WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. – The Purdue men’s golf team opens its anticipated 2026-27 season with the New York Harbor Cup at the Bayonne Golf Club in Bayonne, New Jersey.
The teams will play 36 holes on Monday and 18 on Tuesday at the highly-acclaimed course that overlooks the New Your harbor. Hosted by Rutgers, the event will be the first collegiate tournament played on the links course on the outskirts of New York City.
Coming off a summer where many of the Boilermakers had varying levels of success, anticipation is high for a team that is looking to win its season debut for the second time in three years under head coach Andrew Sapp.
Purdue is coming off a 23rd-place finish at last year’s NCAA Championships and welcome back five of its six top players from a year ago, while welcoming in a pair of newcomers expected to strengthen Purdue’s roster.
However, the Boilermakers will play this week without senior All-American candidate Sam Easterbrook, who will represent Great Britain and Ireland in the Walker Cup on Sept. 5 and 6 in Ireland.
This week’s nine-team field includes three other Big Ten teams as well as traditional powers Kansas, Little Rock and South Florida. Purdue is the only one of the nine teams to make last year’s NCAA Championship field.
THE FIELD (Final 2026 Clippd Rankings)
39 Kansas
42 Purdue
53 Little Rock
54 South Florida
55 West Virginia
71 Marquette
77 Michigan State
81 Rutgers
83 Nebraska
TEAM NOTES
• Purdue set a school record a year ago with a 284.79 stroke average and 20 team rounds of even-par or better.
• The Boilermakers finished 23rd at the 2026 NCAA Championships, the program’s highest finish since 2004 (T-16th).
• Purdue’s three straight trips to the NCAA Championships are the ninth-longest streak in the country and the longest active streak in the Big Ten Conference.
• Purdue has finished the season ranked in the top 50 in the final rankings in five straight years, the first time in school history that has happened.
• Purdue has won a tournament in five straight seasons, tied for the longest stretch in school history since having a win in six straight seasons from 1958 to 1963.
PURDUE LINEUP
• Supapon Amornchaichan (Jr. / Bangkok, Thailand)
... Amornchaichan qualified for the professional Singha Classic in Thailand. Then finished 27th overall after being in the top five through the first two rounds.
... Had a strong sophomore season, posting a 72.64 stroke average in 33 rounds played.
... Recorded three top-20 finishes and had 17 rounds of even-par or better, including eight rounds in the 60s.
... Finished tied for 15th at the season-opening Island Resort Intercollegiate (70-69-69=208; -8).
... Recorded back-to-back top-15 finishes with a T-12 showing at the Fighting Irish Classic (72-69-70=211; +1), and then a T-13 placement at the Purdue Fall Invitational (68-68-80=216; even). Was the 36-hole leader at the Purdue Fall Invitational.
... Had a good NCAA Regional at Trysting Tree Golf Club in Corvallis, Oregon, placing tied for 21st at 2-under par 211 (68-68-75).
• Jenson Forrester (Sr. / Wolverhampton, England)
... Won the prestigious Tillman Trophy at 14-under par 274, earning him exempt status for the 2027 Tier I Clutch Pro Tour schedule as well as a start on the Hotel Planner Tour (Challenge Tour).
... Forrester had an up-and-down junior season, appearing in 12 events and posting a 72.82 stroke average for the season.
... Finished the year with two top-20 showings and 15 rounds of even-par or better.
... Played well at the NCAA National Championships, finishing tied for 55th at 1-over par 217 (72-71-74).
... Also subbed in for the last two rounds at the Big Ten Championships, shooting even-par over the last two rounds (70-70) to help Purdue surge to sixth after a tough first day.
... Placed tied for eighth as an individual at the Purdue Fall Invitational (70-71-73=214; -2).
• Will Harvey (So. / Westfield, Indiana)
... Qualified for the U.S. Amateur after finishing tied for fourth in qualifying at the Aurora Country Club (Illinois).
... Harvey had one of the top freshman seasons by a Purdue golfer in school history, appearing in 12 events with a 72.34 stroke average.
