As the Colorado golf season starts to wind down, that’s just when things begin cranking up for college golf tournaments in the Centennial State.
Starting on Friday (Sept. 7), in the span of just over a month, seven multi-day NCAA Division I events will be held in Colorado, and there’s another one of the single-day variety. There are five on the men’s side and three on the women’s.
In fact, in the same week, Colorado State University is hosting both a men’s and a women’s tournament, though they finish on different days (Sept. 18 and 19).
Here’s the rundown:
MEN
Sept. 7-9, Gene Miranda Falcon Invitational, Eisenhower Golf Club north of Colorado Springs.
Sept. 17-18, Ram Masters Invitational, Fort Collins Country Club.
Sept. 24-25, Mark Simpson Colorado Invitational, Colorado National Golf Club in Erie.
Oct. 1 — University of Northern Colorado individual event, Greeley Country Club.
Oct. 8-9, Paintbrush Invitational, Colorado Golf Club in Parker.
WOMEN
Sept. 17-19, Ptarmigan Ram Classic, Ptarmigan Country Club in Fort Collins.
Sept. 24-26, Golfweek Conference Challenge, Red Sky Golf Club in Wolcott.
Oct. 5-7, Ron Moore Intercollegiate, Highlands Ranch Golf Club.
Of the six of those team events that were conducted in 2017 — the Paintbrush Invitational was canceled due to weather — four Colorado-based schools claimed either team titles outright or were tied for the top spot at the end of regulation.
The University of Denver women won the Women’s Golfweek Conference Challenge and the Ron Moore Intercollegiate, while the Colorado State University men won for the fourth straight year at their Ram Masters Invitational. The University of Colorado men were tied at the end of regulation at their Mark Simpson Colorado Invitational, though Utah defeated CU in a team playoff.
This season, every Colorado-based DI team except one (the CU women) will compete in at least one tournament in the Centennial State.
Here’s a brief look at the nine Division I golf programs in Colorado.
CU MEN
Season Opener: Sept. 7-9, Gene Miranda Falcon Invitational, Eisenhower GC.
Division I Tournaments in Colorado:
— Sept. 7-9, Gene Miranda Falcon Invitational, Eisenhower GC.
— Sept. 24-25, Mark Simpson Colorado Invitational, Colorado National GC.
— Oct. 8-9, Paintbrush Invitational, Colorado GC.
Conference Championship: April 22-24, Men’s Pac-12 Championship, Eugene, Ore.
Notable: Coloradans on the active fall roster include Wilson Belk (Colorado Springs), Cole Krantz (Windsor), Ross Macdonald (Castle Rock) and Trevor Olkowski (Grand Junction). … Coloradan Oliver Jack, the 2016 3A state high school champion from Kent Denver, was scheduled to join the Buffs this fall, but he was involved in an automobile accident over the summer. CU coach Roy Edwards said Jack remains in the hospital recovering and has deferred his enrollment at CU until the spring semester of 2019. … Among CU’s key losses from last season were then-seniors Yannik Paul, Spencer Painton and John Souza. Paul had a CU single-season-record 70.24 stroke average last season. Painton is a student-assistant coach this season. … Last spring, CU posted its best finish in the Pac-12 tournament since joining the conference by placing second.
CU WOMEN
Season Opener: Sept. 10-11, Branch Law Firm/Dick McGuire Invitational, Albuquerque, N.M.
Division I Tournaments in Colorado: None.
Conference Championship: April 15-17, Women’s Pac-12 Championship, Palos Verdes Estates, Calif.
Notable: The Buffs, who finished 19th at the NCAA Division I Finals last spring, are 21st in the national preseason women’s college rankings published by Golfweek’s Lance Ringler, who puts junior Robyn Choi as a third-team preseason All-American. … Choi, who has qualified for the last two U.S. Women’s Opens, finished 21st individually in the Women’s NCAA Division I Finals in May. She recently advanced to Stage II of LPGA Q-school. … Junior Kirsty Hodgkins represented Australia in last week’s Women’s World Amateur Team Championship, finishing 92nd individually out of 170 players. … Coloradans on CU’s roster include Jaclyn Murray (Grand Junction), Gillian Vance (Lakewood) and Kelsey Webster (Boulder). … A key loss to graduation was Brittany Fan, who had the second-best stroke average on the team last season.
CSU MEN
Season Opener: Sept. 7-9, Carpet Capital Collegiate, Rocky Face, Ga.
Division I Tournaments in Colorado:
— Sept. 17-18, Ram Masters Invitational, Fort Collins CC.
— Sept. 24-25, Colorado Mark Simpson Invitational, Colorado National GC.
— Oct. 1, UNC Individual Event, Greeley CC.
— Oct. 8-9, Paintbrush Invitational, Colorado GC.
Conference Championship: April 26-28, Mountain West Conference Championship, Tucson, Ariz.
Notable: CSU is No. 28 in the nation in preseason rankings published by Golfweek’s Lance Ringler. … Coloradans on the roster include Davis Bryant (Aurora), AJ Ott (Fort Collins) and Jake Staiano (Cherry Hills Village). … Ott won the CGA Match Play and qualified for the U.S. Amateur over the summer. … For the first time in seven years, the Rams won’t play in the Gene Miranda Falcon Invitational to start the season, instead competing in a tournament in Georgia this weekend. … CSU has finished second in the Mountain West Conference tournament each of the last two years. … The Rams lost 2017-18 seniors Max Oelfke and Colton Yates, who ranked second and fifth on the team in stroke average, respectively.
CSU WOMEN
Season Opener: Sept. 17-19, Ptarmigan Ram Classic, Ptarmigan CC.
Division I Tournaments in Colorado:
— Sept. 17-19, Ptarmigan Ram Classic, Ptarmigan CC.
