SAN FRANCISCO — “Keep that foot on the gas.” That’s the message that five-time PGA Tour winner Harris English had been texting 18-year-old Mason Howell all week as Howell advanced through match play at the U.S. Amateur. On Sunday at The Olympic Club’s Lake Course, Howell ruthlessly applied the advice from his longtime mentor as he defeated the University of Tennessee’s Jackson Herrington, 7 and 6, to win the Havemeyer Trophy.
With the victory, Howell, a rising high school senior and verbal commit to Georgia, became the third youngest winner in the 125 editions of the U.S. Amateur, taking over a spot previously held by Tiger Woods.
“It’s been such a great week, and to have my name next to these other names on this trophy is unbelievable,” said Howell, who with the win earned an automatic exemption onto the U.S. Walker Cup team for next month’s match at Cypress Point. “To be ahead of Tiger in something, that’s something that not a lot of people can say, so it’s awesome.”
It’s fitting that Howell won in such a commanding fashion, taking a 4-up lead after the morning 18 holes and quickly extending it as he began the afternoon round in the 36-hole championship match. After all, Howell didn’t need English to tell him to keep his foot on the gas—it’s something that Howell has been trained to do for years at Glen Arven Country Club in Thomasville, Ga.
In addition to Howell, the club in South Georgia is home to numerous Division I golfers and elite players, including 2023 U.S. Women’s Amateur champion Megan Schofill, recent Alabama transfer Brycen Jones, incoming freshman at Georgia JD Culbreth, Howell’s caddie and high school golf coach Jimmy Gillam, and many more.
“We have some great matches out there. It’s intense. We like to make it worth our while,” Howell said about the group. “It’s all props to Bill Connally, the director of golf out there, he’s our coach for all of us, and he’s built what we’ve become today.”
It was in one of those groups with Schofill and Jones back when Howell was just 14 years old that his father, Robert, recalls as the moment he knew his son was a really special player. After dropping his son off at the course on a Saturday morning, Robert reminded Mason that the parents had dinner reservations that night, and he would need to be done by 5:30 p.m. After 5:30 passed and no sign of his son ready to leave, Robert got a text.
“I shot 28 on the front, can I finish?” Mason texted.
Dad cancelled the reservation, watched his son play the back nine and finish with a 59, the course record at Glen Arven … at 14 years old.
Mason Howell plays his second shot on the 24th hole during the finals of the 2025 U.S. Amateur at The Olympic Club.
Chris Keane
Howell started playing the game around age three and entered his first junior tournament at six, but he enjoyed playing many other sports from a young age as well, including basketball, baseball and tennis. But golf was always number one. “He used to curl up in my lap when he was a little kid and watch it,” Robert said. “He was always fascinated.”
Howell’s game progressed but was further elevated at age 12 when he began working with Connally, who was also the childhood instructor of English and PGA Tour winner and current LIV golfer Hudson Swafford. The technical refinements, paired with frequent gambling games around Glen Arven, helped shape Howell into the player and tough competitor the golf world saw on Sunday.
“He really learned how to get it around by gambling,” Connally said. “You learn how to play, or you learn how to pay. He’s good at not taking his foot off the pedal and at the same time not wrecking the car.”
Regularly a high finisher in top junior events, Howell has taken his game to another level in 2025, starting with a high school individual state title in the spring, followed by shooting 63-63 to co-medal at Final Qualifying for the U.S. Open. Though he missed the cut at Oakmont, Howell regrouped to earn medalist honors in the U.S. Junior Amateur a few weeks ago. The week ended early for the top seed, however, as Howell lost in the first round.
Entering this week, Howell admitted he was in a bit of a “match-play funk,” but it was conversations with Gillam that led to a more disciplined, patient approach at The Olympic Club.
“I knew from the first time I met him that he was special,” said Gillam, who in addition to being his caddie and high school golf coach is also Howell’s short-game instructor. “He’s such a hard worker, and he’s always focused. He doesn’t get wrapped up in the success. He squashes it, he moves on to the next tournament, and it’s just rinse and repeat.”
An excellent player himself with a plus-six handicap, Gillam points to their frequent matches as further evidence of Howell’s level. “He’s honestly the first guy in my life that I’ve ever had to get shots from. I’m a plus-six handicap and he’s giving me one a side on the front, which probably leads to two on the back. The last time I beat him was before he qualified for the U.S. Open. We’ve probably played 10 times since.”
Howell’s breakout year in 2025 is the result of a more refined style of play. The 6-foot-4 bomber has had no issues with clubhead speed since his six-inch growth spurt a few years ago, but with Connally and Gillam, Howell has learned how to better flight iron shots, chip from the deep rough common around championship setups, and adopt a fairway-finder off the tee. Those have no doubt been crucial to his on-course success this year, but Howell added a final variable.
“I felt like I always had [the game], it was self-belief. I needed to walk with some confidence, and that would translate to good golf and staying positive,” Howell said. “Overall, I’ve always known I’ve had it, it’s just really unlocking it.”
