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Recapping a Run to a Title: Utah Golf at the 1988 WAC Championship
4/25/2023 9:30 AM | Men's Golf
35 years ago, Utah's golfers scored a stunning upset to win the program's first-ever conference championship
SALT LAKE CITY β On April 28, the University of Utah men's golf team will be in Stanford, Calif., teeing off at the Stanford Golf Course at the 2023 Pac-12 Men's Golf Championship. The Utes will be aiming to capture the program's second conference championship and they'll be competing in a field that includes several ranked teams, includingΒ the defending conference champion Washington Huskies.
35 years ago, the Utes faced a similar challenge as they prepared for the 1988 Western Athletic Conference Championship in Provo, Utah. Prior to that year, Utah had never finished higher than third at the conference tournament and they were in a field that included the back-to-back defending champions from BYU, who were playing on their home course, where they'd scored an overwhelming victory just a week earlier.
Over three days, coach Ron Branca's team never relinquished the lead and the Utes stunned their opponents to take home the program's first league title. Led by the tournament's individual champion, Matt Johnson, who was one of four Utes to place inside the top 10, Utah accomplished a feat that only they believed they could achieve. Even after 35 years, the memories of that accomplishment and everything that led up to it are still fresh in the minds of those who played a part in it.
The Utes entered the 1987-88 campaign offΒ a season that concluded with a fourth-place finish at the WAC Championship, but the good news for coach Branca was he kept his team intact heading into a new year. The list of players who made up that roster included Blair Philip, a senior who came to Utah after BYU coach Karl Tucker recommended him to Branca. The group also consisted ofΒ former all-conference first-team pick Devin Dehlin, juniors Eric Nielsen and Matt Johnson and sophomore Doug Roberts. These returners were focused on improving on their team's standing in 1987-88.
"I think we were all determined to do better than the year before," said Roberts, "because we all knew we had a good core group of guys. We knew that we were capable of more. I know coach Branca probably set down some season goals for us, but it was more individually, us just talking to each other saying, hey, we got a good group here, let's do better."
Even with that mentality, winning the WAC and knocking the Cougars off their throne was a goal that might've seemed unrealistic. "I don't think it was [a goal] at all," said Johnson, "I don't think anybody was really thinking 'this is the start of the season. It's a goal we made as a team.' We probably should have but definitely didn't at that time."
It didn't take long for Utah's confidence to grow, as they started the season at the Tucker Invitational in New Mexico and immediately notched a significant accomplishment. "I don't know how long it had been since Utah beat BYU in a golf tournament," said Nielsen, "and we ended up beating them down in New Mexico at the start of the season. I remember just how thrilled we were to beat BYU and how awesome that was for us and it just continued into the year."
The Utes benefitted from the play of Johnson, who finished the season on the All-WAC First-Team and was joined by Roberts on the all-conference roster. They also received some unintended motivation after they were disqualified from an event in Hawaii for missing their second-round tee time.
"I remember playing in a tournament in Hawaii and we got disqualified," said Nielsen. "We thought we were playing at a certain time and we missed our tee time. I remember walking up [and there was a] kid from Arizona laughing at us and I just thought, man, that kind of [ticks] you off."
"It was a little bit embarrassing," said Dehlin, "but it was also a little motivating, like hey, let's get after it and see what we can do the rest of the year."
The Utes received one more boost to their confidence just one week before the conference tournament, when they traveled to Provo for the Cougar Classic. Playing on the same course where the WAC Championship would be held, and with the help of a career-best 64 from Roberts, Branca's bunch earned a second-place finish in a field that included many of the same teams Utah would be competing against a week later.
"That was a big deal," said Philip. "We knew the course and we knew that we didn't get blown out. We knew we could play with BYU during that week so we were thinking, ok, we got a shot at this. We're going to see the same course and we are going to sleep in our own beds and didn't feel like there was any home course advantage."
"We took second and I think for us that was encouraging," said Roberts. "I had the 64, Matt played steady, Blair was there all the time. I just think it actually just put us into the conference championship in a good mood. If we just improve a few shots each, we could be right there."
The first day of the 1988 WAC Championship dawned on May 5 at the Riverside Country Club in Provo, Utah and the BYU Cougars, playing on their home course, seemed to be the consensus pick to come out on top and capture their third consecutive league title. Despite that, Branca felt the belief his team had that they could be the ones to come out on top.
"I'm sure they felt very confident," he said. "They knew what they had done in the Cougar [Classic]. They weren't afraid of anything. My team was not only the most experienced, they were probably the oldest. History would say the odds were stacked against them with so many ranked teams.Β That's what made it so fun."
