CARLSBAD – Cal played in the 2024 NCAA men’s golf championships at the Omni La Costa Resort & Spa and finished 20th with a pair of freshmen in the lineup, Ethan Fang and Eric Lee.
Fang and Lee were at La Costa again this year and on Wednesday evening were hoisting the national championship trophy … for Oklahoma State after a 4-1 match play victory against Virginia.
The NCAA’s relaxed transfer regulations have made switching allegiances far more prevalent across all sports, but how often does a team win a natty with 40% of its lineup transferring from the same school?
“Anytime you can add a good player, it sure makes your job easier as a coach,” said Cowboys coach Alan Bratton, whose team ended the season on a five tournament win streak. “But they fit right in, Ethan and Eric both. They really gel. You want that every year with your team. You don’t always get it.
“Players like that don’t go into the portal every day.”
Fang was the first to submit his name and, having grown up a few hours away from Oklahoma State in north Texas, didn’t consider any other schools.
Lee, who grew up in Fullerton, initially planned to stay. Then Fang put on the hard press.
“After a lot of convincing,” Fang said, “we finally got him.”
Lee’s take: “It wasn’t an easy decision. I loved all the guys on the (Cal) team. I just felt like if I wanted to take my game to the next level and contend for a national championship, my chances would be the best at Oklahoma State.”
Prophetic words, it turns out. Lee clinched both the semifinal and final wins in dramatic fashion. In Tuesday’s semis against Cohen Trolio of Ole Miss, their anchor match went to a sudden-death playoff after both birdieing 18 and the team match tied 2-2.
They played the 16th hole again in fading light, and Lee prevailed with a tricky 5-foot putt for par to put the Cowboys in the final.
Said Lee: “I told the guys on the team yesterday that, ‘I hope it doesn’t come down to me (again). I hope you guys finish it before I finish my match.’”
On Wednesday, it came down to him again. He drained a 30-foot serpentine putt on 17 to go 1up, then pushed his approach shot on 18 into the weeds behind a video screen and power generator right of the green. Assistant coach Stratton Nolen walked up the apron to the green, pointing to where he wanted Lee to land his chip on the first, second and third bounces.
Then Lee did exactly that, the ball skidding to a stop a few feet from the cup to ensure he’d at least tie the hole and clinch the Cowboys’ 12th national title, second most in the modern era behind Houston’s 16. (Yale won 21 between 1897 and 1943, although only one was an official NCAA championship.)
“Just a special feeling every time you get to do it,” said Bratton, whose alums include Viktor Hovland, No. 13 in the world golf rankings, and more than a dozen others currently on pro tours.
There may be more in store. The Cowboys’ lineup Wednesday consisted of Swedish freshman Filip Fahlberg-Johnsson and four sophomores.
“We have a young team, so I know we can get even better than we are now,” Lee said. “It’s a lot of positives going into the future.”
