Utah Golf Earns a Return to NCAA Championships

AUSTIN, Texas – Led by a 3-under 68 from freshman Gabriel Palacios, the University of Utah men’s golf team carded a score of 2-under during the final round of the NCAA Austin Regional, enabling them to make a late charge into fourth place and secure the program’s second berth in the NCAA Championships in three years on Wednesday afternoon at The University of Texas Golf Club in Austin, Texas
 
“I’m so impressed by our freshmen,” said coach Garrett Clegg. “They were amazing today and our entire team, 1-through-5 was incredible this week. I love these guys and for their hard work to be rewarded like this is so incredible. I’m extremely excited for nationals and look forward to getting these boys ready to go!”
 
This will be Utah’s eighth appearance at the NCAA Championships in program history and first time they’ve reached the national stage twice in three seasons in more than 70 years. The Utes reached nationals three consecutive times from 1948 – 50.
 
The Utes found themselves multiple strokes outside the top five into the second half of Wednesday’s round, but, after starting the day on the back nine, Palacios, Sergio Jimenez and Braxton Watts all carded scores in the red on the front nine. Those performances shot Utah past both Wake Forest and BYU and put Clegg’s crew in comfortable position to secure a trip to Omni La Costa Resort & Spa in Carlsbad, Calif., the site of the 2024 NCAA Men’s Golf Championships.
 
Palacios, who was tied for 49th after round one, jumped over 25 golfers during the final 18 holes while recording the second-lowest score of his freshman year. His 68 vaulted him into a tie for 12th despite beginning with a bogey on the par-4 10th, but that was his only misstep of the day. He finished the back nine 1-under, then ended the round strong with birdies on the seventh and ninth to conclude the tournament at 1-under.
 
Jimenez encountered a few difficult holes during the first half of his day, but shook off those obstacles to post a 1-under 34 on the front nine. Red scores on the first and sixth holes helped Jimenez enter the clubhouse at even-par, putting him 1-over for the tournament, and bumping him up four spots into a tie for 21st.
 
Watts was also even for the day and achieved that score in a similar fashion, brushing off a couple tough holes early on before a strong finish. He…