Dear Alumni and Friends,
It's been a cold start to 2026, but the team has been getting ready to head to our first tournament of the spring - The Wexford Intercollegiate in Hilton Head, SC. The Wexford Intercollegiate will be played Feb 16th and 17th. The team has played 144 holes of qualifying to determine our lineup and making the trip to Hilton Head for the Bears will be: Henry Robards, Cole Hanson, Phillips Swift, Albin Ekvall, and Ryan Curran.
The season got off to a solid start in the fall and through four tournaments - four Bears rank in the top 12 in the SoCon for season stroke averages: #5 Henry Robards (71.33), #6 Cole Hanson (71.58), #10 Phillips Swift (72.33), and #12 Nate Trodd (72.42).
In this newsletter you will see our spring schedule that has six regular season events highlighted by hosting The Linger Longer at Reynolds Lake Oconee on the Great Waters Golf Course, March 20-22. This spring will also see us compete in Aiken, SC, Athens, GA, Augusta, GA, Spartanburg, SC, and Columbia, SC for the SoCon Championship.
The fall was exciting with the opening of the new Scheck Golf Performance Building here on campus. We also welcomed back 20 golf alumni for the 2nd playing of The Roddy on November 7th at Brickyard Golf Club. Congrats to Jonathan Parker and Stanton Schorr for winning the Orange Division with a score of 62 and congrats to John Wilson Gordon and Brian Gerrity for winning the Black Division with a score of 61.
We signed two members of the class of 2026 to our team that will join us in the fall: Spencer Ives of Naples, FL and Cooper Franklin of Ponte Vedra Beach, FL. You can read more about those two future Bears in this newsletter. A coach always says they are "excited" about a player joining the program - we are more than "excited" to have Cooper and Spencer be here in the fall.
We also have news to share about our Men's Golf Endowment. Since starting the endowment in 2021, we have grown the endowment to $80,000 and have a goal of being at $100,000 by June 1 of this year. We are thankful for those who have generously supported our program and encourage those of you who have not yet done so, to support us with any size gift.
We hope you have a chance to stop by campus and say hello this spring or even be able to watch us compete in an event.
Most importantly, I want to thank you for your support of the program.
GO BEARS!
Coach Jason Payne
478-951-7110
Bears Add Two Top-20 Recruits From the Sunshine State
Cooper Franklin Ponte Vedra Beach, Fla. | Ponte Vedra High School Franklin signs with Mercer ranked as the No. 20 overall recruit in the Florida High School Athletic Association (FHSAA) rankings. Over the last four years, Franklin has accumulated 20 finishes in the top 25, 14 finishes in the top 15, 12 top 10, seven top five and four individual wins on the Florida Junior Tour. In 2024, Franklin won the FJT Bent Creek, FJT Indian Spring Open, FJT PGA National and the 13th FJT Tour Championship. Franklin's career-low on the FJT is a 67 which he shot in the final rounds of the 2024 FJT PGA National and Tour Championships to secure his trophies. Coach Payne on Franklin – "Cooper is a very accomplished junior and amateur golfer. We were introduced to Cooper early in the recruiting process and had the opportunity to follow him through much of his junior career. We are excited for him to step on campus and believe he is going to make an immediate impact."
Spencer Ives Naples, Fla. | Community School of Naples Ives commits to Mercer amidst an outstanding senior season. Ives finished the fall slate of his senior year with a -2.088 scoring differential and ranked as the 14th overall (No. 7 senior) in the FHSAA rankings. As a junior, Ives finished in second place at the First Tee National Championship with a score of seven-under par. Ives was also named the Southwest Florida Golfer of the Year and finished in fourth at the 1A State Championships. Coach Payne on Ives – "From the first time I saw Spencer compete in a tournament, I was impressed with his game. He has all the physical tools to be a great college player and we look forward to him being a big part of our program for the next four years."
Jay Hobbs and Rich Reiher, who were both teammates of Tommy Roddy, have agreed to facilitate the planning for the 2026 Roddy. We want to get a golf alum from every generation (every 5 years of time) to help communicate the details and plan the event. If you would like to represent your era of Mercer Golf, please email Coach Payne.
Coach Payne payne_jc@mercer.edu
Bears On Tour
Tobias Jonsson | DP World Tour
Since graduating from Mercer in the Spring of 2024, Jonsson has competed his way to earning his DP World Tour card. After starting on the HotelPlanner Tour in January '25, five Top-10 finishes - including a second and third-place finish - propelled him into 17th place in the final rankings. Since starting the Race To Dubai, Jonsson has competed in six events, making all six cuts, including a 10-under performance at the AfrAsia Bank Mauritius Open to secure an 18th-place finish. Jonsson has climbed up to 383rd in the World Golf Rankings after being ranked 2,755 at the start of his journey. You can follow along with Jonsson's journey through the DP World Tour here: https://www.europeantour.com/players/tobias-jonsson-101407/results?tour=dpworld-tour
Jacob Uyesato | APGA Tour
Since graduating from Mercer in the Spring of 2025, Uyesato moved to Greensboro, North Carolina and has participated in a variety of different events. Primarily playing on the GPRO Tour, Uyesato also has played events on the Carolina Mountain Tour. This year, Uyesato plans to go through the PGA Tour Americas Q-School which will allow him to compete abroad in South America and Canada. Uyesato is scheduled to participate in the Cisco Black History Month Classic from February 18-20 and the APGA at TPC San Antonio from March 2-4. You can follow along to Uyesato's journey by checking out his newsletter: jacobuyesato.substack.com
Jay Spivey / GPRO Tour
Since graduating from Mercer in the Spring of 2024, Spivey continues to live in Macon, Georgia and continues to compete in mini tour events including two Top-10 finishes on the GPRO Tour last season. This year, Spivey plans to play abroad in Canada or in Europe to continue improving his game before starting Q-School this fall. You can follow along to Spivey's golf journey with his newsletter: https://jays-newsletter-592c87.beehiiv.com/?utm_source=ig&utm_medium=social&utm_content=link_in_bio
We are proud to announce the "80/20" campaign for Men's Golf. This campaign will impact the current operations and the long term sustainability of the program, as well as play a part in enhancing current facilities. 80% of your gift will go towards the Men's Golf Endowment. The Men's Golf Endowment provides yearly budget enhancement for the Men's Golf program and will impact our scholar-athletes for generations to come. 20% of your gift will go towards to the Men's Golf annual fund account. This fund supports the current and immediate needs of the Men's Golf program.
The current balance of the Men's Golf Endowment is $78,000. We have a goal or surpassing $100,000 by June 1. To reach that goal, we need your support. Our endowment balance shows a tangible commitment by our supporters to our program.
To make a give, click on the link below. When making a gift, select Athletic Foundation Annual Fund and write "Men's Golf 80/20" in the remarks box.
Swinging Toby Decals!
As a way to show your support of Mercer Men's Golf, we now have Swinging Toby Decals. We would love to send you a few if you would like some. Just email us with your address and we will mail them to you so you can put them on your car, golf cart, cooler....
To get yours, send an email to Coach Ariza at Matthew.Ariza@live.mercer.edu and include your address. Please put Swinging Toby Decals in the subject of the email so we make sure we see your email. Go Bears!
Alumni Golf Bag
The above is a special edition golf bag from Ping that is a special color that will be exclusively for past lettermen of the golf team. Each bag will be $500 and you can order yours by emailing Coach Payne at payne_jc@mercer.edu.