The fall portion of the college golf season wrapped up last week for the Division I programs based in Colorado.

There were plenty of highlights for teams and players with major connections to the Centennial State and, probably not coincidentally, many of those superlatives took place in tournaments held in Colorado.

As we enter intermission for a 2018-19 season that won’t resume in earnest until February in most cases — or late January at least — we’ll revisit some of the top local moments from the fall Division I schedule:

— The University of Colorado men’s squad claimed two team titles in September — at the season-opening Gene Miranda Falcon Invitational at the Air Force Academy, and at their own Mark Simpson Colorado Invitational in Erie.

— Not to be outdone, the Colorado State University men also won twice team-wise in the fall. The Rams claimed their fifth straight title as they hosted the Ram Masters Invitational in Fort Collins, then prevailed in winter-like conditions at the Paintbrush Invitational in Parker.

— On the women’s side, CSU accomplished a momentous feat by earning a team victory at a major invitational for the first time in over eight years. It came at the University of Denver’s Ron Moore Women’s Intercollegiate in Highlands Ranch, the Rams’ third tournament under new head coach Laura Cilek.

— At that same event, CSU junior Ellen Secor claimed the first individual victory of her college career. Secor subsequently was named the Mountain West Conference’s Women’s Golfer of the Month for October. And notably, one of the two players who tied for second in Highlands Ranch, a stroke behind Secor, was CSU’s Katrina Prendergast, Secor’s teammate when the two won the U.S. Women’s Amateur Four-Ball national championship in May. (The two are pictured, with Secor at left.)

— Kyler Dunkle, who grew up in Colorado and won the CGA Amateur in August, had a stellar fall individually as a senior at Utah. Dunkle won the individual title at the Mark Simpson Colorado Invitational for the second straight year. And this time, it was his second college win in eight days. Dunkle finished the fall with three top-four finishes.

— Also at CU’s Simpson Invitational, Buffs sophomore Trevor Olkowski technically tied for the individual title — and it will go down as a victory — though Dunkle beat him in a playoff by making a 6-foot birdie putt on the first extra hole. (Below, Olkowski is pictured with Dunkle, in the red shirt.)

— Junior Daniel O’Loughlin, a CU teammate of Olkowski, recorded an outright individual victory at the season opener at the Air Force Academy. O’Loughlin notched four top-10 finishes in five fall tournaments.

— One of the more remarkable performances of the fall was by CSU freshman Oscar Teiffel, from Sweden. In a final round of the Paintbrush Invitational in which temperatures hovered in the mid-30s and it was snowing more than a little, Teiffel carded a stellar 5-under-par 67 at Colorado Golf Club. The three-stroke victory was the first for Teiffel in his young college career.

Add up all of the above, and local schools recorded five team victories in the fall, and local players posted six individual wins — or, in Olkowski’s case, a tie for first.

— Junior Robyn Choi, the top player for the CU women, didn’t manage an individual victory in the fall, but certainly made a few runs at it. In all, she had three top-six finishes in three fall tournaments. And, perhaps most impressively, she earned her LPGA card for 2019 by finishing 45th in the final stage of Q-school, the Q-Series.

— Coby Welch, a junior at the University of Northern Colorado who went to the U.S. Amateur in August, had a strong fall, notching three top-five individual finishes — all coming in Colorado. He was third at both the Gene Miranda and Ram Masters, and fifth at the Paintbrush Invite.

— Freshmen had the top two stroke averages for CSU in the fall: Teiffel (70.77) and Aurora resident Davis Bryant (72.13).

— Mary Weinstein of Highlands Ranch, a junior at the University of Denver, shot a program-record 8-under-par 64 to close out the Golfweek Conference Challenge at the Fazio Course at Red Sky Golf Club in Wolcott. The stellar final round gave Weinstein her best individual finish — third place — since transferring from Regis to DU in the summer of 2017.

— Luke Trujillo, a freshman from Colorado Springs, leads the Air Force Academy golf team in stroke average after the fall season with a 74.4 norm.

— Beah Cruz, a sophomore from Vacaville, Calif., recorded two top-10 individual finishes for the University of Northern Colorado women in the fall — a sixth and a ninth.

