RIO GRANDE, P.R. – Top-ranked Virginia cleared the field by 18 strokes to win the 2026 Puerto Rico Classic on Wednesday (Feb. 11). Three Cavaliers, Josh Duangmanee, Ben James and Bryan Lee all tied for second place at 15-under for the tournament.
The Cavaliers cruised to the wire-to-wire team victory thanks to a 20-under, 268 in the final round, the lowest in the 15-team field. The 268 was just two shots off the 18-hole school record set on Monday at the Grand Reserve Club. The Cavaliers were a staggering, 55-under par for the tournament and collectively shot an 809, the second-lowest 54-hole performance in program history.
Including graduate student Paul Chang, who was 10-under for the tournament, four Cavaliers finished in the top 10. Duangmanee led the trio of Cavaliers second place finishers with a career-best, 65 in the final round. It was tied with Nevill Ruiter (Charleston) for the lowest round of the day. Duangmanee had a bogey-free round and recorded seven birdies, including three in his first four holes of the day.
Ben James fired a 66 in his final round and did not have a bogey for second time in three days. He had only one bogey if 54 holes in Puerto Rico. The top 10 finish is his 29th of his career, the most in program history.
Top of the leaderboard is crowded w/ Hoos!
— Virginia Men's Golf (@UVAMensGolf) February 11, 2026
Ben James finished at 15-under for the tournament, tied for 2nd place
📺: @babygrandegolf pic.twitter.com/Ru16m7ZN9L
ADDITIONAL NOTES
- The only hole above par among the four counting scores on Wednesday was a double bogey by Paul Chang on No. 15.
- The 268 in the final round was tied for the fourth-lowest 18-hole team score in the tournament’s 33-year history.
- 2026 marked UVA’s 16th appearance at the Puerto Rico Open hosted by Purdue and first victory. The Cavaliers previous best finish at the tournament was in 2024, placing second of the 15 teams.
- Over the three days, Virginia had 71 birdies, the to its credit, second to LSU’s 72.
- For Bryan Lee it was his 16th top 10 finish of his collegiate career, the eighth most of any Cavalier. He is one behind Lewis Chitengwa for seventh all-time.
UP NEXT
The Cavaliers will send select individuals to the Richard Sykes Invitational on Feb. 21-22 in Raleigh, N.C. before heading to Las Vegas for the Southern Highlands Collegiate March 1-3.
LEADERBOARD
|
PL. |
TEAM |
RD 1 |
RD 2 |
RD 3 |
TOTAL |
TO PAR |
|
1. |
Virginia |
266 |
275 |
268 |
809 |
-55 |
|
2. |
LSU |
274 |
272 |
281 |
827 |
-37 |
|
3. |
Tennessee |
276 |
274 |
278 |
828 |
-36 |
|
4. |
Oklahoma |
276 |
276 |
279 |
831 |
-33 |
|
5. |
South Carolina |
276 |
278 |
279 |
833 |
-31 |
|
6. |
Ohio State |
267 |
281 |
288 |
836 |
-28 |
|
6T. |
Charleston |
280 |
282 |
274 |
836 |
-28 |
|
8. |
Georgia |
276 |
280 |
281 |
837 |
-27 |
|
9. |
Iowa |
276 |
279 |
285 |
840 |
-24 |
|
10. |
Marquette |
280 |
278 |
284 |
842 |
-22 |
|
11. |
Louisville |
285 |
277 |
282 |
844 |
-20 |
|
12. |
Minnesota |
286 |
273 |
289 |
848 |
-16 |
|
13. |
Purdue |
283 |
284 |
284 |
855 |
-9 |
|
14. |
Wisconsin |
285 |
280 |
292 |
857 |
-7 |
|
15. |
North Florida |
283 |
287 |
295 |
865 |
+1 |
VIRGINIA
|
PL. |
PLAYER |
RD 1 |
RD 2 |
RD 3 |
TOTAL |
TO PAR |
|
T-2 |
66 |
68 |
67 |
201 |
-15 |
|
|
T-2 |
67 |
68 |
66 |
201 |
-15 |
|
|
T-2 |
67 |
69 |
65 |
201 |
-15 |
|
|
T-9 |
66 |
70 |
70 |
206 |
-10 |
|
|
T-18 |
Maxi Puregger (IDV) |
70 |
65 |
73 |
208 |
-8 |
|
T-48 |
67 |
73 |
74 |
214 |
-2 |