Pacific Northwest Golf Association announces 2026 Players of the Year
Tacoma, Wash. – The Pacific Northwest Golf Association (PNGA) Championship Committee has announced its Player of the Year award recipients for 2026.
The categories and honorees are as follows: Men’s, Baylor Larrabee (Ferndale, Wash.); Women’s, Lauren Kim (Surrey, B.C.); Men’s Mid-Amateur, Nate Smith (Tetonia, Idaho); Women’s Mid-Amateur, Taya Battistella (Bellingham, Wash.); Senior Men’s, Bill Dunn (Missoula, Mont.); Senior Women’s, Lara Tennant (Portland, Ore.); Junior Boys’, Tiger Xie (Surrey); and Junior Girls’, Clairey Lin (Langley, B.C.).
The PNGA Player of the Year candidates are nominated by the state and provincial golf associations that comprise the PNGA (Alaska, British Columbia, Idaho, Montana, Oregon and Washington) and are selected by a vote of the PNGA Championship Committee.
View accomplishments of 2026 Players of the Year and complete list of past honorees
Men’s Player of the Year
Baylor Larrabee was one of Washington’s best junior players prior to his 2024 graduation from Ferndale High School, and he has only continued such form as he navigates his third year at UCLA. In 2026, Larrabee tied for sixth at the NCAA Championships, and was an All-Big Ten First Team selection thanks to five total top 10 finishes and seven top 20 finishes. He was also one of 25 student athletes who earned PING All-West Region honors by the Golf Coaches Association of America. Larrabee also advanced to the Round of 16 at the 124th Western Amateur and qualified for the U.S. Amateur. As of November 2026, Larrabee is No. 77 in the World Amateur Golf Ranking (WAGR).
Women’s Player of the Year
Lauren Kim is earning this honor for the fourth consecutive year. A senior at the University of Texas and ranked No. 20 in WAGR, Kim placed second at the Charles Schwab Women’s Collegiate earlier this year and was also runner-up at the Canadian Women’s Amateur. She had six total top 10 finishes and earned All-SEC First Team honors for a second year running. Kim also placed ninth in the R&A Women’s Amateur and played in her third Augusta National Women’s Amateur. Kim was previously named PNGA Junior Girls’ Player of the Year in 2022 and 2023.
Men’s Mid-Amateur Player of the Year
Nate Smith earned this honor last year and maintained playing form this year. Most prominently, he was runner-up at the U.S. Mid-Amateur. He also won his second Idaho Men’s Amateur of the past three years and was a semifinalist at the PNGA Men’s Master-40 Amateur, a year after winning that championship. Smith qualified for his second U.S. Amateur, and his exceptional finish in the 2026 Mid-Amateur grants him automatic exemption into the 2027 U.S. Amateur at Oak Hill Country Club in New York.
Women’s Mid-Amateur Player of the Year
Taya Battistella achieved success on just about every possible women’s mid-amateur level across the U.S. and Canada. In addition to co-winning the Washington Women’s Four-Ball, she placed second at the Canadian Women’s Mid-Amateur. Battistella also made the Round of 64 at the U.S. Women’s Mid-Amateur, after earning Medalist honors in Qualifying for that championship. Other strong finishes came in the form of a fourth-place run at the WA Golf Women’s Champion of Champions, and a sixth at the PNGA Women’s Mid-Amateur. Battistella earns her Player of the Year honor for the second consecutive year.
Senior Men’s Player of the Year
Bill Dunn has long been one of Montana’s prominent players and was again in 2026. He won both the Montana Senior Men’s Amateur and Senior Match Play. He added to those wins a runner-up result in the MSGA State Seniors Tournament, and a sixth-place finish in the MSGA Men’s Master-40 Amateur. Dunn is enshrined within the Montana Golf Hall of Fame and represented the MSGA at the 2026 Lamey Cup. Since the MSGA joined the PNGA in 2024, Dunn is the first ever Montana golfer to earn any Player of the Year honor.
Senior Women’s Player of the Year
Lara Tennant has earned this honor for the sixth time overall and first since 2023. Tennant’s 2026 consisted of wins in both the R&A Senior Women’s Amateur and 43rd Oregon Senior Women’s Amateur. She was a semifinalist at the U.S. Senior Women’s Amateur and was fourth at the Northern California Senior Women’s Amateur. Tennant was inducted into the PNGA Hall of Fame in 2022.
Junior Boys’ Player of the Year
Tiger Xie won both the Canadian Junior Boys’ and Juvenile Boys’ (16 and under) Championships in 2026, becoming the 13th player to ever win both divisions in the same year. He also placed 17th at the Canadian Men’s Amateur and won the NextGen Pacific Championship. Xie recorded additional strong results with a 3rd at the CJGA BC Junior Spring Championship and a T7 at the FM Junior Championship. Xie is exempt into the 2027 U.S. Junior Amateur if eligible and has also secured a spot into the 2027 Canadian Men’s Amateur.
Junior Girls’ Player of the Year
Clairey Lin won the U.S. Girls’ Junior Championship in 2026, only a single example of how she is one of the world’s best players of any age category. She made the Round of 16 at the U.S. Women’s Amateur and tied for third at the World Junior Girls Championship. Lin achieved plenty on an AJGA schedule also, having tied for second at the AJGA Thunderbird Heather Farr Classic, placed solo runner-up at the RLX Ralph Lauren Junior Classic at Bethpage Black and participated in the Wyndham Cup. Lin’s award marks the fifth consecutive in the Junior Girls’ category for a B.C. player, following those of Clara Ding (2025), Amy Lee (2024) and Lauren Kim (2022-23). Still a junior, Lin is ranked 40th in WAGR.