— Oct. 5-7, Ron Moore Intercollegiate, Highlands Ranch GC.
Conference Championship: April 15-17, Women’s Mountain West Conference Championship, Rancho Mirage, Calif.
Notable: CSU will start the season with a new head coach as Laura Cilek replaces Annie Young (READ MORE). Pro golfer Zack Byrd will be her assistant coach. Byrd most recently played on the Sunshine Tour in South Africa. … Katrina Prendergast and Ellen Secor won the U.S. Women’s Amateur Four-Ball title in May, and Prendergast finished second last week in the CoBank Colorado Women’s Open. Secor won the Oregon Women’s Public Links title in 2018 and placed 13th last week in the CWO. … The Rams didn’t lose any seniors to graduation in 2018. … CSU finished third in the Mountain West Conference tournament last spring, marking the Rams’ best showing in that event since 2010.
UNC MEN
Season Opener: Sept. 7-9, Gene Miranda Falcon Invitational, Eisenhower GC.
Division I Tournaments in Colorado:
— Sept. 7-9, Gene Miranda Falcon Invitational, Eisenhower GC.
— Sept. 17-18, Ram Masters Invitational, Fort Collins CC.
— Sept. 24-25, Colorado Mark Simpson Invitational, Colorado National GC.
— Oct. 1, UNC Individual Event, Greeley CC.
— Oct. 8-9, Paintbrush Invitational, Colorado GC.
Conference Championship: April 26-28, Big Sky Championship, Boulder City, Nev.
Notable: Coloradans on the roster include Jack Castiglia (Lakewood), Li Chen (Westminster), Barrett Jones (Eagle), Owen Pasvogel (Colorado Springs), Marcus Tait (Littleton) and Coby Welch (Highlands Ranch). … Welch qualified for the U.S. Amateur this summer, a year after Chen did likewise. … Castiglia won the Colorado Junior Match Play in early August. … In the spring, UNC won its first conference title since 2014 in capturing a Big Sky crown and advancing to NCAA Regionals. … The Bears lost Sam Marley and Andrew Romano, who were seniors last season.
UNC WOMEN
Season Opener: Sept. 10-11, Hobble Creek Classic, Orem, Utah.
Division I Tournaments in Colorado:
— Sept. 17-19, Ptarmigan Ram Classic, Ptarmigan CC.
— Oct. 5-7, Ron Moore Intercollegiate, Highlands Ranch GC.
Conference Championship: April 19-21, Women’s Big Sky Conference Championship, Boulder City, Nev.
Notable: Coloradans on the roster include Aili Bundy (Fort Collins), Jenna Chun (Highlands Ranch) and Morgan Sahm (Centennial). … UNC finished ninth last year at the Women’s Big Sky Conference Championship. … The Bears lost Christina Ferreira, who was a senior last season.
DU MEN
Season Opener: Sept. 17-18, Ram Masters Invitational, Fort Collins CC.
Division I Tournaments in Colorado:
— Sept. 17-18, Ram Masters Invitational, Fort Collins CC.
— Oct. 8-9, Paintbrush Invitational, Colorado GC
Conference Championship: April 28-30, Summit League Championship, Newton, Kan.
Notable: Coloradans on the roster include Cal McCoy (Highlands Ranch) and Jackson Solem (Longmont). … DU lost two of its mainstays from Regis Jesuit High School, Chris Korte and Jake Kelley, both of whom were seniors last season. … Denver finished second in last year’s Summit League Championship. … Brandon Wilkins becomes Erik Billinger’s assistant coach after previously being an assistant at Abilene Christian.
DU WOMEN
Season Opener: Sept. 24-26, Golfweek Conference Challenge, Red Sky GC in Wolcott.
Division I Tournaments in Colorado:
— Sept. 24-26, Golfweek Conference Challenge, Red Sky GC in Wolcott.
— Oct. 5-7, Ron Moore Women’s Intercollegiate, Highlands Ranch GC.
Conference Championship: April 21-23, Women’s Summit League Championship, Newton, Kan.
Notable: Head coach Lindsay Kuhle recently signed a new contract with DU that extends to 2023. … DU will defend team titles at two Colorado-based tournaments, the Women’s Golfweek Conference Challenge at Red Sky in Wolcott, and its own Ron Moore Women’s Intercollegiate at Highlands Ranch Golf Club. Those are the Pioneers’ first two tournaments of the season. … Mikayla Tatman, a former CSU golfer and a former intern for the CGA and the Colorado PGA, joins Kuhle’s staff as an assistant coach. Tatman, runner-up in the 2014 CWGA Stroke Play, has been a teacher and instructor for ExperienceGolf at CommonGround Golf Course in Aurora. … Also helping out with the DU women’s squad — on a volunteer basis — will be PGA professional Don Hurter from Castle Pines Golf Club. … One Coloradan is on the roster, Mary Weinstein (Highlands Ranch). Weinstein finished 17th last week at the CoBank Colorado Women’s Open.
AIR FORCE ACADEMY MEN
Season Opener: — Sept. 7-9, Gene Miranda Falcon Invitational, Eisenhower GC.
Division I Tournaments in Colorado:
— Sept. 7-9, Gene Miranda Falcon Invitational, Eisenhower GC.
Conference Championship: April 26-28, Mountain West Conference Championship, Tucson, Ariz.
Notable: A year after playing four tournaments in Colorado, Air Force has just one this fall season, its own Gene Miranda Falcon Invitational this weekend. … The one Coloradan on the roster is former 4A state high school champion Luke Trujillo (a freshman from Colorado Springs). … Air Force finished 10th last season in the Mountain West Conference Championship. … Air Force lost Dane Hankamer and Todd Millard to graduation.