— Meanwhile, in a matter not directly related to performance, this season a DU women’s player is carrying a golf bag at each tournament that honors Danny Dietz, a Navy Seal and former Littleton resident who was killed in combat in 2005 during the war in Afghanistan. Coach Lindsay Kuhle went to Heritage High School with Dietz, knows his family, and came up with the idea to pay tribute to Dietz through the Folds of Honor Foundation program. Dietz’s story was part of the book and movie “Lone Survivor”.

Below are the rankings for the Colorado-based NCAA Division I teams as of the end of the fall season (updated Nov. 14):

Men
Colorado State ( 47th Golfstat, 51st Golfweek)
Colorado (73rd Golfstat, 81st Golfweek)
Northern Colorado (118th Golfstat, 122nd Golfweek)
Denver (137th Golfstat, 149th Golfweek)
Air Force Academy (203rd Golfstat, 204th Golfweek)

Women
Colorado (36th Golfweek, 42nd Golfstat)
Colorado State (69th Golfstat, 74th Golfweek)
Denver (79th Golfweek, 81st Golfstat)
Northern Colorado (149th Golfstat, 150th Golfweek)

And here are the rankings of local players in the top 250 in the nation:

Men
91. Longtime Coloradan Kyler Dunkle, Utah (Golfweek)
110. Daniel O’Loughlin, CU (Golfstat)
118. Oscar Teiffel, CSU (Golfweek)
120. Coby Welch, UNC (Golfstat)
189. Davis Bryant, CSU (Golfweek)
238. Trevor Olkowski, CU (Golfstat)

Women
11. Robyn Choi, CU (Golfstat)
57. Coloradan Jennifer Kupcho, Wake Forest (Golfweek)
72. Kirsty Hodgkins, CU (Golfweek)
87. Mary Weinstein, DU (Golfweek)
97. Former Coloradan Elizabeth Wang, Harvard (Golfweek)
192. Katrina Prendergast, CSU (Golfstat)
 

Over the last 15 days, the junior has played 11 competitive rounds against some of the best women’s competition around. Eight came in the LPGA Q-Series, in which she finished tied for 45th, earning one of the final LPGA Tour cards available for 2019.

Then the two-time U.S. Women’s Open qualifier flew from Pinehurst, N.C., to Hawaii to compete for CU in the Nanea Pac-12 Preview, which started less than 48 hours after the eight-round Q-Series concluded.

Not only did Choi (left in an LPGA photo) make it in time, she finished fifth individually in the 60-player event, joining fellow Australian Kirsty Hodgkins in posting top-five showings on Wednesday.

Hodgkins’ third-place performance marked her second top-five in eight days and the seventh of her career. Hogdkins recorded rounds of 76-69-70 for a 4-under-par 215 total, which left her two strokes behind co-champions Yu-Sang Hou of Arizona and Tze-Han Lin of Oregon.

As for Choi, she’s finished no worse than sixth in her three fall college starts this season, going sixth, third and fifth. This week, she carded scores of 70-74-72 for a 3-under 216 total.

As a team, CU tied for third, accounting for its best team showing of the fall season, which concluded for the Buffs on Wednesday. Colorado finished with a three-day total of even-par 876, two strokes behind champion Arizona and tied with nationally top-ranked Southern California.

Dunkle Notches Another Top-Five Finish; CSU Fifth as Team: Elsewhere, 2018 CGA Amateur champion Kyler Dunkle of Utah posted a top-five finish on Wednesday at the Saint Mary’s Invitational in Pebble Beach, Calif., where Colorado State University placed fifth in the 18-team tournament.

Dunkle notched two wins in the fall college season, including one at the Mark Simpson Colorado Invitational, and three top-five individual finishes in five fall events.

CSU recorded a stellar 5-under-par 279 — the second-best round on Wednesday — to check in at 853, 22 strokes behind team champion Southern California. Freshman Oscar Teiffel, who won the Paintbrush Invitational last month, placed 12th individually on Wednesday to lead the Rams.

Nanea Pac-12 Preview

Nov. 5-7, 2018 (final) in Kailua Kona, Hawaii
3. (out of 12 teams) Colorado 290-293-293–876
3. Kirsty Hodgkins 76-69-70–215
5. Robyn Choi 70-74-72–216
18. Haley Nist 70-76-74–220
31. Malak Bouraeda 74-74-77–225
53. Gillian Vance 76-81-78–235

For complete results, CLICK HERE.
 

