The 2025-26 Army-Navy Star Series presented by USAA continues this weekend when Navy plays host to the 88th edition of the Army-Navy Men's Golf Star Match. The Naval Academy Golf Club will serve as the backdrop for the two-day event which will be scored as match play, or the more familiar Ryder Cup-style format, with four four-ball matches played on Saturday (9:00 am) and capped off with seven singles matches on Sunday (9:00 am). The first team to reach six points will be declared the winner.

The Star Series
This week's golf match marks the fourth among 26 Army-Navy Star competitions played over the course of the academic year that determine the winner of the Army-Navy Star Series presented by USAA. The annual showdown between the two rivals in each sport is deemed the Star Game / Match / Meet with the athletes from the winning team receiving a Star for their letter sweaters. For those sports who face Army multiple times in a season, the Star Game is designated prior to the start of the year.  

The annual rivalry kicked off Sept. 19 with Army capturing a 3-1 victory over Navy in volleyball. There are three stars on the line this weekend with the soccer teams playing a women's (4:00 pm) and men's (7:00 pm) doubleheader in Chester, Pa. on Friday, while men's golf is set for action on Saturday and Sunday. 

Navy leads the all-time overall series against Army, 1199-917-45 (56.6), including a 173-133-4 (56.5) mark over the last 10 years. Additionally, the Mids own a 123-82-4 (59.8) advantage in the Star Series over that same timeframe (2016-17 to 2025-26). In 2021-22, Navy had unprecedented success in both the Star and overall series, posting a 20-4 (83.3) mark in Star competitions and a 27-9 record in overall contests against Army. 

Men's Golf Series History
Navy's golf team enters this year's competition with a 45-41-1 advantage over the Black Knights in the annual men's golf dual which was first played in 1939 at Sherwood Forest Golf Club in Sherwood Forest, Md. Among the 87 previously-played duals, 60 have utilized the familiar Ryder Cup format, including each of the last 23 (9 wins by Navy, 14 by Army). Navy holds a 27-15 lead in Star Matches played on its home course, however the Mids have won just one of the last four matches played in Annapolis (2021, 5.5-5.5 via a tiebreaker). The Mids' last win in the series was Sept. 26, defeating Army in a playoff in Annapolis. 

Army-Navy Rewind
Navy earned victories in three of the seven singles matches played on the final day of competition, but it would not be enough to overcome the four-ball deficit as the Mids dropped a 7-4 decision in the annual Army-Navy men's golf Star Match played at the West Point Golf Club.

The Black Knights used the momentum gained from their 3-1 advantage in the four-ball matches to propel them to their fourth-consecutive Star Match victory against the Mids at West Point. 

Oct. 4, 2024 | West Point, N.Y.
Army 7 | Navy 4

Four-Ball Matches
Benjamin Valdez / Owen Huntington (N) def. Lake Kim / Dragon Theam (A) / 4&3
Rob Ferris / Josh Rooker (A) def. Luke Lombardo / Danny Auffant (N) / 3&2
Josh Kim / Tyson Sparks (A) def. Chip Deegan / Kaden Ausen (N) / 3&1
John Heckel Jr. / Drew Jeffords (A) def. Jack Tarzy / Ed Scott (N) / 7&6

Singles Matches
Drew Jeffords (A) def. Luke Lombardo (N) 5&3
Chip Deegan (N) def. Tyson Sparks (A) 4&2
John Heckel Jr. (A) def. Ed Scott (N) 8&6
Owen Huntington (N) def. Rob Ferris (A) 6&5
Josh Kim (A) def. Jack Tarzy (N) 1-Up
Benjamin Valdez (N) def. Dragon Theam (A) 1-Up
Lake Kim (A) def. Kaden Ausen (N) 3&1

The Mids This Year
Folds of Honor Collegiate • Sept. 8-10 / American Dunes Golf Club, Grand Haven, Mich.
• Navy opened the 2025 campaign with a 13th-place finish at the fourth-annual Folds of Honor Collegiate played at the par-71 American Dunes Golf Club in Grand Haven, Mich. The Mids shot a 44-over par 896 (300-300-296).
• Chip Deegan led the Mids with a 6-over par 219 (72-77-70) to finish 25th.
• The field included 19 teams that were represented at the 2025 NCAA Regionals, eight that advanced to the NCAA Championships, and 13 that ended the Spring ranked in the top 30 in the country.
• Defending Folds of Honor Collegiate champion Alabama made it two in a row, as the Crimson Tide captured the team title by 6 strokes over Notre Dame. Alabama's William Jennings secured individual medalist honors with a 4-under par 209 (71-67-71).

Jackson T. Stephens Cup • Sept. 15-16 / Shoreacres, Lake Bluff, Ill.
• Chip Deegan represented the Naval Academy at the 2025 Jackson T. Stephens Cup where he placed 16th with a par 210 (69-72-69).
• Deegan, who was named the Patriot League Men's Golfer of the Week for his performance, was the top-finishing service academy player in the tournament and one of seven golfers who received a special invitation to play as an individual in the team-scored event held at Shoreacres in Lake Bluff, Ill. 
• The field included full teams from 10th-ranked LSU, 15th-ranked North Carolina, 22nd-ranked Arizona, along with Northwestern, Texas and SMU. Individuals represented Air Force, Army, Florida A&M, Howard, Livingstone and Navy.

