Upcoming Event: Men's Golf versus Southwestern on January 26, 2026
Men's Golf
vs Southwestern
The University of Utah Athletics
Friday, April 12
Phoenix, Ariz.
University of Utah
vs
ASU Thunderbird Collegiate
Thunderbird Collegiate Gives Utah Golf Chance to Sustain Strong Spring
4/11/2024 11:20 AM | Men's Golf
Utes to compete in field with six ranked teams in Phoenix
2024 Thunderbird Collegiate
Date: April 12 – 13
Location: Papago Golf Club | Phoenix, Ariz.
Par/Yardage: Par 71, 7,551 yards
Live Scoring: Golfstat.com
THIS WEEK
The University of Utah men's golf team has finished in the top three in their last two tournaments, they've placed at least one golfer in the top three in four straight events and they'll be attempting to keep both streaks intact when they travel to Phoenix, Ariz., the site of the 2024 Thunderbird Collegiate, which will be contested on Friday and Saturday at the Papago Golf Club.
Since Garrett Clegg took over as head coach prior to the start of the 2016-17 season, the Utes have played in every edition of the Thunderbird Collegiate, achieving their highest finish in the spring of 2021, when they placed sixth. That year, they finished 22-under and were led by Blake Tomlinson, who earned a share of first place. Tomlinson's 12-under 201 tied the lowest 54-hole score in program history at the time.
Utah's last appearance at this tournament saw them place 11th, with Hunter Howe posting the best finish of his Utah career, shooting 4-under to earn a share of 12th. The Sun Devils were crowned the tournament champions, edging out Arizona by a single stroke, while ASU's Preston Summerhays finished as the tournament's individual champion.
UTAH LINE-UP
Utah will once again rely on the quintet of Braxton Watts, Javier Barcos, Brandon Robison, Gabriel Palacios and Sergio Jimenez in Arizona.
COACHES THOUGHTS: Head Coach Garrett Clegg
"The challenge for us this week is it's a totally different type of golf," said Clegg. "To this point in the spring, we have been on traditional tree lined golf courses in cooler temperatures. This week, we are near 100 degrees on a desert golf course. The winds are supposed to be up tomorrow for our 36-hole day and I anticipate the course playing really tough. We have been here each of the last three years and all of our returners played in this tournament last year. It's an important week for us!"
THE FIELD
There will be 17 teams competing in Phoenix and the list of ranked squads consists of No. 4 ASU, No. 7 Washington, No. 8 Arizona, No. 13 Texas Tech, No. 14 Oklahoma and No. 21 New Mexico. The field will also include Oklahoma State, UCLA, SMU, Baylor, Utah, Washington State, Houston, Oregon State, Colorado, San Francisco and USC.
TOURNAMENT DETAILS
The Thunderbird Collegiate will be a 54-hole event that will start with 36 holes on day one. Tee time on both days will be 6:45 a.m. AZT.
LAST TIME OUT
Brandon Robison and Javier Barcos were the stars of Utah's most recent tournament, the Gaucho Invitational in Goleta, California. Robison got the competition started with a 68, then matched the lowest score of his Utah career with a 5-under 67 in round two. He followed that with a 1-under 71 that left him with a 10-under 206, the lowest mark of his career. He also tied for second, his highest finish as a Ute and his second time in the top three so far in the spring.
Sharing second with Robison was Barcos, his fourth time in the top five during the current campaign, the most by a Ute in a single season since 2018-19, and he's placed in the top three in three of his last four tries. The senior from Spain finished off the event with back-to-back 68's, enabling him to match Robison's final mark of 10-under. Barcos has now collected five top five finishes during the 2023-24 season, putting him just one away from matching the program record of six, which has been accomplished three times, most recently by Kyler Dunkle in 2018-19.
Braxton Watts pocketed his third top 20 finish of the campaign by tying for 20th at 1-under, which was also the mark he finished the final round with. Watts piled up six total birdies, four of them coming on the back nine, where he was 2-under, leading to a 1-under 71 on Tuesday.
Gabriel Palacios put together his best 18 holes during the competition in round three, carding a 2-under 70, including a 3-under 33 over his first nine holes. That score enabled him to climb up into a tie for 32nd, while Sergio Jimenez left with a share of 50th.
LIVE SCORING
To keep up with all the action, fans can visit Golfstat.com.
