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- BYU men's golf team and Utah's Braxton Watts advance to NCAA Championships.
- BYU topped Reno regional, finishing 15-under; Ponich runner-up with 7-under 209.
- Watts won Bremerton regional at 12-under; Utah team missed advancing by one stroke.
PROVO — The BYU men's golf team and the University of Utah's top golfer each won separate regionals to advance to the NCAA Championships.
Cole Ponich shot 71-71-67 for a three-day total of 7-under-par 209 and runner-up honors individually as the Cougars finished 15-under to top the NCAA's Reno regional after a series of wild weather delays Wednesday evening at Montreux Golf and Country Club.
BYU finished four shots up on No. 9 Virginia, followed by No. 4 Texas, San Diego and California to round out the top-five team qualifiers. It's the second time in three years the Cougars have qualified for the national tournament.
"The guys stepped up to all the weather delays this week," BYU coach Bruce Brockbank said in a news release. "They played great golf in the most difficult conditions we've faced all year. The seniors led our team, especially with Cole finishing runner-up in an event like this. It was a team effort throughout the week. I'm excited for our team."
Ponich, the reigning Utah State amateur champion, drained six birdies with just one bogey in the final round, surging up five spots toward the top of the leaderboard after 54 holes.
Peter Kim added a fifth-place finish at 5-under 211 with an eagle on the par-5 fifth hole in the final round. He made 14 birdies over the three-day regional, the second-most in the field. Zac Jones added an 11th-place finish at 215, and Simon Kwon carded a top-25 finish at 3-over.
"It feels great to compete in a tournament where the pressure is high," Ponich said. "We all handled the tough conditions well. We committed to giving everything we had, and that's exactly what we did. This result gives us a lot of confidence heading into the championship, but we know we still have work to do. I'm excited to close out my career at BYU with my teammates and coaches at the national championship."
The Cougars won't be the only Utah golfers representing at next week's NCAA championships May 23-28 at Omni La Costa Resort in Carlsbad, California.
Braxton is heading to the NCAA Championship! 🙌
— Utah Men's Golf (@UtesGolf) May 15, 2025
With this week's outstanding effort (-12) at the Bremerton Regional, the senior will compete as an individual and represent the Utes in Carlsbad, Calif.⛳️🏌️#GoUtes#TicketPunchedpic.twitter.com/qz6kMoiog7
Utah senior Braxton Watts drained four birdies without a bogey in his final round to climb to the top of the NCAA's Bremerton regional at 12-under 204 and book an individual spot in the championships.
Watts is the fifth different Ute golfer to win a tournament this season in the program's sixth individual title in 2025.The team finished 1-over-par to finish sixth in the regional — one stroke from advancing behind fifth-place South Carolina (E).
"This team has a lot of heart, and they don't know how to quit," Utah coach Garrett Clegg said in a news release. "We gave it everything to try to advance today but we just couldn't get it done. I'm so happy for Braxton. He played incredible golf this week and it's great that he will finish his season at the NCAA championships. It's really incredible what the team did during this season; they're truly a special group."
Florida won the regional at 28-under, followed by Arizona State (-25), Colorado (-4) and USF (-2). Oklahoma State also tied for the top spot at the Urbana (Illinois) regional, giving the Big 12 five teams to advance to the NCAA championships — the second consecutive year the conference has represented five of the 30 team qualifiers.
