Mike Hagen is in his 11th season as head men’s golf coach at Arkansas State University in 2026, after taking the helm on July 10, 2015. Under his leadership, the Red Wolves have experienced a historic resurgence, transforming into one of the nation's premier mid-major programs.
In May 2025, Hagen received a contract extension, affirming the university’s commitment to the continued success and national profile of the program.
A highly decorated coach, Hagen was inducted into the NJCAA Golf Hall of Fame in 2014 and the Golf Coaches Association of America Hall of Fame in December 2019. In 2025, he received the NJCAA Coaches Legacy Award, recognizing him as one of the winningest coaches in NJCAA history.
Under Hagen's guidance, A-State has three conference titles (2018-19, 2023-24, 2025-26), made four appearances at the NCAA Regionals as a team (2019, 2021, 2024, 2026) and secured the first NCAA Championships appearance in 2026. A three-time Sun Belt Coach of the Year recipient, Hagen has coached Julien Sale (2020-21) and Thomas Schmidt (2023-24, 2024-25, 2025-26) to SBC Golfer of the Year accolades. Three players, Zan Luka Stirn (2016-17), Luka Naglic (2018-19) and Jake Wallis (2024-25), have been named the league's Freshman of the Year in Hagen's tenure and Stirn was also the Newcomer of the Year.
In total, Hagen has coached 29 All-Sun Belt Conference selections, second-most in the league since arriving in Jonesboro in 2015. Hagen also helped lead Jack Maxey to the individual conference title in 2025, A-State's second all-time conference individual champion and first since 1997.
In the final national rankings each of Hagen's 11 seasons, A-State has ranked inside the top 100 and among the top five in the league. The Red Wolves have been a top four seed in the Sun Belt Conference Championships for 10 consecutive seasons with no championship contested during the 2019-20 campaign due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Hagen's teams have rewritten the program record book over his 11 seasons, including the program record low round, 36-hole and 54-hole totals. All 11 seasons comprise the top 10 single-season stroke averages for a team, including a record 281.58 average during the 2025-26 campaign. A-State has claimed an event title each of Hagen's 11 seasons, including multiple titles in six seasons, for a total of 31 since the 2015-16 season.
A defining chapter in program history was written in 2026 as Hagen guided the Red Wolves to their first NCAA Championships appearance. The 2026 Sun Belt Conference Champions turned in program record low 18-hole (-14), 36-hole (-21) and 54-hole (-24) totals in a regional to punch their ticket to the NCAA Championships. Individually, Jake Lile turned in a program record low NCAA Regional round of 8-under par 64, Cole Kirby had a 7-under par 65 and Jake Wallis had a 6-under par 66 to rewrite the regional record book for A-State players.
NCAA success for the program began under Hagen's leadership as Zan Luka Stirn's third-place individual finished - the highest in school history - occurred at the Noblesville Regional in 2021.
Player development has been a hallmark of Hagen’s leadership. Stirn and Tanner Napier became the program’s third and fourth all-time individual NCAA Regional qualifiers in 2017 and 2018, respectively. Julien Sale added a 25th-place finish at the 2019 NCAA Louisville Regional, the program’s first top-25 regional individual finish. Schmidt and Maxey were individual qualifiers in 2025 and the 2026 appearance accounted for the eighth time in the last nine seasons with a postseason championship that the Red Wolves had team or individual representation.
Before joining A-State, he spent 10 years as head men’s golf coach and athletics director at Indian Hills Community College (IHCC) in Ottumwa, Iowa, where he led the Warriors to four NJCAA national championships (2011, 2012, 2014, 2015). He also earned NJCAA National Coach of the Year honors each time the Warriors won the national championship.
While at IHCC, Hagen’s teams won 62 tournaments—three at the NCAA Division I level—and eight District III Championships. He coached 19 NJCAA All-Americans, 12 Ping All-Americans, five Ping All-Freshman selections, and two Phil Mickelson Award winners. He was a three-time Dave Williams National Coach of the Year selection.
His coaching experience extends to the international stage, having helped lead collegiate Team USA in South Africa (2008) and the Czech Republic (2012). Before Indian Hills, he served as the men’s and women’s golf coach and an admissions representative at Ashford University in Clinton, Iowa.
A native of Davenport, Iowa, Hagen was a two-year letterman at Iowa Lakes Community College, where he helped his team to NJCAA regional appearances in both 1998 and 1999. He earned a bachelor’s degree in physical education with a coaching emphasis from the University of Northern Iowa and a master’s degree in athletic administration from Western Illinois University.
Hagen is a member of the National Golf Coaches Association and has served on numerous committees, including the Golf Coaches Poll, NJCAA All-American Selection Committee, Jack Nicklaus Award Committee, Phil Mickelson Award Committee, and the Jimmy Russell Selection Committee.
He and his wife Anne have one daughter, Marlee.