FOLLOW THE UTES
For an inside look at the Utah Golf program along with tournament, roster and news updates, fans can follow the Utes on social media (Twitter: @UtesGolf | Instagram: @UtesGolf).
Date: April 12 – 13
Location: Papago Golf Club | Phoenix, Ariz.
Par/Yardage: Par 71, 7,551 yards
Live Scoring: Golfstat.com
THIS WEEK
The University of Utah men's golf team has finished in the top three in their last two tournaments, they've placed at least one golfer in the top three in four straight events and they'll be attempting to keep both streaks intact when they travel to Phoenix, Ariz., the site of the 2024 Thunderbird Collegiate, which will be contested on Friday and Saturday at the Papago Golf Club.
Since Garrett Clegg took over as head coach prior to the start of the 2016-17 season, the Utes have played in every edition of the Thunderbird Collegiate, achieving their highest finish in the spring of 2021, when they placed sixth. That year, they finished 22-under and were led by Blake Tomlinson, who earned a share of first place. Tomlinson's 12-under 201 tied the lowest 54-hole score in program history at the time.
Utah's last appearance at this tournament saw them place 11th, with Hunter Howe posting the best finish of his Utah career, shooting 4-under to earn a share of 12th. The Sun Devils were crowned the tournament champions, edging out Arizona by a single stroke, while ASU's Preston Summerhays finished as the tournament's individual champion.
UTAH LINE-UP
Utah will once again rely on the quintet of Braxton Watts, Javier Barcos, Brandon Robison, Gabriel Palacios and Sergio Jimenez in Arizona.
COACHES THOUGHTS: Head Coach Garrett Clegg
"The challenge for us this week is it's a totally different type of golf," said Clegg. "To this point in the spring, we have been on traditional tree lined golf courses in cooler temperatures. This week, we are near 100 degrees on a desert golf course. The winds are supposed to be up tomorrow for our 36-hole day and I anticipate the course playing really tough. We have been here each of the last three years and all of our returners played in this tournament last year. It's an important week for us!"
THE FIELD
There will be 17 teams competing in Phoenix and the list of ranked squads consists of No. 4 ASU, No. 7 Washington, No. 8 Arizona, No. 13 Texas Tech, No. 14 Oklahoma and No. 21 New Mexico. The field will also include Oklahoma State, UCLA, SMU, Baylor, Utah, Washington State, Houston, Oregon State, Colorado, San Francisco and USC.
TOURNAMENT DETAILS
The Thunderbird Collegiate will be a 54-hole event that will start with 36 holes on day one. Tee time on both days will be 6:45 a.m. AZT.
LAST TIME OUT
Brandon Robison and Javier Barcos were the stars of Utah's most recent tournament, the Gaucho Invitational in Goleta, California. Robison got the competition started with a 68, then matched the lowest score of his Utah career with a 5-under 67 in round two. He followed that with a 1-under 71 that left him with a 10-under 206, the lowest mark of his career. He also tied for second, his highest finish as a Ute and his second time in the top three so far in the spring.
Sharing second with Robison was Barcos, his fourth time in the top five during the current campaign, the most by a Ute in a single season since 2018-19, and he's placed in the top three in three of his last four tries. The senior from Spain finished off the event with back-to-back 68's, enabling him to match Robison's final mark of 10-under. Barcos has now collected five top five finishes during the 2023-24 season, putting him just one away from matching the program record of six, which has been accomplished three times, most recently by Kyler Dunkle in 2018-19.
Braxton Watts pocketed his third top 20 finish of the campaign by tying for 20th at 1-under, which was also the mark he finished the final round with. Watts piled up six total birdies, four of them coming on the back nine, where he was 2-under, leading to a 1-under 71 on Tuesday.
Gabriel Palacios put together his best 18 holes during the competition in round three, carding a 2-under 70, including a 3-under 33 over his first nine holes. That score enabled him to climb up into a tie for 32nd, while Sergio Jimenez left with a share of 50th.
LIVE SCORING
To keep up with all the action, fans can visit Golfstat.com.
FOLLOW THE UTES
For an inside look at the Utah Golf program along with tournament, roster and news updates, fans can follow the Utes on social media (Twitter: @UtesGolf | Instagram: @UtesGolf).
Players Mentioned
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