Josh Schrock
Michael La Sasso’s journey to becoming an NCAA champion started with work off the course.
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Ole Miss junior Michael La Sasso knew the magnitude of what faced him during the final round of the NCAA individual championship at Omni La Costa in Carlsbad, Calif., on Monday.
La Sasso struggled to sleep on the two-shot lead he held over Texas A&M senior Phichaksn Maichon. With a ticket to the 2025 U.S. Open at Oakmont, the 2026 Masters and likely numerous PGA Tour sponsor invites on the line, La Sasso tossed and turned the night before the biggest round of his life.
By the time La Sasso stepped on the tee Monday, Maichon had already opened with back-to-back birdies to erase La Sasso’s lead. La Sasso, starting on the back nine, opened his round with two birdies as well but then ran into a string of bad luck. There was a mudball that led to a bogey at No. 13 and then plugged lies that caused double bogeys at 15 and 17. He was two shots back at the turn.
But where that would have broken La Sasso in the past, causing him to spiral and crash out, the Rebels junior star steadied himself, showcasing the level of mental fortitude required to win a championship.
It wasn’t too long ago that La Sasso was down on himself after a tough spring and summer that saw him lose 22 pounds due to a stomach virus at the SEC Championship. He followed that up with a tie for 191st at the U.S. Amateur. Ole Miss coach Chris Malloy and assistant coach Emerson Newsome suggested La Sasso work with a performance coach to work on his mental approach and emotions. That work paid off massively this season, as La Sasso won twice and posted nine top-13 finishes entering the NCAA Championships.
“You know, kind of just being able to have a level head and learn that we are just playing golf,” La Sasso said via Golf Digest’s Tod Leonard. “There’s no need to get too down on yourself. Golf is golf at the end of the day, and that’s what I was trying to tell myself.”
The grit showed.
La Sasso birdied Nos. 4 and 6, the latter aided by a few lucky bounces after La Sasso’s tugged tee shot bounced three times on the cart path before bounding back into the fairway. That birdie at No. 6 was La Sasso’s last of the round and got him to 11 under par. Up ahead of him, Maichon dropped two shots to post nine under, leaving La Sasso with a clear target to hit to hoist the trophy. On the 7th hole, La Sasso’s tee shot landed next to a bunker rake that his Ole Miss teammate had left out. He flew his second shot over the green but got up-and-down for par and cruised into the house to post a final-round 72 and become the second player in Ole Miss program history to win the individual title, joining Braden Thornberry.
It was the type of win that perfectly encapsulated La Sasso’s journey in Oxford, Miss.
“I’ve personally fought a s— ton of stuff these last two years since I’ve been at Ole Miss,” La Sasso said via Golf Channel’s Brentley Romine. “And I feel like I’m a pretty gritty guy.”
La Sasso’s win helped Ole Miss grab the eighth and final spot in the team match play bracket. They will face No. 1-seeded Arizona State in the quarterfinals, with La Sasso in the anchor spot against Sun Devils star Preston Summerhays.
The win also means La Sasso won’t have to fly to Columbus for a U.S. Open qualifier next Monday. Instead, he can play in the Arnold Palmer Cup before teeing it up at Oakmont. Later this summer, La Sasso will also play in the Rocket Mortgage Classic.
As an NCAA champion, there are a lot of opportunities that will now come his way. Opportunities that wouldn’t be on the horizon for La Sasso had it not been for the journey he’s gone through and the help of Malloy and Newsome.
“[I’m] way different,” La Sasso told Golf Channel, of how he’s grown over the last year. “I can’t thank coach Malloy and coach Emerson for everything they do — it’s an understatement — of what they have done for me and how I’ve matured as a person.”
La Sasso’s biggest hurdle Monday at Omni La Costa was not loose swings or shaky fundamentals brought on by nerves. To win the NCAA individual championship, La Sasso had to conquer golf’s endless foe. The one that had battered him last summer. The one between his ears. The journey to do that started in the fall, spurred on by a talk with his coaches. The fruit of that labor finally arrived 1,884 miles away from Oxford on the shores of the Pacific.
Josh Schrock
Golf.com Editor
Josh Schrock is a writer and reporter for Golf.com. Before joining GOLF, Josh was the Chicago Bears insider for NBC Sports Chicago. He previously covered the 49ers and Warriors for NBC Sports Bay Area. A native Oregonian and UO alum, Josh spends his free time hiking with his wife and dog, thinking of how the Ducks will break his heart again, and trying to become semi-proficient at chipping. A true romantic for golf, Josh will never stop trying to break 90 and never lose faith that Rory McIlroy’s major drought will end (updated: he did it). Josh Schrock can be reached at josh.schrock@golf.com.