Saint Mary’s Invitational
Nov. 5-7, 2018 (final) in Pebble Beach, Calif.
5. (out of 18 teams) Colorado State 284-290-279–853
12. Oscar Teiffel 69-72-70–211
15. Davis Bryant 72-72-68–212
30. AJ Ott 71-72-73–216
39. Jack Ainscough 72-76-70–218
56. Jake Staiano 78-74-71–223

Also
4. Former Coloradan Kyler Dunkle, Utah 71-68-69–208

For complete results, CLICK HERE.

Despite a bogey on his final hole, Laird shared seventh place Sunday in the Sanderson Farms Championship in Jackson, Miss.

The Scotsman (left) recorded rounds of 72-67-66-70 for a 13-under-par 275 total, which left him eight strokes behind winner Cameron Champ.

The last better showing by Laird came in the 2017 Quicken Loans National, where he placed third. He also tied for seventh last April in the Zurich Classic of New Orleans, a team event where his partner was Russell Knox.

Laird now has 36 top-10 finishes in his PGA Tour career, including three wins.

Also in the Sanderson Farms Championship, part-time Denver resident Kevin Stadler made his first PGA Tour start since 2015, but missed the cut by two after rounds of 70-75. Stadler will tee it up again at the Shriners Hospitals for Children Open, which starts Thursday in Las Vegas. For more on Stadler’s return, CLICK HERE.
 

Jobe Back in Champions Season Finale: Colorado Golf Hall of Famer Brandt Jobe, like Stadler a product of Kent Denver High School, will advance to the final event of the PGA Tour Champions Charles Schwab Cup Playoffs.

Jobe finished 37th on Sunday in the Invesco QQQ Championship in Thousand Oaks, Calif., but easily made the field for the 36-player Charles Schwab Cup Championship, which will be held Nov. 8-11 in Phoenix.

Jobe will go into the season finale 19th on the Schwab Points list, having dropped two spots from last week.

It will be the third straight year Jobe has qualified for the Charles Schwab Cup Championship.

One player with Colorado ties who didn’t advance on Sunday — and therefore saw his season end — was former Castle Pines resident Esteban Toledo, who finished 51st in Charles Schwab Cup points.
 

Colorado State University men’s golf coach Christian Newton didn’t mince words or equivocate when asked about the performance of freshman Oscar Teiffel in brutal weather conditions this week at Colorado Golf Club in Parker.

“That’s the best competitive round I’ve ever seen — under pressure, playing for the lead, shoot 67 in blowing snow and 35 degrees. That’s as good as I’ve ever seen,” Newton said.

And it’s hard to argue.

Teiffel shot a 5-under-par 67 on a very tough golf course with snow flying and temperatures in the mid-30s to win the individual title at the Paintbrush Invitational at Colorado Golf Club.

And to add to the accomplishment, Teiffel and the Rams (pictured below) also took home the team title while competing against a field that included three Pac-12 Conference schools, including the University of Colorado, which has won twice already this season.

Like CU, CSU has now claimed two team titles in the fall portion of the schedule — one in a tournament it hosts and another in Colorado. The Rams won the Ram Masters Invitational in Fort Collins in September.

This one, though, likely will be etched indelibly in the memory of the CSU players and coaches, given the conditions. All three rounds were played in temperatures between 35-40 degrees, with snow adding an especially unusual element on Tuesday.

“I think it’s the toughest conditions I’ve ever played in,” said Teiffel, who hails from Sweden. “It was snowy for nine holes and it was super cold. I have like three pairs of pants on me right now.”

Teiffel finished with a remarkable — given the conditions — 10-under-par 206 total, which was good for a three-stroke victory. On Tuesday, when eight players shot in the 80s, his 67 was the only score below 70.

“I had no idea what to expect before I went out,” said Teiffel, who notched his second top-10 finish of the season in major tournaments. “At first I was thinking 3 over was going to be a good score. But I got into a good flow, made a few putts and played pretty good. I’m happy with my score.

“I knew it was going to be tough for everyone. I didn’t have any expectations of myself. I was just going to accept whatever happened.”

Teiffel’s victory marks the first individual win by a CSU player since Blake Cannon won two events in a row two years ago.

