Edwards Inks Top Australian Golfer
May 26, 2010 | Men's Golf
BOULDER A decade ago, the University of Colorado men's golf program struck gold in signing three native Australians, and coach Roy Edwards has returned to that well in signing Patrick Wilson to a letter of intent to attend CU beginning this fall.
Wilson hails from Dubbo, a small city about 200 miles northwest of Sydney in the state of New South Wales (NSW). He is the No. 15 ranked amateur overall in Australia, with most of the players ahead of him either already playing in the United States or are in the process of turning professional.
He was ranked as the No. 256 amateur in the world in the latest World Amateur Golf Rankings of May 16, and is also the No. 212 player in the Scratch Players World Amateur Rankings. Golfweek has him pegged as the No. 98 ranked amateur in the world and the 10th-ranked amateur in Australia.
Some of his top results include winning the Kooinda Waters Cup last year, the Killara Cup and Parkes Open in 2008, setting a tournament record in the latter, and the Yowani Open in 2007. The 2009 NSW State Foursomes champion, he was a semifinalist earlier this year in the NSW Amateur Championship, was runner-up in the Australian Foursomes Championship, tied for sixth in the Federal Open Amateur and tied for ninth in the Lake Macquarie International. His NSW Vardon average for 2009-10 is 70.1 which included his career best round of 63 (9-under par at Long Reef Golf Club); he was 13th on the 2008-09 list with a 70.64 average.
He was also the captain of the NSW Colts team, which finished second in the Interstate series. He won eight of nine matches playing as the team's No. 1 man. As a junior, he won numerous state competitions including the prestigious Muswellbrook Junior title in 2006, and was runner-up to his brother the same year in the NSW State Age Junior Championship.
The late Mark Simpson, who Edwards replaced, brought Stephen Carroll, Kane Webber and Matt Zions over to the states after all enjoyed successful amateur careers in Australia. All three earned four letters, with Webber exiting as CU's all-time scoring average leader (72.9), with Zions sixth and Carroll 11th. Webber was a third-team All-American as a senior in 2004 and was a three-time All-Big 12 performer, with Zions honored once by the conference.
"We are extremely excited to announce the signing of Pat Wilson," Edwards said. "He is an excellent player with worldwide experience who will fit in nicely with our talented veteran group coming back next year and for years to come. Coach Simpson did an outstanding job of recruiting some top-flight Australian players over the years that are great Buffs and we are excited to start re-building that relationship."
"We look forward to Pat coming in and having an opportunity to compete for a spot in our lineup and be a hard-working member of our team of guys who are already here," Edwards added. "He joins a group of young Buffs who are dedicated and self-motivated to be the best they can possibly be."
"I think the competition on the U.S. college golf circuit will be tough, but I am looking forward to the challenge," Wilson said. "I see this as a fantastic opportunity to build my game and see how I can manage in a completely different golfing environment, and am excited at the prospect of being part of the team. I chose Colorado when I thought about the type of country and climate which appeals to me."
Wilson, who is 21, spent a year working in the United States and Canada after graduating from high school in 2006, noting that the "mountains struck me as just awesome. After a season working on the mountain at Whistler, Canada, I wanted to go somewhere with snow and mountains, neither of which we have in my hometown." He was accepted into the University of New England in Armidale upon his high school graduation, where he intended to study regional and town planning. At CU, he was impressed by CU's Environment Design program of which he plans to major.
Wilson has also spent time as a golf counsellor to young children, both in Australia and at Kutsher's Summer Camp in New York State. He has an identical twin brother, Lindsay, who resides in Whistler.
Edwards has one scholarship remaining, but indicated he hadn't yet decided to offer someone else in this recruiting class or choose to save it for the 2011 recruiting class.