Colorado University Athletics
Swanson nailed a 6-foot putt after sunset to close his round Thursday.
Photo by: CUBuffs.com
Golfers Open In Eighth in Stanford's "The Goodwin"
March 26, 2026 | Men's Golf
Rivera, Swanson pace Buffaloes with 69's
PALO ALTO, Calif. – The University of Colorado men's golf team opened in eighth place here, literally after the sun had set, after one round of play in Stanford's "The Goodwin."
Host and No. 23 Stanford owns the lead after one round, turning in an 11-under par team score of 269, good for a one-stroke lead over No. 31 Long Beach State. No. 21 New Mexico is two back at 271, with a three-way tie for fourth a 5-under 275 between No. 24 BYU, No. 47 SMU and No. 66 California.
The Buffaloes, ranked No. 44, landed in eighth place with a 2-under 278, its 22nd subpar team round of the year (out of 27 overall). Two birdies on CU's last hole of the round – the 364-yard, par-4 9th – enabled the Buffaloes to finish the marathon day in the red. CU was among the final groups to tee off, and the last four players on the course completed their play in the dusk in rounds that took 5½ hours to finish.
Colorado got out of the chute slow, the five Buffs starting on the back nine and playing their first five holes a combined 8-over par; the finished the last four at 6-under. They closed strong, with seven birdies and only one bogey in the final three down the stretch. In the end, Colorado was one of five teams that had its four scorers all record scores of par or better, helping CU land in the top 10 with nearly half of the 30-team field – 14 schools – ranked in the nation's top 50, with 23 in the top 100 (311 schools are in Division I).
"A really good job by the guys to finish the day under par," CU head coach Roy Edwards said. "We just labored through the round but we were impressed by their very good attitudes and mental approaches to the round."
Senior Hunter Swanson fashioned a 1-under 69 heading into the second round on the 6,742-yard, par-70 Stanford Golf Course. The last player to finish Thursday, he birdied No. 9 after chipping his second shot to within six feet. He had four birdies and 11 pars with three bogeys on the day, and was 2-under on the par-5's, even on the par-3's and 1-over on the par-4's. He opened with back-to-back bogeys on Nos. 12 and 13, but played the remainder of his round at 3-under.
First-year graduate transfer Jackson Rivera also carded a 1-under par 69, joining Swanson in a tie for 27th. He had three birdies, a team-high 13 pars and two bogeys to reach his score, ending his round with 13 consecutive holes of par or better. Daring back to his time at USC, it was his third straight subpar round in the event. He was 1-under on the par-5's and even on the par-3's and par-4's.
Junior Brandon Knight is tied for 42nd after opening with an even-par 70; he was as consistent as they come on Thursday, playing all three par configurations even in recording a team-high five birdies (tied for 11th-most in the 160-man field), with nine pars opposite three bogeys and one double. Four of his birdies came on the back nine, as he made the turn at 3-under after scoring a 32. He played the first six on the front at 4-over, doubling No. 6, but came right back with a birdie on No. 7 that brought him back to even. His birdie on the tough 474-yard, par-4 12th hole was one of just 12 on it Thursday.
Junior Ty Holbrook matched Knight's 69, doing so by also birdying No. 9 prior to Swanson's effort. He recorded his fifth eagle of the season – tying Knight for the team-high – on the 505-yard, par-5 16th and was 3-under on the par-5's for the round (tied for fourth in the field); he was 1-over on the par-3's and 2-over on the par-4's. He otherwise had two birdies, 12 pars two bogeys and a double.
Sophomore Parker Paxton is tied for 102nd after turning in a 4-over 74. After opening with two pars, a double bogey on No. 12 had him chasing par the remainder of the round. He was 5-over with three holes to play, but finished with back-to-back birdies on Nos. 7 and 8 before wrapping the day with a bogey on No. 9.
Four players are tied for the individual lead with 5-under 65 scores; 12 players are within two strokes of the lead.
The second round is set for Friday, with Colorado's quintet teeing off starting at 9 a.m. MDT, and will again be paired with No. 36 TCU, No. 39 Washington and No. 41 Northwestern. The third and final round will be on Saturday.