As for capturing a title so early in his college career, Teiffel said, “It feels fantastic. You don’t get wins very often in this sport. When you do it’s pretty special. To do that so quickly after coming over here to college is also pretty cool. It’s an individual sport, but you’re playing as a team and it’s nice to win as a team as well.”

Indeed, on two days that very few golfers would even consider playing, the Rams finished with a 6-over-par 870 total for three rounds, which earned them an eight-stroke team victory over Oregon.

“Today was one of the better rounds that I’ve ever seen out of a team,” Newton said of his CSU squad, which shot a 1-over 289 on Tuesday. “We preached resiliency this whole week. (The CSU players) did a wonderful job. I’m very proud of them.”

Perhaps it has something to do with the makeup of the five players who constituted the Rams’ team this week. Four of the five are from places where it’s not unusual for golfers to battle the elements. As noted, there was Teiffel (left) from Sweden. And then there were three Coloradans — AJ Ott, Davis Bryant and Jake Staiano. And Californian Cullen Plousha rounded things out.

“When it starts getting windy, rainy and this cold, I think it really gives us an advantage,” said Bryant, who like Teiffel is a freshman. “I know Oscar has played in a lot of weather like this. And Jake, me and AJ have in similar stuff to this throughout our time living in Colorado. So I think it definitely helped us. And we’re a tough team mentally.”

As for the aforementioned Coloradans, Ott (below) finished ninth individually at 1-over-par 217, while Bryant was 17th at 221 and Staiano 32nd at 227. But they weren’t the top Colorado resident on the final Paintbrush scoreboard. That honor went to the University of Northern Colorado’s Coby Welch, who placed fifth on Tuesday at 2-under 214.

Remarkably, Welch was 5 under par through 11 holes of Tuesday’s round, but bogeyed three of his last seven to shoot 70.

“I just keep going as if it weren’t snowing,” Welch said. “I keep playing. There’s nothing I can do about it. I try to stay as focused as I can.

“I’m very happy with (the finish). I felt like I played well. Everyone was going to miss some short putts because of the greens and the snow — and I missed a few of those — but that’s OK. I felt like I played well. I hit the ball well and my short game was very good at this tournament.”

It was Welch’s third top-five individual finish of the season, with all three coming in Colorado as he placed third in both the Ram Masters and the Gene Miranda Falcon Invitational.

Meanwhile, Welch’s UNC squad placed an impressive third out the 12 teams at the Paintbrush. The Bears checked in at 19-over-par 883, 13 behind CSU. Joining Welch in the top dozen individually for UNC were Joshua Matz (sixth at 215) and Li Chen (12th at 219).

CU, meanwhile, tied for fourth at 887 in its fall season finale. Daniel O’Loughlin had another strong showing for the Buffs, placing sixth individually at 215.

The host University of Denver ended up 12th on Tuesday with a 929 total. DU’s Roy Kang, competing only as an individual this week, finished 10th individually at 218.

Teiffel became the second Scandinavian player to win the individual title in the two years the Paintbrush Invitational has been held. DU’s Petter Mikalsen, of Norway, claimed the top spot two years ago. Last year’s Paintbrush was canceled due to snow.

With the U.S. Mid-Amateur being held at Colorado Golf Club next September, the Paintbrush Invitational will take a one-year hiatus from the schedule before an anticipated return in 2020.

This year’s Paintbrush marks the seventh and final NCAA Division I invitational — men’s and women’s combined — that is being held in Colorado during the fall college season.

Paintbrush Invitational
Oct. 8-9, 2018 (final) at Colorado GC in Parker
1. (out of 12 teams) Colorado State 287-294-289–870
1. Oscar Teiffel 70-69-67–206
9. AJ Ott 73-74-70–217
17. Davis Bryant 71-76-74–221
32. Jake Staiano 74-75-78–227
39. Cullen Plousha 73-78-78–229
Competing Only as Individuals
25. Andrew Lafferty 80-71-73–224
30. Akedanai Ponghathaikul 74-75-77–226
47. Jack Ainscough 75-76-80–231

3. Northern Colorado 298-291-294–883
5. Coby Welch 71-73-70–214
6. Joshua Matz 73-70-72–215
12. Li Chen 73-70-76–219
60. Nick Sharp 81-78-79–238
68. Marcus Tait 90-78-76–244
Competing Only as Individual
23. Jack Castiglia 79-74-70–223