... Posted the lowest stroke average by a freshman in Purdue history and finished with six top-20 placings and 15 rounds of even-par or better.
... Posted the lowest round by a freshman in Purdue history with a 64 at the Island Resort Intercollegiate during his second career round.
... Posted a birdie-bogey-birdie-birdie-birdie finish at the NCAA Corvallis Regional to help Purdue advance to the NCAA National Championships by one shot. His birdie on 18 was a downhill, 10-foot putt that proved to be the difference.
... Finished as runner-up at the Purdue Fall Invitational (70-71-70=211; -5), missing out on medalist honors by one shot.
... Finished tied for fourth (73-66-70=209; -7) and tied for sixth (73-68-76=217; +4) in back-to-back events at the Calusa Cup and Hoosier Collegiate.
... Placed tied for 13th at the NCAA Corvallis Regional (70-68-71=209; -4).
• Micah Sheffer (Fr. / Brownstown, Indiana)
... Sheffer had a busy and successful summer, winning the Indiana Match Play Championship.
... Also finished as the runner-up, losing in a playoff at the Indiana Open Championship.
... Finished in the top 10 at the North Atlantic Amateur (5th), the Rice Planters Amateur (3rd) and the Kenridge Invitational (9th).
... Arrived at Purdue at the semester break and redshirted during the spring season (2025-26).
... One of the state’s top athletes, Sheffer arrives at Purdue after starring on the golf course, the football field and hardwood.
... Two-time all-conference honoree and team MVP in golf, before opting not to play his junior season and playing junior tours instead.
... Named the 2025 Golfweek Player of the Year and won four events on the AJGA and Golfweek Junior Tours last summer.
... A standout quarterback for Brownstown Central, Sheffer led Brownstown Central to the Class 2A state championship game at Lucas Oil Stadium.
... Threw for over 1,200 yards and 11 touchdowns while rushing for over 400 yards. Led an offense that averaged over 50.0 points per game.
... On the hardwood, he was a varsity starter for two years, including as a sophomore helping Brownstown Central to the 2024 state championship, alongside current Purdue basketball player Jack Benter.
• Andre Zhu (So. / Richmond Hill, Ontario)
... Narrowly missed qualifying (one shot) in The Amateur Championship.
... Also competed in the Trans-Mississippi Amateur and Canadian Men’s Amateur Championship.
... Zhu had a strong redshirt freshman campaign, appearing in 11 events with a 72.44 stroke average. His stroke average ranked as the 15th-lowest in a season in school history and the second lowest by a freshman behind classmate Will Harvey.
... Finished with three top-20 performances and 13 rounds of even-par or lower.
... Set the school record for lowest 54-hole score by a freshman, shooting a 15-under par at the season-opening Island Resort Intercollegiate. Was named Big Ten Golfer of the Week for his efforts.
... His 65 in the second round at the Island Resort Intercollegiate ranks tied for 11th all-time at Purdue and is the second-lowest score by a freshman in school history.
PREVIOUSLY AT THE NEW YORK HARBOR CLASSIC
This marks the first year that the tournament has been played. The last time Purdue played in New Jersey came in the 2023 Big Ten Championships at Galloway National Golf Club. That tournament was shortened to 36 holes after heavy rains and thunderstorms canceled the final round.
It also marks the first of two trips this year to New Jersey as the 2027 Big Ten Championships will be contested at legendary Baltusrol Golf Club in Springfield, New Jersey.
THE COURSE
Across the Hudson River from Manhattan, the Bayonne Golf Club is home to a waterfront golf course that is unlike anything this side of the Atlantic. Designed to rival the look and feel of the legendary links courses of Scotland and Ireland, this awe-inspiring course is the centerpiece of an exclusive club that has garnered countless accolades since its unveiling in 2006.
WEATHER FORECAST
Monday: Mostly Cloudy, 84 degrees; WSW winds 5-10 MPH
Tuesday: Partly Cloudy, 83 degrees; WSW winds 5-10 MPH