Mason Howell is the 2025 US Amateur champion after a dominant victory over Jackson Herrington at The Olympic Club.
Georgia player Howell showed few signs of nerves at the San Francisco venue despite going one behind the University of Tennessee player on the second hole.
He hit back to win the next hole, the first of three in a row, and by the time he walked off the green at the par-3 eighth he was 4-up.
Herrington hit back at the 10th with his first birdie of the day, but the momentum didn't build with Howell re-establishing his cushion at the 11th.
The 18-year-old, who would go on to surpass Tiger Woods as the third-youngest US Amateur champion, was 5-up after the 16th before being pegged back two holes later.
After the intermission, Herrington would have been determined to come out all guns blazing in the second half, but instead it was Howell who reclaimed his five-hole lead at the 19th and that became 6-up at at the par-3 21st after Herrington found thick rough from his tee shot.
In truth, Herrington struggled all afternoon off the tee, frequently missing fairways, although he clawed a hole back at the 24th of the day on one of the rare occasions his drive found its intended target while Howell's tee shot hit a tree.
In the end, Howell missed his par putt to hand his opponent a glimmer of hope.
It didn't last, with Howell once again bouncing back immediately to go 6-up after 25 holes. That became 7-up two holes later and Howell was on the verge of victory.
At that point, it seemed like a formality and so it proved, even though Herrington gamely hung in there for three more holes before he finally ran out of opportunities to claw back the deficit as Howell completed a hugely impressive 7&6 victory to lift the Havemeyer Trophy.
Howell won the match on the 30th hole of the day
Following his defeat, Herrington was brutally honest in his assessment of his performance.
He said: "I just played terrible. Can't lie. I hit some good shots like this one that didn't even end up close. I thought I flagged it, and it flew 10 yards too far. I didn't even know what I was doing, and I couldn't figure it out."
However, he was determined to take the positives, adding: "I got through a lot of people this week, and it was tough. I proved to myself I could do it. He played good, and I didn't play great. It was unfortunate I was that way, but I learned a lot about myself. So it was good."
US AMATEUR FINAL SCORING
- Howell 7&6 Herrington
Hole | Jackson Herrington | Mason Howell |
|---|---|---|
19 | 5 | 4 |
20 | 5 | 5 |
21 | 4 | 3 |
22 | 4 | 4 |
23 | 5 | 5 |
24 | 4 | 5 |
25 | 5 | 3 |
26 | 3 | 3 |
27 | 5 | 4 |
28 | 4 | 4 |
29 | 4 | 4 |
30 | 4 | 4 |
31 | Row 12 - Cell 1 | Row 12 - Cell 2 |
32 | Row 13 - Cell 1 | Row 13 - Cell 2 |
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MASON HOWELL WINS US AMATEUR!
Howell's tee shot strays right of the fairway and his approach is fine, rolling onto the front of the green from a difficult lie.
Herrington is on the fairway and has nothing to lose. His finds the back of the green.
Herrington really needs to chip this in to force the issue. The result isn't great, going right and beyond the pin to leave a difficult par putt.
Back with Howell, he has two putts to win the match.
He has 40 feet to go and the first gets hims to within one. That'll do it and Mason Howell is the US Amateur champion!
STATE OF PLAY
The state of play is that Mason Howell just needs to tie or win the 30th hole of the day, a par-4, to be US Amateur champion.
HERRINGTON SHOWS GRIT TO STAY IN IT
After his wayward tee shot, Herrington is contemplating a hook around a tree. Before that, Howell has a far more straightforward decision from the fairway.
With 159 yards to the hole, he finds the back of the green.
Back to Herrington and 137 yards from the hole, the club of choice is a gap wedge. He hooks it round the tree OK and straight onto the back of the green too.
Howell's third struggles out of the rough and barely onto the green before Herrington fares better to leave it a couple of feet from the hole. He's clawing some pride back if nothing else.
Howell then makes par meaning Herrington needs to make his to extend the match. And he does!
FAIRWAY TROUBLE FOR JACKSON
Jackson Herrington has been missing fairways left all afternoon. He's stopped that trend at the 29th, but unfortunately, that's because he's missed it right. It's just one of those days for the Tennessee player.
Howell, meanwhile, finds the fairway - a more satisfying trend he's established throughout the afternoon.
HOWELL ON THE CUSP
Both players find the fairway with their tee shots at the par-4 10th (the 28th of the day), and Herrington makes the green with his second.
Howell also leaves himself a birdie putt, and it doesn't quite make it. Herrington to win the hole. His 20-footer misses left and the hole is tied. He's running out of holes seven behind with only eight to go.
HOWELL TURNING THE SCREW
At the 27th (the ninth of the second 18), Herrington again hits his tee shot left, and his approach batters a tree, leaving him 100 yards from the hole. Howell, meanwhile, is on the fairway and finds the middle of the green.
Herrington's third is a chip that lands slightly off the back of the green. Almost nothing is going his way and you have to feel for him.
Howell's birdie shot misses right and the par is conceded to him. Now Herrington needs to hole his from off the green. It goes and goes, but then stops and Howell is 7-up with only nine to go.
HERRINGTON STOPS THE ROT
The good news for Jackson Herrington is if he comes back to win from here, it'll surely be an all-timer. The bad news is he doesn't much look like doing it.