4. Colorado 295-293-299–887
6. Daniel O’Loughlin 69-70-76–215
17. Trevor Olkowski 74-73-74–221
28. Kristoffer Max 73-73-79–225
39. John Paterson 79-77-73–229
51. Ross Macdonald 79-78-76–233
Competing Only as Indivdual
17. Andre Leveque 77-73-71–221

12. Denver 312-309-308–929
30. Jun Ho Won 75-74-77–226
44. Esteban Missura 81-73-76–230
60. Cal McCoy 79-73-86–238
68. Carson Griggs 77-89-78–244
72. Jackson Solem 82-90-77–249
Competing Only as Individuals
10. Roy Kang 72-72-74–218
32. Eric Hagen 78-74-75–227
57. John Sand 83-76-76–235

Also
39. Coloradan Tyler Severin, Wyoming 76-78-75–229
 
For complete results, CLICK HERE.

On a 36-hole day that was played in 35-40-degree conditions, Colorado State and the University of Colorado are among the top three teams in the 54-hole event that will conclude on Tuesday, weather-permitting.

When play ended on Monday evening due to darkness, with some players having yet to complete round 2, CSU held a one-stroke lead over Loyola Marymount and a four-shot advantage over third-place CU.

Northern Colorado holds fifth place in the 12-team field, at 15 over. The host University of Denver is in 12th place at 45 over par.

Six players from Colorado-based teams are in the top 10 individually after Monday’s action. CU’s Daniel O’Loughlin and CSU’s Oscar Teiffel share second place at 5-under-par 139, which leaves them three behind leader Riley Elmes of Loyola Marymount, who shot a pair of 68s.

Also in the top 10 are UNC’s Li Chen (sixth at 143); DU’s Roy Kang and UNC’s Joshua Matz (seventh at even-par); and UNC’s Coby Welch (ninth at 1 over).

For all the scores from the Paintbrush Invitational, CLICK HERE.
 

After not scoring a major team victory in a tournament since March 2010, the Rams ended the drought on Sunday on Colorado soil.

With three consecutive under-par rounds, CSU (left in a team photo) prevailed by 11 strokes at the Ron Moore Women’s Intercollegiate at the newly-renamed University of Denver Golf Club at Highlands Ranch, which was formerly known as Highlands Ranch Golf Club.

And to add to the accomplishment, CSU junior Ellen Secor claimed the individual title, her first as a college golfer.

In fact, CSU put three players in the top five individually, with senior Katrina Prendergast (second) and freshman Saga Traustadottir (fifth) joining Secor on the leaderboard. Of course, Secor and Prendergast teamed up to win the national U.S. Women’s Amateur Four-Ball title in May.

The Rams shot their second straight round of 1-under-par 287 to finish at 4-under 860, 11 better then the University of Mississippi. The host University of Denver, the 2017 champion, placed ninth in the 16-team field at 900, while the University of Northern Colorado was 12th at 904. UNC’s Beah Cruz also placed in the top-10 individually by tying for ninth at 218. Sophie Newlove led Denver by finishing 16th at 220.

Secor fired a 1-under-par 71 on Sunday for a total of 3-under 213, good for a one-stroke victory over Prendergast and Ole Miss’ Conner Beth Ball, the latter closing with a 66. Secor played her back nine in 3-under 33 on Sunday.

Ron Moore Women’s Intercollegiate
Oct. 5-7, 2018 (final) at University of Denver Golf Club at Highlands Ranch

1. Colorado State 286-287-287–860
1. Ellen Secor 72-70-71–213
2. Katrina Prendergast 72-72-70–214
5. Saga Traustadottir 70-73-73–216
30. Jessica Sloot 76-72-76–224
42. Haley Greb 72-82-73–227
Competing Only as Individual
44. Sydney Smith 78-74-76–228

9. Denver 300-293-307–900
16. Sophie Newlove 72-76-72–220
24. Mary Weinstein 76-73-74–223
44. Alison Armstrong 73-75-80–228
64. Alyson Bean 79-69-83–231
85. Maggie Cowart 80-82-81–243
Competing Only as Individuals
30. Camile Enright 73-75-76–224
50. Trussy Li 74-74-81–229
72. Anni Heck 77-82-73–233

12. Northern Colorado 304-303-297–904
9. Beah Cruz 74-71-73–218
44. Marisa Hisaki 75-79-74–228
50. Morgan Sahm 77-79-73–229
69. Nicole Polivchak 78-74-80–232
88. Jenna Chun 82-86-77–245
Competing Only as Individual
72. Hanna Atkins 78-77-78–233

Also
13. Coloradan Erin Sargent, Wyoming 71-78-70–219
42. Coloradan Sarah Hankins, Wyoming 74-76-77–227

For all the scores from the Ron Moore Women’s Intercollegiate, CLICK HERE.
 

