Club and surviving a three-for-two playoff for the remaining spots.
The Edmond, Oklahoma, native also won a collegiate event in Hawaii, placed fourth at the NCAA Corvallis Regional and recorded runner-up and third-place finishes at the Valspar Collegiate Invitational and Maridoe Collegiate, respectively. Cowan has qualified for four consecutive U.S. Amateurs and reached the Round of 16 at Merion this year.
Josiah Gilbert
Gilbert helped Auburn win NCAA Division I championships in 2024 and 2026. During the Tigers' latest title run, the rising senior was the team's low scorer in both regional and national championship stroke play, finishing third at the NCAA Championship at 11 under.
He went 2-1 in NCAA match play, including wins over future Walker Cup teammates Fang in the semifinals and Leng in the quarterfinals. Gilbert earned second-team PING All-America and first-team All-SEC honors in 2026, and the world No. 8 advanced to match play in his third U.S. Amateur appearance.
William Jennings
Jennings, a rising junior at Alabama, finished second in the stroke-play portion of the 2026 NCAA Championship. His season included a victory at the NCAA Marana Regional and four other top-five finishes.
The Greenville, South Carolina, native earned his first college win at the 2025 Folds of Honor Collegiate and added two runner-up finishes that season. He reached match play at the 2025 U.S. Amateur, made the quarterfinals of the 2025 North & South Amateur and advanced to the Round of 16 at this year's U.S. Amateur.
Stewart Hagestad
Hagestad brings unmatched Walker Cup experience to Smith's team. The 35-year-old Southern Californian will make his sixth appearance in the match and owns a 7-1 singles record. The U.S. won each of his previous five appearances in 2017, 2019, 2021, 2023 and 2025.
A three-time U.S. Mid-Amateur champion, Hagestad has qualified for five U.S. Opens and in 2017 became the first invited U.S. Mid-Amateur champion to make the cut at the Masters. His 2026 summer included a tie for eighth at the Southern Amateur, the stroke-play cut at the Western Amateur and a Round-of-32 finish at the U.S. Amateur.
Jay Leng Jr.
Few players assembled a stronger summer résumé than Leng. The Stanford junior won the Western Amateur, finished second at both the U.S. Amateur at Merion and the Northeast Amateur, and tied for fifth at the Southern Amateur.
Leng also helped Stanford reach match play at the 2026 NCAA Championship. His championship experience includes a semifinal run at the 2024 U.S. Junior Amateur, where he defeated Russell in the quarterfinals before falling to Watts, and a trip to match play at the 2024 U.S. Amateur at Hazeltine National.
Alternates and match format
Max Herendeen of Bellevue, Washington, was named the first alternate, while Logan Reilly of Lovettsville, Virginia, will serve as the second alternate.
The Walker Cup is contested by 10-player amateur teams representing the United States and Great Britain and Ireland. The two-day match features 18 singles matches and eight foursomes matches. Lahinch will host the Walker Cup for the first time.
Information from the USGA was used in this report.