San Diego is one of the premier golf destinations within the United States. Known for its scenic views, beautiful landscapes, and ideal temperatures, year-round golf is something you just cannot get in most places around the country.
The area boasts immaculate courses such as Torrey Pines and the recently renovated Omni La Costa in Carlsbad. Both will host the Men’s and Women’s NCAA Championships for at least the next three years.
Enjoying this lucrative region is the San Diego State men’s golf team. A program that, over the years, has become nationally relevant with 29 NCAA Division I championship appearances—a school record for championship berths.
Most recently reaching the national stage in 2021, the program has earned a spot in the NCAA Championship a total 7 times since 2003, including a 5th place finish in 2012. Guiding the Aztecs to these heights is Ryan Donovan, who just completed his 21st season as head coach.
Golf has fostered a plethora of recent success. The Aztecs have claimed three straight Mountain West Championships. A total of 6 in program history, all coming under Donovan’s mentorship.
The 2024 title was won in a one-hole playoff against the New Mexico Lobos who, two weeks later, finished one spot ahead of the Aztecs in the West Lafayette regional to advance to the NCAA D1 Championship.
That’s the nature of golf.
Donovan is known as a “hands-off” golf coach who knowns how to recruit, embraces individualism, and churns out pros with minimal resources. I mean, every time you tune into a PGA event on CBS, you’re almost guaranteed to hear Jim Nantz mention San Diego State University.
The program has developed many successful pros under Donovan’s mentorship including PGA Tour players J.J. Spaun and recent PGA Championship winner Xander Schauffele, who both earned third-team all-american honors during their time on the mesa, as well as Gunn Yang.
Of course, college sports is currently experiencing drastic changes with NIL and the latest ruling that P5 schools (and all Division 1 NCAA athletics) can begin to pay their student athletes in the upcoming season.
So, how will these changes effect the future of SDSU men’s golf? Xander’s recent major championship victory definitely helps.
Steve Sugimoto, a PGA Tour hopeful who played for the Aztecs from 2017-2022 and recently started his rookie season on the Japan Tour says that, even with these rulings, SDSU still has a lot to offer.
“It’s a program that has produced many successful pros over the years. The campus, the weather, access to different golf courses, and the proximity to most major golf companies makes SDSU attractive. They also schedule the toughest tournaments at the nicest courses in the country against top teams every year”.
The future remains open-ended, but the program’s distinguished past makes it an enticing destination for recruits.
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