The Goat • Sept. 20-21 / Naval Academy Golf Club, Annapolis, Md.
• Team captain Jack Tarzy shot a 3-under par 68 in the final round of The Goat to clinch individual medalist honors for the first time in his career, while Navy, as a team, placed second with an 11-over par 863 (287-291-285). 
• It marked the third-lowest 54-hole score in relation to par by the Mids in program history and the lowest since they shot a 2-under par 850 at the Phoenix Invitational Oct. 14-15, 2019.
• Tarzy's 8-under par 205 marked the third-lowest 54-hole score in relation to par in program history and the lowest since Nicholas Klock shot a 13-under par 200 at the Georgetown Intercollegiate Oct. 10-11, 2021.
• Tarzy, who went on to earn Patriot League Men's Golfer of the Week laurels, had finished as the runner-up on three occasions, including last year's The Goat when Loyola's Gustavo Rangel bested him by a single stroke.

Commander-In-Chief's Cup • Sept. 30 - Oct. 1 / Winged Foot Golf Club, Mamaroneck, N.Y.
• Jack Tarzy shot a 13-over par 223 to claim individual medalist honors for the second time in as many weeks, while the Mids dominated Army and Air Force to win the program's first outright Commander-In-Chief's Cup.
• Navy (449-459-480=1388, +128), who built a 20-stroke advantage over Army after just 18 holes, defeated the Black Knights  (1406, +146) by 18 strokes and Air Force (1411, +151) by 23 strokes. 
• In addition to Tarzy, four other players finished among the top 10 - Chip Deegan (2nd), Derek Weaver (T7th), Hudson Mitchell (T9), Ed Scott (T9).

Army - Star Match • Oct. 11-12 / Naval Academy Golf Club, Annapolis, Md.
• 7 of Navy's 8 returning players from last season have seen action in the annual Star Match. 
• Navy has 6 freshmen who may get their first opportunity to play in arguably the most important event of the year.
• Senior Jack Tarzy will be making his fourth appearance in four years.


Navy's Roster (Golfer / Yr / Hometown)
Danny Auffant (Jr / Bellevue, Wash.)
    Four-Ball    
    2023 - (Lombardo) def. John Heckel Jr. / Zach Clark, 1-up
    2024 - (Lombardo) lost to Rob Ferris / Josh Rooker, 3&2
    Singles
    2023 - lost to Drew Jeffords, 5&4

Kaden  Ausen  (So / Puyallup, Wash.)
    Four-Ball    
    2024 - (Deegan) lost to Josh Kim / Tyson Sparks, 3&1
    Singles
    2024 - lost to Lake Kim, 3&1

Chip Deegan (Sr / Newport Beach, Calif.)
    Four-Ball    
    2022 - (Shreves) lost to Gary Bullard / James Ballato, 1-up
    2024 - (Ausen) lost to Josh Kim / Tyson Sparks, 3&1
    Singles
    2022 - halved Samuel Kim
    2024 - def. Tyson Sparks, 4&2

Luke Lombardo (Jr / Severna Park, Md.)
    Four-Ball    
    2023 - (Auffant) def. John Heckel Jr. / Zach Clark, 1-up
    2024 - (Auffant) lost to Rob Ferris / Josh Rooker, 3&2
    Singles
    2023 - halved Lake Kim
    2024 - lost to Drew Jeffords, 5&3

Ed Scott  (So / Lemont, Ill.)
    Four-Ball    
    2024 - (Tarzy) lost to John Heckel Jr. / Drew Jeffords, 7&6
    Singles
    2024 - lost to John Heckel Jr., 8&6

Jack Tarzy (Sr / Team Captain / Medford, N.J.)
    Four-Ball    
    2022 - (Tracy) halved Marshall Daniel / Rob Ferris
    2023 - (Teuschl) def. Joshua Kim / Drew Jeffords, 4&3
    2024 - (Scott) lost to John Heckel Jr. / Drew Jeffords, 7&6
    Singles
    2022 - lost to James Ballato, 2&1
    2023-    lost to John Heckel Jr., 1-up
    2024 - lost to Josh Kim, 1-up

Derek Weaver (Sr / Hackettstown, N.J.)
    Four-Ball    
    2023 - (Huntington) def. Lake Kim / Samuel Kim, 1-up

About the Black Knights
Army has competed in three tournaments this fall, two of which Navy also competed. The Black Knights opened the season placing 15th out of 15 teams at the Folds of Honor Collegiate with a 66-over par 918. They bounced back to tie fellow Patriot League foe Holy Cross for 9th (15 teams) at the Ryan T. Lee Memorial where they posted a 26-over par 594.

Just 4 of the 12 players listed on Army's roster have seen action in an Army-Navy match at least once. Of the 8 players who have not competed, 5 are sophomores and 3 are freshmen. Meanwhile, 3 of the 8 players who competed in last year's fall classic return for the Black Knights, including the team's lone senior Rob Ferris. Also returning are junior Drew Jeffords and sophomore Tyson Sparks.

What's Ahead
• Navy will make the trip to Glen Cove, N.Y. to take part in the three-day, 54-hole Nassau Invitational played at the Nassau Country Club Oct. 20-22.

### Go Navy ###