How the Colorado Christian University men's golf team became a powerhouse
Last year Colorado Christian men's golf team did the unthinkable. They won the Division II national championship.
"It was really unbelievable," said head coach Mark Hull. "It's still hard to believe, we're just little Colorado Christian University."
"When it happened it was super surreal," added senior Adam Duncan. "But then it was like, 'Oh, we've trained for this moment so it didn't feel like it was groundbreaking.'"
With all due respect to Duncan, it was. It was CCU's first national title in any sport -- ever. And the Cougars are the first collegiate golf team in Colorado at any level to win the title. So how did the Cougars become a golf powerhouse?
"It's the guys," Hull said. "When I recruited this group I knew we were going to have something special."
If they were special last year, they're even better this year. CCU hasn't lost a single tournament against Division II competition and they're a combined 105-0 against all other teams. So when Coach Hull says it's the guys, he's not lying. The Coogs' top 4 players are also the top 4 players in the country.
"I would say that our top 7 players could all play mid- to high-level Division I golf," Hull exclaimed.
They're led by Adam Duncan. He's the favorite to the Division II player of the year award. He's won four times this year.
"We've won every tournament and we've had we've had an individual player win all but one tournament," Duncan said. "So if you lose, it's probably to a teammate, which is a good feeling to have."
Fellow senior Xavier Bighaus has won two tournaments this season and is currently the 4th ranked D-II golfer. He flirted with the transfer portal but eventually couldn't leave the Coogs.
"There were a few (schools) and a couple good ones and they were all really nice to me," Bighaus recalled. "I'm thankful for the opportunities they were willing to give me but CCU is my home. A ton of schools may have better facilities or more money to throw at you but those things don't necessarily equate to wins or playing well."
And don't sleep on Sungyeop Cho, who is the 2nd ranked golfer in D-II and has an incredibly bright future.
"In order of achieving his goals of playing on the PGA Tour I had to encourage him to go play at the Division I level," said Hull. "I'm not going to say who he is committing to, but it's one of the best Division I programs in the country."
Needless to say, CCU has a target on its back, but they don't mind. They're confident and loose despite all the pressure and expectations that revolve around the program.
"So many people think that we have that target on our back and we'll feel some pressure," Duncan said. "If we compete with excellence in every event, we'll be just fine."
You may wonder how CCU would fare against Division I competition. They played in one D-I tournament this season. Bighaus won the individual title while the Cougars finished second.
