Wednesday marked the first day that high school golfers from Colorado — and elsewhere — who are part of the class of 2019 could formalize their choice of college golf programs by signing national letters of intent.

As is often the case, an impressive number of Coloradans will be playing college golf starting next fall. And plenty of those will be headed to NCAA Division I programs. And to take it yet another step, quite a few Coloradans will be joining DI teams that are among the best in the country.

In fact, between 2019 and 2020 graduates, nine golfers from the Centennial State have either verbally committed to — or have signed with — college programs currently ranked among the top 100 in the nation in Division I:

— Dillon Stewart (left) of Fossil Ridge High School in Fort Collins, the Junior Golf Alliance of Colorado’s Boys Player of the Year in 2018, signed on Wednesday with defending NCAA Division I champion Oklahoma State, the No. 1-ranked men’s team in the nation. The Cowboys have now won 11 NCAA titles in men’s golf.

— Two other high school seniors, Jack Hughes of Aspen and former Grand Junction resident Canon Olkowski, will be joining the University of Colorado men’s program, which won two tournaments in the fall and is ranked 73rd in the country, according to Golfstat. Olkowski, who now resides in Las Vegas, is the younger brother of current Buff Trevor Olkowski.

— Dawson Holmes of Aspen will be playing his college golf at the College of Charleston in South Carolina, a program ranked 44th in the nation among DI teams.

— Caroline Jordaan (left) of Lakewood and Colorado Academy, long one of the top girls players in the state, is becoming a University of Denver golfer. The Pioneers are currently slotted No. 79 in the country by Golfweek.

— Lauren Lehigh of Loveland High School, the JGAC’s Girls Player of the Year this past season, is headed to the University of New Mexico, the No. 85 women’s program in the country as of the end of the fall season.

As for high school juniors who recently made verbal commitments to play college golf, they add to the trend:

— Hailey Schalk of Erie and Holy Family High School, the 2017 JGAC Girls POY who won the 3A state high school titles as both a freshman and a sophomore, plans to play at CU, which is ranked No. 36 in the nation by Golfweek. Schalk has been receiving college scholarship offers since early in her eighth-grade year. Her dad, Matt Schalk, is the PGA general manager and director of golf at Colorado National Golf Club, the home course for the CU men’s and women’s golf teams.

— Charlotte Hillary of Cherry Hills Village and Kent Denver, winner of two of the first three JGAC Tournament of Champions, has committed to Northwestern, the No. 15 women’s team in the nation, according to Golfstat.

— And Marie Jordaan of Lakewood, Caroline Jordaan’s younger sister, is headed to Santa Clara in California, which sits No. 95 in the country, according to Golfstat.

All told in just the Class of 2019, at least 10 Colorado residents and/or JGAC members have signed or will sign letters of intent for DI programs:

Besides the aformentioned six, there’s:

— Amy Chitkoksoong of Aurora, who’s headed to the University of Northern Colorado.

— Morgan Ryan of Centennial and Jessica Zapf of Windsor will be teammates at the University of Wyoming.

— And TJ Shehee of Mead will play for the UNC men.

It isn’t often that a Coloradan signs a letter of intent to play golf for the No. 1-ranked team in the nation, but Stewart did just that on Wednesday afternoon.

“It means a lot with all the hard work I’ve put in through the years,” Stewart said recently. “Waking up early and going to play all day until the moon comes up (and) I’m still up there and have my flashlight on the range when I was little. I couldn’t get enough. It just shows that if you have a dream and you want to achieve it, you can put the work in and anything is possible.”

Signing a prestigious letter of intent on Wednesday caps a big year for Stewart, who will graduate from Fossil Ridge in December, though he won’t enroll in OSU until the fall semester. In 2018, he won the individual title in the boys Junior America’s Cup, which featured some of the top junior golfers from the western U.S., Canada and Mexico, and led Colorado to its first team title ever in that event. Earlier, Stewart became the first Colorado boy to win the AJGA Hale Irwin Colorado Junior — one of two AJGA titles he claimed in 2018. In the fall, he captured the 5A state high school individual championship and led Fossil Ridge to its first team title in boys golf. Stewart also shared medalist honors in qualifying for the U.S. Junior Amateur.

And now, Stewart is going to Stillwater, Okla., to play his college golf.

“It is a dream of mine,” he said. “I’ve always wanted to go there. When I was little I was a Rickie (Fowler) fan; that’s what sparked the whole idea. Being with that group of (top-level players) day in and day out as your family, you’re just going to get that much better. That’s what I’m really looking forward to. You’re practicing with some of the top players in the country and the world every day.”