The Rams shot their second straight sub-par score — a 1-under-par 287 on Saturday — and sits at 3-under 573 overall.

Next best in the 16-team field are UC Davis at 582 and Kansas at 592. The defending champion — and host — University of Denver shares fourth place at 593, while Northern Colorado is 11th at 607.

CSU’s Ellen Secor (pictured) shares the individual lead with Samantha Hutchison of UC Davis at 2-under-par 142. Secor made five birdies in a round of 70 on Saturday.

CSU’s Saga Traustadottir (143) sits in third place and fellow Ram Katrina Prendergast (144) in fourth.

Also in the top 10 from local schools is UNC’s Beah Cruz (fifth at 145).

Ron Moore Women’s Intercollegiate
Oct. 5-7, 2018 at University of Denver Golf Club at Highlands Ranch

1. Colorado State 286-287–573
T1. Ellen Secor 72-70–142
3. Saga Traustadottir 70-73–143
4. Katrina Prendergast 72-72–144
14. Jessica Sloot 76-72–146
54. Haley Greb 72-82–154
Competing Only as Individual
41. Sydney Smith 78-74–152

4. Denver 300-293–593
14. Sophie Newlove 72-76–148
14. Alison Armstrong 73-75–148
14. Alyson Bean 79-69–148
24. Mary Weinstein 76-73–149
84. Maggie Cowart 80-82–162
Competing Only as Individuals
14. Camile Enright 73-75–148
14. Trussy Li 74-74–148
80. Anni Heck 77-82–159

11. Northern Colorado 304-303–607
5. Beah Cruz 74-71–145
41. Nicole Polivchak 78-74–152
54. Marisa Hisaki 75-79–154
67. Morgan Sahm 77-79–156
89. Jenna Chun 82-86–168
Competing Only as Individual
61. Hanna Atkins 78-77–155

Also
24. Coloradan Erin Sargent, Wyoming 71-78–149
31. Coloradan Sarah Hankins, Wyoming 74-76–150

For all the scores, CLICK HERE.
 

The 54-hole event is being played at the newly-renamed University of Denver Golf Club at Highlands Ranch, which was formerly known as Highlands Ranch Golf Club. The course was gifted to DU in 2011 by the the family of the late Ron Moore. Moore played on the DU golf team during the 1950s and is now a member of the DU Athletic Hall of Fame as well as the Colorado Golf Hall of Fame.

The Rams shot an 2-par 286 on Friday, which was five better than second-place Kansas. Host DU, the defending champion, holds eighth place at 300 in the 16-team event, while the University of Northern Colorado is 11th at 304.

CSU’s Saga Traustadottir, a freshman from Iceland, fired a 2-under-par 70 on Friday to share the individual lead with Amy Chu of Washington State. Ram teammates Katrina Prendergast, Ellen Secor and Haley Greb all posted 72s, good for a tie for fifth place.

Coloradan Erin Sargent, playing for Wyoming, shares third place individually after a 1-under-par 71.

Sophie Newlove led DU individually with a 72 on Friday, while Beah Cruz paced UNC with a 74.

The tournament will continue through Sunday.

Ron Moore Women’s Intercollegiate
Oct. 5-7, 2018 at University of Denver Golf Club at Highlands Ranch

1. Colorado State 286
T1. Saga Traustadottir 70
5. Katrina Prendergast 72
5. Ellen Secor 72
5. Haley Greb 72
42. Jessica Sloot 76
Competing Only as Individual
63. Sydney Smith 78

8. Denver 300
5. Sophie Newlove 72
11. Alison Armstrong 73
42. Mary Weinstein 76
74. Alyson Bean 79
79. Maggie Cowart 80
Competing Only as Individuals
11. Camile Enright 73
17. Trussy Li 74
63. Anni Heck 77

11. Northern Colorado 304
17. Beah Cruz 74
27. Marisa Hisaki 75
49. Morgan Sahm 77
63. Nicole Polivchak 78
86. Jenna Chun 82
Competing Only as Individual
63. Hanna Atkins 78

Also
3. Coloradan Erin Sargent, Wyoming 71
17. Coloradan Sarah Hankins, Wyoming 74

For all the scores, CLICK HERE.  

