Henrik Stenson’s 16-year-old son Karl has verbally committed to Florida, joining the nation’s No. 1 preseason golf program and a loaded Gators pipeline.
Henrik Stenson’s son is taking another major step toward building a golf career of his own.
Karl Stenson, the 16-year-old son of the 2016 Open Championship winner, has verbally committed to play college golf at the University of Florida.
The highly regarded Class of 2028 prospect will eventually join a Florida Gators program entering the 2026-27 season ranked No. 1 in the nation.
Stenson, who also goes by Kalle, is a junior at Circle Christian School in Orlando and is ranked No. 15 among players in the Class of 2028 by Universal Golf Ranking. He’s also ranked No. 118 overall in the UGR.
The younger Stenson has already started producing results outside the United States. He spent much of this summer competing in Sweden, his father’s native country, and collected three victories during 2025, including two in Sweden and another in Spain.
He also flashed his potential in Florida earlier this year, finishing tied for third in the 16-18 division at an FJT University of Florida 54-hole event after opening with a 65.
The decision puts Stenson into one of the strongest college golf environments in the country.
Head coach J.C. Deacon led Florida to the 2023 NCAA Championship, and the Gators again reached match play at the 2026 NCAA Championship. Florida finished tied for fourth after stroke play before losing a 3-2 quarterfinal match to Oklahoma State.
The program enters the new season with even bigger expectations after earning the No. 1 spot in the Bushnell/Golfweek preseason coaches poll.
There’s also a familiar golf-family connection waiting in Gainesville.
Luke Poulter, the son of longtime Ryder Cup standout Ian Poulter, is a senior at Florida and is competing for Great Britain and Ireland in the 2026 Walker Cup at Lahinch Golf Club in Ireland.
Poulter has developed into one of the world’s top amateur players and earned his second Walker Cup selection this year.
Karl Stenson still has two high school seasons ahead of him before arriving in Gainesville, but the direction is clear.
He grew up around championship golf. Now he’ll get the chance to create his own name inside one of college golf’s premier programs.
