Max Herendeen leads Illinois golf into season opener at Sahalee

Yahoo Sports • 1 min read • Latest: Sep 12, 2026, 2:46 PM

Last updated Sep 12, 2026

Golf

Summary

Max Herendeen returns to Sahalee Country Club this weekend to begin his senior season with the Illinois men’s golf team. The Sammamish, Washington venue previously hosted Herendeen’s college debut in 2023, where he forced a playoff in the Sahalee Players Championship. After a volatile junior campaign that saw him temporarily removed from the lineup due to inconsistent results, Herendeen aims to apply mental and emotional growth to his performance this year. Illinois head coach Mike Small highlighted the difficulty of the course, known for its tight, tree-lined fairways. The tournament consists of two rounds on Saturday followed by a final round on Sunday. Herendeen, a native of the area, looks to use the familiar setting to provide a confidence boost for the upcoming 2026-27 season.

Source Links

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Status Watch

•Illinois begins its 2026-27 golf season at Sahalee Country Club this weekend.
•Max Herendeen placed second at the same venue during his 2023 college debut.
•Tournament play consists of two rounds on Saturday and one on Sunday.
•Herendeen spent the offseason focusing on mental discipline after a difficult junior year.

Latest Updates

2:46 PMYahoo Sports — Revitalized Max Herendeen ready to attack senior season

What they're saying

"
Sep. 12—URBANA — Max Herendeen has become intimately familiar with Sahalee Country Club in the three dozen or so times he's played the course in Sammamish, Wash., the past few years. Perhaps exhaustively familiar given the challenges presented by the championship-level course located roughly 20 miles east of Seattle. "The nickname out there is 'Sa-hallway,' and the running joke is you have to ...
— Yahoo Sports

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