Alabama freshman Justin Thomas was named the 2012 Jack Nicklaus Award recipient for Division-I men’s golf, the Golf Coaches Association of America announced Sunday morning.

Thomas was also previously honored with the Phil Mickelson Award, presented by the Phil and Amy Mickelson Foundation, as the nation’s most outstanding freshman. He was also named a PING First-Team All-American selection.

A native of Goshen, Ky., Thomas got off to a quick start in his college career, claiming his first tournament, the Carpet Capital Collegiate. He went on to win three more times: The Puerto Rico Classic, SEC Men’s Golf Championship and NCAA Southeast Regional.

Thomas tied for seventh at the NCAA Championships and collected four other top-10 finishes. He has only finished outside of the top 20 twice and was named the SEC Player and Freshman of the Year.

He is the first Alabama player to win the Nicklaus Award. Since 1988, the award for the GCAA Collegiate Players of the Year has been named after Nicklaus, a Big Ten and NCAA Champion at Ohio State University.