Here are the Colorado residents and JGAC members who have signed letters of intent or have verbally committed to a college program:

CLASS OF 2019
Boys
— Brandon Bervig of Colorado Springs (Liberty HS) — University of Colorado-Colorado Springs
— Jonas Graham of Parker (Chaparral HS) — Colorado Mesa
— Peter Grossenbacher of Eaton (Eaton HS) — Colorado Mesa
— Dawson Holmes of Aspen (Aspen HS) — College of Charleston (S.C.)
— Jack Hughes of Aspen (Aspen HS) — University of Colorado
— Tyler Mulligan of Parker (Chaparral HS) — Oregon Tech
— Former Grand Junction resident Canon Olkowski, now of Las Vegas — University of Colorado
— Riley Rottschafer of Centennial (Arapahoe HS) — Fort Lewis
— TJ Shehee of Mead (Mead HS) — University of Northern Colorado
— Dillon Stewart of Fort Collins (Fossil Ridge HS) — Oklahoma State
— Jack Tickle (Arapahoe HS) — University of Colorado-Colorado Springs
— Jake Welch of Highlands Ranch (Valor Christian HS) — Colorado School of Mines
— Colter Zwieg of Aspen (Aspen HS) — Methodist University (N.C.)

Girls
— Amy Chitkoksoong of Aurora (Grandview HS) — University of Northern Colorado
— Sydney Eye of Golden (Ralston Valley HS) — Metropolitan State University of Denver
— Caroline Jordaan of Lakewood (Colorado Academy) — University of Denver
— Brooke Kramer of Aurora (Cherokee Trail HS) — Chadron State (Neb.)
— Lauren Lehigh of Loveland (Loveland HS) — University of New Mexico
— Morgan Ryan of Centennial (Grandview HS) — University of Wyoming
— Kinsey Smith of Windsor (Windsor HS) — Chadron State (Neb.)
— Jessica Zapf of Windsor (Windsor HS) — University of Wyoming

Out-of-State Signees for Colorado-Based Schools
Boys
— Spencer Adam of San Diego — Air Force Academy
— Brady Arnett of Woodbury, Minn. — University of Denver
— Blake Danni of Cheyenne, Wyo. — Northern Colorado
— Logan Hensley of Casper, Wyo. — Northern Colorado
— Aidan Mann of Elmhurst, Ill. — Colorado Mesa
— Andrew Ni of Edinburgh, Scotland (junior from New Mexico Junior College) — CSU-Pueblo
— Jamie Roberts of Perth, Scotland — CSU-Pueblo
— Zachary Slayton of Austin, Texas — Colorado Christian

Girls
— Andrea Bergsdottir of Gothenburg, Sweden — Colorado State University
— Tomine Bjerkelo of Sandnes, Norway — Colorado State University
— Thea Bjekelo of Sandnes, Norway — Colorado State University
— Erika Danielsson of Finland — University of Denver
— Abbi Fleiner of Reno, Nev. — University of Northern Colorado
— Sophie Johnson of Telford, Shropshire, England — University of Colorado
— Anna Krekling of Oslo, Norway — University of Denver
— Mattie Millwee of Fresno, Calif. — CSU-Pueblo
— Gabby Minier of Goleta, Calif. — Colorado State University
— Rileigh Vojta of St Francis, Minn. — CSU-Pueblo
— Anna Zanusso of Venice, Italy — University of Denver

CLASS OF 2020 VERBAL COMMITMENTS
— Hailey Schalk of Erie (Holy Family HS) — University of Colorado
— Charlotte Hillary of Cherry Hills Village (Kent Denver HS) — Northwestern
— Marie Jordaan of Lakewood (Colorado Academy) — Santa Clara

(Note: This story will be updated as more signees/commitments are publicized. Please let us know additional signees by emailing golfjournal@coloradogolf.org) 

In a match played over the course of two days due to earlier fog delays, the former Parker resident grabbed the lead for the first time after the 14th hole at Poppy Hills Golf Course in Pebble Beach, Calif. Then the current San Marino, Calif., resident went on to record a 2 and 1 victory Thursday morning over Madelyn Gamble of Pleasant Hill, Calif.

That gives the Harvard-bound Wang (left in a USGA photo) a spot in the round of 32 in her final U.S. Girls’ Junior.

Wang, who finished 34th in this year’s U.S. Women’s Open and is currently No. 107 in the women’s World Amateur Golf Rankings, was 2 down on three occasions, including after 10 holes. But she won 11, 13 and 14 with birdies to take the lead — and for good. She closed out the match Thursday morning with a another hole-winning birdie on the par-3 17th.

The 2015 Girls Junior PGA Champion finished the day with five birdies, three bogeys and one double bogey.

Both the round of 32 and the round of 16 are scheduled for later Thursday.