Case in point: the tee shot at the par-3 26th. Howell finds the green, but Herrington misses left - a recurring problem as his off-day continues.
Herrington then recovers well with his second, leaving a decent par chance. He takes it after Howell makes par and the hole is tied.
MASON MOTORING ON
A degree of bewilderment over Jackson Herrington's decision to play safer from behind the tree, but at least his third reaches the green. Then Howell leaves his second a couple of feet away from the hole.
Herrington misses his par putt, and we're back to a 6-up lead for Mason Howell.
TREE TROUBLE FOR JACKSON
If there was hope that would reignite Herrington's challenge,it was short-lived. He places his tee shot way left on the par-4 25th, before Howell finds the green, only for the ball to roll apologetically off the back of it. Still, advantage Howell.
Herrington finds his ball behind a tree, but he can go through a gap between the trunks. It's high-risk, so should he? With the current state of play, it seems plausible.
In the end he goes left of the tree and he's still not on the green.
HERRINGTON HITS BACK
From the tee at the 24th, Howell's ball has an encounter with a tree before plopping onto the rough.
Meanwhile, Herrington is quick to pick up his tee after a beautiful drive finds the fairway.
Howell's approach is OK, but doesn't find the green. This is Herrington's chance to arrest the slide. Will he take it?
His approach suggests he might, landing on the green before spinning back a touch.
From the first cut short of the green, Howell places his third beyond the pin. Herrington has a birdie chance to win the hole. It comes up a touch short, but Howell misses his par putt and the lead is reduced to five.
Fridge is on the board!A par on the 24th hole of the match is his first win of the afternoon session. pic.twitter.com/rBI6X4JumHAugust 18, 2025
Howell's tee shot at the par-4 23rd settles in the rough but it's a decent enough lie and he leaves his approach just short of the green. In the right-hand rough, Herrington, the left-hander, plays a strange shot that bounces a few times on the fairway and well short of the green.
As a result, Herrington is next, whose third is misjudged, going right and beyond the pin. Nothing's going right for him.
Howell has 30 feet to win the hole with his putter from the edge of the green. It stops a few feet left.
Herrington has a long one for par. It's a beautiful left-to-right, but narrowly misses. With a considerably easier putt, Howell misses with the flag in, but he makes it coming back and the hole is tied.
HOWELL IN CONTROL
Once again, Howell finds the fairway with his tee shot at the 22nd. Herrington just misses the fairway right. Not what he needed with a mountain to climb as it is.
Both find the green with their approaches, and Herrington is facing a 30-to 40-foot birdie putt. It's good, but not for the first time he leaves it short.
Howell can win it iwth his birdie putt from just inside 30 feet but it breaks right. Herrington then makes par and the hole is halved.
HOWELL TURNS THE SCREW
Onto the par-3 21st, where Howell finds the green with his tee shot, but Herrington's woes continue as he puts his into the thick rough beyond the green.
Herrington's second is even worse, not even making the green. Howell then gets it close enough to take the par, before Herrington, needing to make it from the edge of the green and doesn't. Just like that, Howell is 6-up.
HOWELL RETAINS BIG LEAD
At the par-4 20th, Howell repeats his beautiful tee shot of a hole ago, landing plum in the fairway. Herrington then does the same - will that settle the nerves?
Both players then miss the green with their approaches, and it's Howell feeling the heat as he's stuck in a greenside bunker.
His response is decent, finding the green to leave a par chance. Now, off the back of the green, it's Herrington, who chips it nicely, but it won't sit and rolls back off the green to the right. Herrington's fourth stops two or three feet left of the pin.
With his par putt, Howell's breaks a little far left and the bogey is conceded to him. Herrington has work to do. He holes it and it is halved.
HOWELL TAKES 5-UP LEAD
Herrington's third finds itself on the green, but not that close to Howell's, who got there in two.
Herrington's put for par misses right, leaving Howell two putts to win. The first comes up inches short and he completes the formalities to go 5-up.
Lots of golf left here yet, but that's not the start to the second half of proceedings Herrington was looking for.
Just like that, Mason Howell's lead is back to 5 up. He steps right in and makes a par on the first hole of the afternoon. pic.twitter.com/1PKgv5ZV3OAugust 17, 2025
ASSURED RESUMPTION FROM THE LEADER
There's a great turnout at the venue as Howell finds the fairway with his tee shot at the 19th, but it's not so good for Herrington, who's in the rough.
Howell's bang in the middle, and places his approach nicely onto the green to leave a birdie chance, before Herrington lays up to settle for just getting out of the rough.
A FITTING VENUE
The Olympic Club is about 12 miles from downtown San Francisco and a fitting venue for the 125th US Amateur having hosted five US Opens, one US Women's Open and the Tour Championship. It's also the venue for the 2028 PGA Championship and 2033 Ryder Cup.
THE STORY SO FAR...
After Herrington took an early lead, he was pegged back by Howell at the third and by the 16th, he was 5-up.
Herrington then reduced the deficit at the 17th and that's how it stayed as the pair headed back to the clubhouse for a breather before the second 18.
WELCOME
Welcome to the coverage of the second half of the US Amateur final, where Mason Howell leads Jackson Herrington 4-up in San Francisco. The finalists will be going out again in a few minutes. I'll take you through all the action as it unfolds throughout the evening.