NOTES: The tournament is named for longtime Stanford coach Wally Goodwin (who also coached at Northern Colorado) … The temperature reached 78 degrees under mostly sunny skies all day, with no major win issues; will be a little warmer Friday but with more cloud cover … The abnormally large field of 160 players forced CU's foursomes to tee off 15 minutes late on No. 10 (1:20 through 2:08 p.m. PDT; sunset in Palo Alto was at 7:27) … This is the 28th time the Buffs are competing in Stanford's major tournament (previously called "The Nelson"). CU's best finish was first in 1991-92, when it was held in the fall (11-over 863 team score, defeating Pepperdine by eight shots), with the best individual finish by a Buff that same year by junior Scott Petersen (71-69-71—211; -2), one stroke behind Pepperdine's Lars Herne … The Buffs finished second last year … Rivera tied for 16th in the event when he was a sophomore at USC, turning in an even par scorecard of 73-69-68—210 in the 155-man field … The average score for all 160 rounds was 72.29 (73.50 for the 80 in the morning and 71.08 for the 80 in the afternoon) … CU's quintet averaged 70.4 for its five rounds … There are 41 players under par at present (though 23 are just 1-under) and another 15 in at even … In the first round, 15 of the 18 holes played over-par on average … The nine toughest holes for the day, in order were Nos. 6, 12, 3, 10, 4, 2, 5, 17 and 18; Colorado's four scorers played those fairly well at 4-over; Stanford's played them the best at 2-under … The five Buffs played the par-3's at 1-over (third-best in the field; Long Beach State was 2-under to lead), the par-5's at 7-under (sixth, Stanford was best at 12-under) and the par-4's at 8-over (11th; BYU led at 4-under) … Colorado tied for 11th in both birdies (17; LBSU had 23) and pars (54; Nevada had 63). CU's 15 bogeys were the eighth-fewest (Cal has 12) … Holbrook continued his master of the par-5's (102 such holes): four eagles, 47 birdies, 45 pars and six bogeys, or 49-under par on the season … Swanson recorded his 41st career round in the 60's as well as his 53rd subpar score (fourth and sixth and rising, respectively in school history).
ALUMNI WATCH: Jeremy Paul ('17) opened with a 4-under 68 to stand tied for 29th in the Korn Ferry Tour's Club Car Championship at The Landings Golf & Athletic Club. Victor Bjorlow ('21) finished 42nd in the DP World PGTI Open in Haryana, India last Sunday (7-under 281), a the Hotel Planner Tour event.
Host and No. 23 Stanford owns the lead after one round, turning in an 11-under par team score of 269, good for a one-stroke lead over No. 31 Long Beach State. No. 21 New Mexico is two back at 271, with a three-way tie for fourth a 5-under 275 between No. 24 BYU, No. 47 SMU and No. 66 California.
The Buffaloes, ranked No. 44, landed in eighth place with a 2-under 278, its 22nd subpar team round of the year (out of 27 overall). Two birdies on CU's last hole of the round – the 364-yard, par-4 9th – enabled the Buffaloes to finish the marathon day in the red. CU was among the final groups to tee off, and the last four players on the course completed their play in the dusk in rounds that took 5½ hours to finish.
Colorado got out of the chute slow, the five Buffs starting on the back nine and playing their first five holes a combined 8-over par; the finished the last four at 6-under. They closed strong, with seven birdies and only one bogey in the final three down the stretch. In the end, Colorado was one of five teams that had its four scorers all record scores of par or better, helping CU land in the top 10 with nearly half of the 30-team field – 14 schools – ranked in the nation's top 50, with 23 in the top 100 (311 schools are in Division I).
"A really good job by the guys to finish the day under par," CU head coach Roy Edwards said. "We just labored through the round but we were impressed by their very good attitudes and mental approaches to the round."
Senior Hunter Swanson fashioned a 1-under 69 heading into the second round on the 6,742-yard, par-70 Stanford Golf Course. The last player to finish Thursday, he birdied No. 9 after chipping his second shot to within six feet. He had four birdies and 11 pars with three bogeys on the day, and was 2-under on the par-5's, even on the par-3's and 1-over on the par-4's. He opened with back-to-back bogeys on Nos. 12 and 13, but played the remainder of his round at 3-under.
First-year graduate transfer Jackson Rivera also carded a 1-under par 69, joining Swanson in a tie for 27th. He had three birdies, a team-high 13 pars and two bogeys to reach his score, ending his round with 13 consecutive holes of par or better. Daring back to his time at USC, it was his third straight subpar round in the event. He was 1-under on the par-5's and even on the par-3's and par-4's.
Junior Brandon Knight is tied for 42nd after opening with an even-par 70; he was as consistent as they come on Thursday, playing all three par configurations even in recording a team-high five birdies (tied for 11th-most in the 160-man field), with nine pars opposite three bogeys and one double. Four of his birdies came on the back nine, as he made the turn at 3-under after scoring a 32. He played the first six on the front at 4-over, doubling No. 6, but came right back with a birdie on No. 7 that brought him back to even. His birdie on the tough 474-yard, par-4 12th hole was one of just 12 on it Thursday.
Junior Ty Holbrook matched Knight's 69, doing so by also birdying No. 9 prior to Swanson's effort. He recorded his fifth eagle of the season – tying Knight for the team-high – on the 505-yard, par-5 16th and was 3-under on the par-5's for the round (tied for fourth in the field); he was 1-over on the par-3's and 2-over on the par-4's. He otherwise had two birdies, 12 pars two bogeys and a double.
Sophomore Parker Paxton is tied for 102nd after turning in a 4-over 74. After opening with two pars, a double bogey on No. 12 had him chasing par the remainder of the round. He was 5-over with three holes to play, but finished with back-to-back birdies on Nos. 7 and 8 before wrapping the day with a bogey on No. 9.