Here are the scores for the players with strong Colorado ties who competed — or are still competing — at Poppy Hills:

MATCH PLAY ROUND OF 64
Former Colorado resident Elizabeth Wang def. Madelyn Gamble of Plesant Hill, Calif., 2 and 1

STROKE PLAY
23. Former Colorado resident Elizabeth Wang 75-70–145
ҬFailed to Advance to Match Play
147. Meghan Vogt, Broomfield 88-80–168
151. Morgan Ryan, Centennial 84-88–172

For all the scores, CLICK HERE.
 

Wang, who finished 34th in this year’s U.S. Women’s Open, fell in the round of 32 to Yujeong Son of South Korea and Norman, Okla., 3 and 2. Son likewise played in this year’s U.S. Women’s Open and is the No. 22-ranked women’s amateur in the world.

Wang, who lived in Colorado until moving to California in 2010, led 1 up after 2 holes, but trailed the entire back nine. Son led 1 up through 12, then won No. 13 with a par and No. 14 with a birdie, and halved the remaining two holes to close out the match.

Wang, the 2015 national Girls Junior PGA Champion, was 3 over par for the 16 holes in the round of 32, while Son was even par.

Here are the scores for the players with strong Colorado ties who competed at Poppy Hills:

MATCH PLAY ROUND OF 32
Yujeong Son, South Korea, def. former Colorado resident Elizabeth Wang, 3 and 2

MATCH PLAY ROUND OF 64
Former Colorado resident Elizabeth Wang def. Madelyn Gamble of Plesant Hill, Calif., 2 and 1

STROKE PLAY
23. Former Colorado resident Elizabeth Wang 75-70–145″¨
Failed to Advance to Match Play
147. Meghan Vogt, Broomfield 88-80–168
151. Morgan Ryan, Centennial 84-88–172

For all the scores, CLICK HERE.
 

Wang, who lived in Colorado until moving to California in 2010, stands in 25th place in the 36-hole stroke-play portion of the event. The top 64 earn spots in match play, which begins on Wednesday, though stroke play didn’t conclude as scheduled on Tuesday evening due to a long fog delay.

Wang, the 2015 national Junior PGA Championship winner who is Harvard-bound in the fall, made two birdies and one bogey in round 2 to post a 3-over-par 145 total.

Meanwhile, the two Colorado residents in the field won’t advance to match play, though Morgan Ryan of Centennial will finish her second round of stroke play on Wednesday as the fog delay kept her from doing so on Tuesday.

Ryan, who qualified for the national championship in Beatrice, Neb., was 23 over par for the first 28 holes of the event when play was stopped due to darkness on Tuesday night. That put her in 142nd place. Meghan Vogt of Broomfield did complete round 2, going 88-80 for a 26-over 168 total, leaving her in 148th place. (Ryan and Vogt are pictured together.)

Fifteen-year-old Lucy Li of Redwood Shores, Calif., appears headed for medalist honors for the second straight year at this event, going 62-69 for an 11-under-par 131 total, one more than the 36-hole record for the event. But some players on the leaderboard haven’t yet finished round 2.

Here are the scores for the players with strong Colorado ties competing at Poppy Hills:

25. Former Colorado resident Elizabeth Wang 75-70–145
Ҭ142. Morgan Ryan, Centennial 84-(10 over through 10 holes in round 2)
148. Meghan Vogt, Broomfield 88-80–168

For all the scores, CLICK HERE.
 

Then she took a ride on the bogey train.

Wang, a former resident of Parker now living in San Marino, Calif., bogeyed four straight holes starting on No. 13, dropping her from near the top of the scoreboard to a more tenous position.

The 2015 national Girls Junior PGA Champion finished Monday’s first round of stroke play with a 4-over-par 75, which left her in a tie for 51st place out of the 156-player field.

Wang, an 18-year-old who finished 34th in this year’s U.S. Women’s Open, will need to place in the top 64 after Tuesday’s second round to advance to match play, which begins on Wednesday. She made a birdie and five bogeys on Monday.

Meanwhile, the two current Colorado residents in the field, Morgan Ryan of Centennial and Meghan Vogt of Broomfield, shot 84 and 88 in round 1, respectively.

Ryan posted 10 pars, but also had two triple bogeys. Vogt had two “2s” on her card, but also two “8s”.

Teenage sensation Lucy Li recorded a 9-under-par 62 on Monday to lead the stroke play portion of the event by four shots with one round remaining.

Here are the scores for the players with strong Colorado ties competing at Poppy Hills:

51. Former Colorado resident Elizabeth Wang 75
137. Morgan Ryan, Centennial 84
Ҭ150. Meghan Vogt, Broomfield 88

For all the scores, CLICK HERE.