NASSAU, BAHAMAS – Kelvin Hernandez of the UNC Greensboro (UNCG) men's golf team earned the win at the 2026 Caribbean Amateur Golf Championships on Thursday at the Royal Blue Golf Course in Nassau, Bahamas.

Hernandez, who represented Puerto Rico captured the Best Gross Hoerman Cup Individual at the event behind rounds of 71-68-69 for an eight-under-par (208). He won the event by a five-under-par lead, finishing just ahead of Christopher Richards Jr., who was representing Trinidad and Tobago with a three-under-par (213) final score.

"Representing Puerto Rico and winning the Caribbean Championship as a team and as an individual reminded me that the greatest victories are never achieved alone," said Hernandez. "Just like in college golf, every player, every shot and every teammate matters, so having those teammates having my back is always really fun. I'm proud to wear the flag and even prouder to share this moment with my team."

The Caguas, Puerto Rico, native led the Puerto Rico team to a first-place finish for the Hoerman Cup with a team score of six-under-par (858) with rounds of 292-281-285. Across the three-day event, the UNCG men's golf senior notched 14 birdies and 35 even par holes.

Hernandez earned the automatic bid into the 2026 NCAA Regionals after securing first place in the 2026 Southern Conference (SoCon) Championships on April 29 at Solina Country Club. Hernandez' appearance in the NCAA Winston-Salem Regional marked the 10^th time in the UNCG Division I era that the Spartans have made an NCAA Regionals appearance as either a team or individual.

HISTORY OF CAGC
History of the Championships - The Caribbean Amateur Golf Championships began in 1957 when Jamaica and Trinidad & Tobago competed in the inaugural Hoerman Cup, which was donated by Dr. Erik Hoerman of Jamaica. In 1964, Puerto Rico joined the competition, followed by the Bahamas in 1965, the Dominican Republic in 1968, Barbados in 1970, the OECS in 1986, the Cayman Islands in 1995, the Turks & Caicos Islands in 1996 and the U.S. Virgin Islands in 1998.

The tournament was expanded in 1969 to accommodate Senior Men golfers (50 years of age and over), competing for a cup donated by Dr. Jan Steele-Perkins and Mr. Frank Francis of the Bahamas. This ultimately led to two additional divisions of competition added to allow Super Seniors (Male golfers 60 years of age and over) and Ladies to compete. The Super Seniors compete for the Higgs and Higgs Trophy, donated by Mr. Fred Higgs of the Bahamas and Mr. Vic Higgs of Jamaica, while the Ladies play for the George Teale Memorial Trophy, donated in memory of Mr. George Teale of Puerto Rico.

In 2003, play for the Mid-Amateur division (golfers 35 years of age and over) was introduced, competing for the Ramon Baez Figueroa Trophy donated by the Dominican Republic Golf Federation.

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