TPC Colorado, Boulder CC among Colorado courses set to host Div. I college golf tourneys during the fall season
By Gary Baines – 9/3/2022
We haven’t even reached Labor Day, but already the first event of the college golf season for Colorado-based programs is upon us. The University of Colorado men’s squad will get things going for real on Sunday by teeing it up at the Notre Dame Fighting Irish Classic in South Bend, Ind.
Two Coloradans will be in the lineup for the Buffs — Hunter Swanson of Denver and Jack Hughes of Aspen, with Swanson competing in his first college tournament. Tucker Clark, a transfer from Notre Dame, will play in his old school’s home event.
As always, the fall season will be packed with NCAA Division I tournaments held in Colorado. Specifically, seven such events are on tap in just a six-week stretch starting Sept. 9 — four on the men’s side and three on the women’s. First up will be the 53rd Gene Miranda Falcon Invitational that the Air Force Academy men’s team hosts Sept. 9-11 at the Blue Course at Eisenhower. All five Colorado-based men’s teams will be on hand — Air Force, CU, Colorado State, the University of Northern Colorado and University of Denver.
Two of the Colorado venues this fall are out of the ordinary.
The CU men’s Mark Simpson Colorado Invitational, normally held at Colorado National in Erie, is set for Oct. 3-4 at Boulder Country Club, with the Buffs, DU and UNC in the field.
And the DU men, who have hosted fall tournaments at Colorado Golf Club in Parker several times in recent years, will hold an event at TPC Colorado in Berthoud — home to The Ascendant presented by Blue Korn Ferry Tour event — Oct. 17-19. Local teams scheduled to compete include DU, CSU, UNC and Air Force.
Here’s a rundown of all the DI golf tournaments that will be conducted in Colorado this fall season, with the local teams competing in parenthesis.
Men
Sept. 9-11 — Gene Miranda Falcon Invitational, Eisenhower GC (Blue Course) at Air Force Academy (host Air Force, CU, CSU, DU, UNC)
Sept. 19-20 — Ram Masters Invitational, Fort Collins CC (host CSU, UNC, DU, Air Force)
Oct. 3-4 — Mark Simpson Colorado Invitational, Boulder CC (host CU, UNC, DU)
Oct. 17-19 — DU TPC Colorado at Heron Lakes Collegiate, TPC Colorado in Berthoud (host DU, CSU, UNC, Air Force)
Women
Sept. 26-27 — Colonel Wollenberg Ptarmigan Ram Classic, Ptarmigan CC in Fort Collins (host CSU)
Sept. 26-28 — Golfweek Red Sky Challenge, Red Sky GC in Wolcott (CU, UNC)
Oct. 7-9 — Ron Moore Women’s Intercollegiate, DU GC at Highlands Ranch (host DU, CU, CSU)
And here are the season openers for Colorado’s nine Division I college golf teams:
CU Men — Notre Dame Fighting Irish Classic, South Bend, Ind., Sept. 4-5
CSU, DU, Air Force and UNC Men — Gene Miranda Falcon Invitational, Eisenhower GC at Air Force Academy, Sept. 9-11
CU Women — Olympic Club Invitational, San Francisco, Sept. 12-13
UNC Women — Tulane Green Wave Classic, New Orleans, Sept. 12-13
DU Women — Dick McGuire Invitational, Albuquerque, N.M., Sept. 12-13
CSU Women — Badger Invitational, Madison, Wis., Sept. 18-20
Colorado Golf Journal 