Laramie, Wyo. (Dec. 29, 2023) --  University of Wyoming golfer Damon Vilkauskas is one of a select group of collegiate golfers who has been invited to play in the 2023 Patriot All-America Invitational.  The tournament, featuring the top collegiate golfers from around the nation, will be played on Dec. 29-31 at The Wigwam Resort in Litchfield, Ariz.  Each player will be playing to honor a fallen or severely injured soldier.  Vilkauskas transferred to the University of Wyoming in the summer of 2023 after earning First Team NJCAA Division II All-America honors from South Mountain Community College in Phoenix, Ariz.  A native of Mesa, Ariz., he is redshirting this season at Wyoming and will be playing as an individual in the Patriot All-America amateur event.
 
In the 2022-23 season, Vilkauskas was named to both the NJCAA Division II First Team All-America team and the PING First Team All-America team as selected by the Golf Coaches Association of America (GCAA).  He was also a GCAA PING All-West Region selection and was named the Arizona Community College Athletic Conference Player of the Year.  Vilkauskas was the No. 1 ranked junior college golfer in the nation in NJCAA Division II in 2023.  He finished second at the 2023 National Championships.  Vilkauskas won four spring tournament titles as an individual and placed in the Top 5 in seven events, with a 69.55 scoring average for the season. 
 
In 2011, The Patriot All-America Invitational, featuring the best of the best in collegiate golf from every NCAA division, was born. Throughout the 54-hole championship, each participant honors a fallen or severely injured soldier by carrying a bag bearing the name of that individual.
 
More information on the tournament is available at the Patriot All-America website: patriotallamerica.com. 
 
The Patriot All-America Invitational is a joint venture of the Arizona Golf Association, The Wigwam, The West Valley Mavericks and their designated charitable partner, the Folds of Honor Foundation, and the Golf Coaches Association of America.
 
The Patriot All-America Invitational is a 54-hole amateur stroke-play Championship that is rated "A" by the World Amateur Golf Rankings (WAGR). 
 
Players invited to participate in the Patriot All-America Invitational include: past champions; individuals finishing in the top five of last year's Patriot; competing in the Arnold Palmer Cup; receiving the Jack Nicklaus, Ben Hogan, Arnold Palmer, or Phil Mickelson Awards; and PING First-Team All-America selections from each level of college golf. Additionally, representatives from Army, Navy and Air Force; as well as eligible World Junior Team Championship participants; AJGA First-Team All-Americans; and champions of the US Amateur, British Amateur, Asia-Pacific Amateur, Latin America Amateur Championship, European Amateur, Japan Collegiate Championship, and The R&A Scholar's Tournament; as well as special invitations.
 
Each player will be presented a golf bag at the event's opening ceremony to use during the competition. The bag will be emblazoned with the name and branch of service of a fallen military member. At the conclusion of the event, these golf bags will be auctioned by the respective athletic departments of participating student-athletes with all proceeds designated for the Folds of Honor Foundation, which provides post-secondary educational scholarships for children and spouses of military service men and women killed or disabled while serving the United States.