The fall portion of the college golf season concluded last week, and an impressive fall it was in many respects for Colorado-based NCAA Division I programs and Coloradans competing for out-of-state schools.
The two months from early September to early November featured the following highlights from a Centennial State perspective:
— Four team victories in invitational tournaments for Colorado-based programs. That includes a remarkable feat by the University of Denver women, who won two events in just 11 days — both victories coming in Colorado. Other outright team wins in the fall were notched by the Colorado State University men (left at their Ram Masters Invitational, where they prevailed for the fourth straight year) and the University of Colorado women. For statistical and rankings purposes, the CU men technically tied for a win in their own Mark Simpson Colorado Invitational, but Utah won a team playoff to claim the title at Colorado National.
— Four individual wins by Coloradans or players at Colorado-based schools. Jennifer Kupcho of Westminster (Wake Forest), Kyler Dunkle of Larkspur (Utah), CU’s Kirsty Hodgkins and CSU’s Katrina Prendergast all scored individual victories. It was the fourth in her college career for Kupcho, and the first for Dunkle, Hodgkins and Prendergast.
— Three of the nine Colorado Division I teams are ranked in the top 20 in the nation after the fall schedule. The CU women are No. 14 nationally according to Golfweek, while Golfstat has DU No. 20 in the nation. On the men’s side, CSU is 18th in the country according to Golfweek after four top-five finishes in four fall events.
— Ten local players are ranked among the top 100 individuals nationally by Golfstat, including four Colorado residents. Among women, Kupcho is ninth, CU’s Robyn Choi 28th, CU’s Hodgkins 39th, Coloradan Hannah Wood (Oklahoma) 55th, DU’s Lauren Whyte 56th, CU’s Brittany Fan 71st and DU’s Sophie Newlove 72nd. For the men, there’s three CSU players in the top 100: Max Oelfke at 75th, AJ Ott at 76th and Jake Staiano at 88th. Kupcho, who’s No. 3 in the Women’s World Amateur Golf Rankings, and Choi played in this year’s U.S. Women’s Open, and Kupcho and Wood in last year’s.
— Several local golfers landed conference player of the month awards in the fall: Kupcho in the ACC for October, Hodgkins in the Pac-12 for September, and Newlove in the Summit for October.
Here are brief wrapups of the fall for the nine NCAA Division I teams based in Colorado:
CU Men
Top-Five Team Finishes — Tie for first (lost in playoff), third.
Top-Five Individual Finishes — Spencer Painton (second), Yannik Paul (third), Daniel O’Loughlin (fifth).
Highest National Rankings (Golfweek/Golfstat) — 54th (Golfweek).
Individuals Ranked in Top 200 Nationally — 190. Daniel O’Loughlin (Golfstat).
Spring Opener — Feb. 1-3, Amer Ari Intercollegiate, Waikoloa, Hawaii.
CU Women
Top-Five Team Finishes — Won Gonzaga Coeur D’Alene Resort College Invitational, second, third, fourth.
Top-Five Individual Finishes — Kirsty Hodgkins (win, second), Robyn Choi (second, third, fifth).
Highest National Rankings (Golfweek/Golfstat) — 14th (Golfweek).
Individuals Ranked in Top 200 Nationally — 28. Robyn Choi (Golfstat), 32. Kirsty Hodgkins (Golfweek), 71. Brittany Fan (Golfstat).
Spring Opener — Feb. 11-13, Lady Puerto Rico Classic.
CSU Men
Top-Five Team Finishes — Won Ram Masters Invitational, second, third, fifth.
Top-Five Individual Finishes — Max Oelfke (second), AJ Ott (fourth), Jake Staiano (fifth).
Highest National Rankings (Golfweek/Golfstat) — 18th (Golfweek).
Individuals Ranked in Top 200 Nationally — 75. Max Oelfke (Golfstat), 76. AJ Ott (Golfstat), 88. Jake Staiano (Golfstat), 193. Colton Yates (Golfweek).
Spring Opener — Feb. 25-26, National Invitational Tournament, Tucson, Ariz.
CSU Women
Top-Five Team Finishes — Third twice.
Top-Five Individual Finishes — Katrina Predergast (win, second), Ellen Secor (fifth).
Highest National Rankings (Golfweek/Golfstat) — 99th (Golfstat).
Individuals Ranked in Top 200 Nationally — 161. Katrina Prendergast (Golfweek).
Spring Opener — Feb. 12-13, Gold Rush, Long Beach, Calif.
DU Men
Top-Five Team Finishes — None.
Top-Five Individual Finishes — None.
Highest National Rankings (Golfweek/Golfstat) — 96th (Golfstat).
Individuals Ranked in Top 200 Nationally — 115. Chris Korte (Golfstat).
Spring Opener — Jan. 29-30, Arizona Intercollegiate, Tucson, Ariz.
DU Women
Top-Five Team Finishes — Won Golfweek Conference Challenge, won Ron Moore Women’s Intercollegiate, fourth.
Top-Five Individual Finishes — Sophie Newlove (fourth).
Highest National Rankings (Golfweek/Golfstat) — 20th (Golfstat).
Individuals Ranked in Top 200 Nationally — 56. Lauren Whyte (Golfstat), 72. Sophie Newlove (Golfstat), 112. Mary Weinstein (Golfstat).
Spring Multi-Team Opener — Feb. 18-20, Allstate Sugar Bowl Invitational, New Orleans.
UNC Men
Top-Five Team Finishes — None.
Top-Five Individual Finishes — Joshua Matz (fifth).
Highest National Rankings (Golfweek/Golfstat) — 129th (Golfstat).
Individuals Ranked in Top 200 Nationally — none.
Spring Opener — Feb. 15-17, John Burns Intercollegiate, Lihiu, Hawaii.
UNC Women
Top-Five Team Finishes — None.
Top-Five Individual Finishes — None.
Highest National Rankings (Golfweek/Golfstat) — 155th (Golfstat).
Individuals Ranked in Top 200 Nationally — none.
Spring Opener — Feb. 12-13, Battle at Boulder Creek, Boulder City, Nev.
Air Force Academy Men
Top-Five Team Finishes — None.
Top-Five Individual Finishes — Bryant Falconello (fourth), Joseph Crisostomo (fifth).
Highest National Rankings (Golfweek/Golfstat) — 186th (Golfstat).
Individuals Ranked in Top 200 Nationally — none.
Spring Opener — Feb. 25-26, Loyola Intercollegiate, Goodyear, Ariz.