Four players are tied for the individual lead with 5-under 65 scores; 12 players are within two strokes of the lead.
The second round is set for Friday, with Colorado's quintet teeing off starting at 9 a.m. MDT, and will again be paired with No. 36 TCU, No. 39 Washington and No. 41 Northwestern. The third and final round will be on Saturday.
NOTES: The tournament is named for longtime Stanford coach Wally Goodwin (who also coached at Northern Colorado) … The temperature reached 78 degrees under mostly sunny skies all day, with no major win issues; will be a little warmer Friday but with more cloud cover … The abnormally large field of 160 players forced CU's foursomes to tee off 15 minutes late on No. 10 (1:20 through 2:08 p.m. PDT; sunset in Palo Alto was at 7:27) … This is the 28th time the Buffs are competing in Stanford's major tournament (previously called "The Nelson"). CU's best finish was first in 1991-92, when it was held in the fall (11-over 863 team score, defeating Pepperdine by eight shots), with the best individual finish by a Buff that same year by junior Scott Petersen (71-69-71—211; -2), one stroke behind Pepperdine's Lars Herne … The Buffs finished second last year … Rivera tied for 16th in the event when he was a sophomore at USC, turning in an even par scorecard of 73-69-68—210 in the 155-man field … The average score for all 160 rounds was 72.29 (73.50 for the 80 in the morning and 71.08 for the 80 in the afternoon) … CU's quintet averaged 70.4 for its five rounds … There are 41 players under par at present (though 23 are just 1-under) and another 15 in at even … In the first round, 15 of the 18 holes played over-par on average … The nine toughest holes for the day, in order were Nos. 6, 12, 3, 10, 4, 2, 5, 17 and 18; Colorado's four scorers played those fairly well at 4-over; Stanford's played them the best at 2-under … The five Buffs played the par-3's at 1-over (third-best in the field; Long Beach State was 2-under to lead), the par-5's at 7-under (sixth, Stanford was best at 12-under) and the par-4's at 8-over (11th; BYU led at 4-under) … Colorado tied for 11th in both birdies (17; LBSU had 23) and pars (54; Nevada had 63). CU's 15 bogeys were the eighth-fewest (Cal has 12) … Holbrook continued his master of the par-5's (102 such holes): four eagles, 47 birdies, 45 pars and six bogeys, or 49-under par on the season … Swanson recorded his 41st career round in the 60's as well as his 53rd subpar score (fourth and sixth and rising, respectively in school history).
ALUMNI WATCH: Jeremy Paul ('17) opened with a 4-under 68 to stand tied for 29th in the Korn Ferry Tour's Club Car Championship at The Landings Golf & Athletic Club. Victor Bjorlow ('21) finished 42nd in the DP World PGTI Open in Haryana, India last Sunday (7-under 281), a the Hotel Planner Tour event.
| BUFFALO INDIVIDUALS |
| T27. | Jackson Rivera | 34-35—69 |
| T27. | Hunter Swanson | 34-35—69 |
| T42. | Ty Holbrook | 34-36—70 |
| T42. | Brandon Knight | 38-32—70 |
| T102. | Parker Paxton | 36-37—73 |
| INDIVIDUAL LEADERS |
| T1. | Dylan Burcham, Washington State | 34-31—65 |
| T1. | Ramil Saelim, Oregon | 33-32—65 |
| T1. | Jay Leng, Stanford | 31-34—65 |
| T1. | Steen Zeman, Long Beach State | 33-32—65 |
| 5. | Keshav Mungali, San Jose State | 36-30—66 |
| TEAM STANDINGS |
| 1. | Stanford | 269 |
| 2. | Long Beach State | 270 |
| 3. | New Mexico | 271 |
| T4. | SMU | 275 |
| T4. | California | 275 |
| T4. | Brigham Young | 275 |
| 7. | UCLA | 276 |
| 8. | COLORADO | 278 |
| 9. | Utah | 279 |
| T10. | Oregon | 280 |
| T10. | San Diego State | 280 |
| 12. | Washington State | 281 |
| 13. | Nevada | 283 |
| T14. | Northwestern | 284 |
| T14. | Washington | 284 |
| T16. | UC Davis | 285 |
| T16. | San Jose State | 285 |
| 18. | Howard | 286 |
| T19. | Grand Canyon | 287 |
| T19. | Georgia Tech | 287 |
| T21. | Hawai'i-Hilo | 289 |
| T21. | TCU | 289 |
| 23. | Arkansas-Little Rock | 290 |
| T24. | Cincinnati | 291 |
| T24. | Eastern Michigan | 291 |
| 26. | Cal Poly | 292 |
| 27. | Santa Clara | 294 |
| 28. | Pacific | 295 |
| 29. | Boise State | 298 |
| 30. | Colorado State | 300 |
Players Mentioned
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