LARAMIE, Wyo. – Wyoming Men’s Golf’s Ryan Wallen received an individual bid to the NCAA Division I men’s regional in Sammamish, Wash., the NCAA announced this afternoon. Wallen is the first Cowboy to earn a regional bid since Gabe Maier in 2011, and the seventh men’s golfer in Wyoming history.

Wallen, a native of Blaine, Wash., will return to his home state to compete in the tournament hosted by the University of Washington at the Aldarra Golf Club. Each regional will feature three rounds of competition running from May 15-17. The field at the Sammamish Regional is comprised of 14 teams and five individuals. The low five teams and the lowest individual finisher not on an advancing team will earn a spot at the 2017 NCAA Men’s Championship.

“I’m happy for Ryan, and this is a result of the great year that he had,” UW head coach Joe Jensen said. “It shows that he’s one of the top golfers in our conference and in the nation. It will be a great experience for him to compete in his home state. He knows the climate and style of golf in Washington, and a lot of his friends and family will be there supporting him.”

Wallen is coming off a performance at the 2017 Mountain West Championship that put him in the Wyoming golf record book. His third-place finish was the lowest ever in the event by a Cowboy, and elevated him to a spot on the Mountain West All-Conference team. Wallen’s accomplishment also matched the best finish ever by a Wyoming men’s golfer at a conference championship, tying Don Abbott’s third-place finish in the 1992 WAC Championship.

Competition will begin on Monday, May 15. A preview with tee times and further details will be released next week. Follow @wyo_golf on twitter for more updates.