Former University of Colorado golfer Yannik Paul (left) shared medalist honors on Friday, while twin brother — and fellow ex-Buff — Jeremy Paul tied for fifth. Meanwhile, two former Colorado State University golfers also advanced to Second Stage — Blake Cannon (fifth place) and Golden’s Zahkai Brown (12th).

Brown, the 2013 CoBank Colorado Open champion, rocketed up the scoreboard with a 7-under-par 65 in the final round, which left him at 11-under 277, five behind Yannik Paul and fellow co-medalists Norman Xiong of Las Vegas and Canadian Jamie Sadlowski. Brown made eight birdies in the final round to jump up 22 spots.

The top 21 finishers and ties — all those at 279 or better — moved on to the Second Stage of Q-school.

Yannik Paul closed with a 73 on Friday after going 66-66-67 in the previous rounds. Jeremy Paul and Cannon checked in at 274 after both carding final-round 71s.

Numerous other First Stage tournaments are scheduled for the next two weeks. Then there will be five Second Stage tourneys from Oct. 30-Nov. 9. The Final Stage is Dec. 6-9 in Chandler, Ariz., where 2018 Web.com Tour cards will be distributed.

Here are this week’s First-Stage scores for all the players with strong Colorado ties:

Maricopa, Ariz.
(Top 21 and Ties Advance to Second Stage)
Advance to Second Stage
T1. Former CU golfer Yannik Paul, Boulder 66-66-67-73–272
5. Former CSU golfer Blake Cannon 64-70-69-71–274
5. Former CU golfer Jeremy Paul 68-67-68-71–274
12. Zahkai Brown, Golden 72-69-71-65–277
Failed to Advance
36. Nick Mason, Parker 74-69-74-68–285
49. Glenn Workman, Pueblo West 73-73-72-70–288
 

A day after the CSU men won the Ram Masters Invitational at Fort Collins Country Club (READ MORE), the CSU women wrapped up on Wednesday at the Ptarmigan Ram Classic at Ptarmigan Country Club.

In their first tournament under new head coach Laura Cilek, the Rams placed sixth out of 13 teams at Ptarmigan.

The Rams moved up one spot in the standings in Wednesday’s final round by shooting a 7-over-par 295 in round 3, giving them a 33-over 897 total. Boise State won the tournament at 879.

Haley Greb and Jessica Sloot, who recently teamed up to qualify in Colorado for the 2019 U.S. Women’s Amateur Four-Ball, led the way for the Rams by finishing 13th and 19th individually, respectively. (The two are pictured, with Greb at right.) Greb shot an even-par 72 on Wednesday to check in at 4-over 220, 10 strokes behind individual champion Tara Finigan of Boise State, which also captured the team title. Sloot ended up at 222 after closing with a 73.

The University of Northern Colorado, meanwhile, placed 12th at 914. Beah Cruz paced UNC by finishing 24th individually at 224.
 

Ptarmigan Ram Classic
Sept. 17-19, 2018 (final) at Ptarmigan CC in Fort Collins
6. (out of 13 teams) Colorado State 305-297-295–897
13. Haley Greb 74-74-72–220
19. Jessica Sloot 75-74-73–222
27. Katrina Prendergast 78-71-76–225
51. Ellen Secor 78-79-74–231
62. Sydney Smith 81-78-77–236
Competing Only as Individual
28. Saga Traustadottir 80-76-70–226

12. Northern Colorado 309-304-301–914
24. Beah Cruz 72-76-76–224
33. Marisa Hisaki 80-73-74–227
39. Morgan Sahm 76-76-77–229
55. Nicole Polivchak 81-79-74–234
68. Aili Bundy 81-79-79–239
Competing Only as Individual
66. Jenna Chun 80-79-79–238

Others
44. Coloradan Erin Sargent, Wyoming 76-74-80–230
55. Coloradan Sarah Hankins, Wyoming 80-78-76–234

For complete results, CLICK HERE.