"We knew we could play with BYU during that week," said Philip, "so we're thinking, 'O.K., we got a shot at this.' I remember walking through that course and I actually kind of felt like we were going to do it the whole time. It felt like there was no reason why we can't win this and I kept saying that to everyone; 'we can win this, in fact we are going to win this.'"
Utah wasted no time backing up that confidence posting a first-round 280 that put them in first place by six shots. Playing the most prominent role on that first day was Nielsen, who tied a conference record with a 65 that landed him in first place after 18 holes.
"It was one of those rounds," said Nielsen "I made a ton of putts. I think I was just in a mindset where you get your confidence level up and we knew we had to shoot pretty low scores at Riverside."
"We were walking down the fairway going one way and Eric's going the other way," said Johnson, "and I signaled to him and I said, 'How many under are you'Β and he held down seven fingers saying he was 7-under and I was like 'What?!' When Eric shot 65, that just got us a good start in the tournament and it was huge. It was a really good momentum builder."
The second day of the tournament almost proved to be Utah's undoing, as 18 holes on a snowy day saw them card a 301 as a team, allowing both New Mexico and BYU to pick up ground. The Utes entered the final day of the competition in possession of a narrow one-shot advantage over the second-place Lobos, with the Cougars only two off the lead, but the Utes were only 18 holes away from accomplishing their goal of winning the program's first conference championship.
"I think everybody was a little nervous," said Philip, "but I think the nerves served to keep us focused and help us, in fact. I think we were good enough to use that adrenaline in our favor."
"I mean, we were leading for two straight days," said Roberts, "We wanted to finish it and get the job done. But that is where I would give Blair some credit. We weren't ever over-nervous because he [was] always making everybody laugh. And Ron is coming in just kind of relaxed saying 'alright, now here is what we need to do today.'"
Utah's day got off to an excellent start, as they shot 3-under through their first nine holes, but the Lobos remained in lock-step, carding an identical score that kept them just one stroke behind. After the Utes had a rough time on the 11thΒ hole, New Mexico took the lead for a brief moment, but a strong finish by Utah moved them back to the top of the leaderboard.
Philip rattled off four birdies over his last six holes to land in fourth place and Roberts, who started his day by going 5-under over his first seven holes, put up a final round 69. The task of putting the finishing touches on Utah's championship fell to Johnson, who was also in contention for the tournament's individual crown.
"I remember I was playing against Bruce Brockbank; who is now the coach at BYU," said Johnson. "And Bruce is a really good player and a really great person. We were both hitting it good but I was just out-putting him. It was crazy, the last round was just all over the place; I know BYU was making a really big charge coming in,Β because they started the day I think six or seven shots behind us.
On the final hole, with the title still up for grabs, Johnson rebounded after his tee shot ended up in a bunker, knocking the ball on the green on his second stroke to set up one lastΒ putt. "I definitely remember that shot," said Johnson. "It was a very, very fun shot. It wasn't easy, because a 7-iron out of a bunker with everything riding on it was not that easy. Very fortunate it worked out."
Johnson's final putt clinched first place for him and the conference championship for the Utes and cemented a memory that is still vivid in the minds of those who were part of it.
"We all met down at the green and there were a lot of hugs and back-pats," said Branca. "We finally pulled it off.Β The fun part for them, they were expecting it, I think, more than I did, that was the funny part. I was hopeful for a top-two or three finish, I mean, let's be real, it hadn't happened before even though we had some good events.Β It's pretty hard to finish in the top two when you are in a field like that. And then to win it, it was just awesome."
"To be honest with you," said Roberts, "I don't know if we knew how to officially celebrate. I think it was probably the first time we ever hugged each other as teammates. That's still a cool memory. You know in golf, you are always giving a little high-five here and there, but you are competing against each other so much. To actually get it done in that environment, winning the championship, we knew we made history because no one had done it in a long time at the University of Utah. And so, just the hugs, the laughs, it was awesome."
It's been 35 years since Branca and his players lifted that trophy and that achievement is still something that has bound that group together long after they took their last swings as a Ute. With all of them still involved with the game of golf professionally, that 1988 championship is a topic that comes up frequently whenever these teammates cross paths. The pride that comes with accomplishing that goal has not diminished even with the passing of time.
"It is something that we will always have in common," said Nielsen "I think we all talk about it a ton but it will always be a special connection to have that team. To be able to go and to win that, it was just something that was so special and I'll remember the rest of my life."
"I don't think there is ever a time that I see Devin, or talk to Devin or Doug and Erik [that it doesn't come up]," said Branca.Β "I don't see Matt as much and don't see Blair as much but the minute we do see each other, there is just that smile with a glance of a memory of a time that was really very special. And thank heavens, that never goes away."
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