Laramie, Wyo. (April 19, 2023) -- This Friday and Saturday, the Wyoming Cowboy golf team will travel to Provo, Utah, to play in the 58th PING Cougar Classic hosted by Brigham Young University.
The tournament will be played on the Riverside Country Club in Provo and will feature a field of 16 teams.
Wyoming's top individual finisher a year ago in the Cougar Classic was then
freshman Jaren Calkins, who tied with former Cowboy
Bryce Waters for 30th place at 218 (+2).
BYU is the defending team champion and has won four of the last five Cougar Classics. Only San Francisco in 2021 interrupted BYU's championship streak.
Cougar senior Carson Lundell is the two-time defending individual champion. Lundell also won the 2022 NCAA Regional in Stockton, Calif., and was named a 2022 Honorable Mention All-American.
2023 PING Cougar Classic Tournament Field
The 16 teams in this year's field include: host BYU, Boise State, Cal Baptist, Cal State Northridge, Colorado, Denver, Gonzaga, Hawai'i, Nevada, New Mexico State, Saint Mary's, UC San Diego, UC Santa Barbara, Utah Tech, Utah Valley and Wyoming.
The Big West Conference has the most teams in the field with four teams: Cal State Northridge, Hawai'i, UC San Diego and UC Santa Barbara
Three Mountain West schools will be competing in: Boise State, Nevada and Wyoming.
The West Coast Conference will also have three teams participating in BYU, Gonzaga and Saint Mary's.
Teams Ranked in the Field
As of the most recent college golf rankings, below are the highest ranked teams entering the tournament out of 305 NCAA Division I men's golf programs. The Wyoming Cowboys are just outside the Top 100.
Golfstat Rankings (As of Sunday, April 16): BYU (44), Colorado (56), New Mexico State (84),
Wyoming (104), Saint Mary's (117), Utah Valley (132), Cal State Northridge (136), Nevada (148), Boise State (153), Hawai'i (154).
Sagarin Rankings (As of Monday, April 17): BYU (49), Colorado (67), New Mexico State (84),
Wyoming (101), Utah Valley (118), Saint Mary's (121), Nevada (132), Cal State Northridge (140), Hawai'i (153), Boise State (154).
Tournament Stats
Live scoring will be available on GolfStat.com at:
https://results.golfstat.com//public/leaderboards/gsnav.cfm?pg=participants&tid=26673
PING BYU Cougar Classic Course Information
•Riverside Country Club, Provo, Utah
•7,142 yards, Par 72
Tournament Format and Tee Times
•36 holes on Friday, April 21,
•18 holes on Saturday, April 22
2022-23 Team and Individual Successes
The Cowboys have enjoyed an outstanding 2022-23 season, winning two team titles at the Mark Simpson Colorado Invitational during the fall portion of the season and capturing their own Wyoming Desert Intercollegiate during the spring season. UW has recorded four Top Five team finishes in nine stroke-play events and six Top Seven finishes.
Leading the way for the Cowboys individually this season have been sophomores
Patrick Azevedo and
Jaren Calkins, who are averaging 71.83 and 71.85 strokes per round, respectively. Seniors
Tyler Severin and
Kirby Coe-Kirkham are close behind at 72.40 and 72.56 strokes per round. Azevedo has seven Top 25 finishes in 10 tournaments this season to pace the Pokes. Calkins has four Top 25 finishes this season, and Severin and Coe-Kirkham have three each.
