Cal golf

[carrera]

Huge anonymous donation..$23 million.. announced today.  Will pay for a big upgrade in practice facilities at TPC Stonebrae.  Team can already play everywhere in Bay Area, but that is a big plus.

 

https://inspire.berkeley.edu/o/new-era-teed-up-for-cal-golf/

[leezer99]

You’re welcome UCB. 

[grm24]

23 minutes ago, carrera said:

Huge anonymous donation..$23 million.. announced today. 

That's really nice of you Kev!!!!! 😁😁

[leezer99]

I told my wife and she immediately says, "I bet you can tie that to a recent commit".  🤣

[happygolucky]

1 hour ago, leezer99 said:

I told my wife and she immediately says, "I bet you can tie that to a recent commit".  🤣

Which one do you think? Intl?

[Tugu]

Thoughts...

 

Is it Stonebrae CC or TPC Stonebrae?

 

If it is indeed linked to a recruit, why would one spend 23 mill to get a kid to Cal? There's a school across the bay that'd gladly offer a spot for the money.

 

Was this donation in the pipeline and the reason why former coach was given his marching orders unceremoniously? One surely doesn't decide on a 23 mill gift on a whim without conditions.

 

How many new 135 pound, short and academically focused kids who use junior golf as a pathway to a great education will this grant effect? I'm guessing none, the abovementioned kids that Cal endlessly attract will still be attracted by Haas or the Comp Sci facilities.

 

Fun days ahead watching things develop.

Edited September 10, 2024 by Tugu

[golferdad8]

This was in the works for 25+ years & unlike large donations to the other side of the bay, it wasn’t a quid pro quo to get an athlete in. 

PS. Keep in mind this $ was for both the men & women’s program - and don’t be surprised if most of the $ will be going to the women’s program 😂
 

[leezer99]

9 hours ago, golferdad8 said:

This was in the works for 25+ years & unlike large donations to the other side of the bay, it wasn’t a quid pro quo to get an athlete in. 

PS. Keep in mind this $ was for both the men & women’s program - and don’t be surprised if most of the $ will be going to the women’s program 😂
 

 

25 years? Glad they didn't rush the process.

[Golfquant]

13 hours ago, carrera said:

Huge anonymous donation..$23 million.. announced today.  Will pay for a big upgrade in practice facilities at TPC Stonebrae.  Team can already play everywhere in Bay Area, but that is a big plus.

 

https://inspire.berkeley.edu/o/new-era-teed-up-for-cal-golf/

Where does the team currently practice?

 

$23mm sounds like the min/going rate to build a facility these days?

[Golfquant]

32 minutes ago, Golfquant said:

Where does the team currently practice?

 

$23mm sounds like the min/going rate to build a facility these days?

It looks like Stonebrae CC is 40 mins from Cal's campus?

[Tugu]

7 minutes ago, Golfquant said:

It looks like Stonebrae CC is 40 mins from Cal's campus?

Yup, worse if there's traffic. Even with 23 mill, the students arent just crossing the road like that school on the other side of the bay. From what I can gather, golf/student logistics is rapidly approaching that of LA based students.

 

Cal currently do Orinda, Metropolitan and assorted courses in the East bay. @golferdad8 would know exactly.

Edited September 10, 2024 by Tugu

[golferdad8]

1 hour ago, Golfquant said:

Where does the team currently practice?

 

$23mm sounds like the min/going rate to build a facility these days?

Team rotates among several courses including Stonebrae & Metro. 

$5M is toward building a dedicated practice facility area for Cal players...but it'll take $7-8M for the entire project. 

They also qualify at various courses around the bay area. 

Given that they're usually leaving early afternoon & early evenings, there's not as much traffic - so it might be even faster than USC or UCLA to get to their courses.

CA is tough - it's not that easy for most schools, and Pepperdine can take 45 min+ to get to Sherwood also. Besides, while it's nice to have a golf course across the street, a nice facility is not guarantee of success. Otherwise, Stanford Men's Golf would be winning national championships frequently like their Women's team. 

[Archimedes65]

20 minutes ago, golferdad8 said:

Otherwise, Stanford Men's Golf would be winning national championships frequently like their Women's team. 

 

Hmmm, didn’t their men just win the National Champions 5-6 years ago?  And haven’t they won 7 or 8 over the years vs. Cal’s 1?  They also won the PAC-12 five of the last ten years, and finished runner up two times as well.

 

Stanford GC is a huge advantage for that program.

[happygolucky]

With the new coach do we expect a shakeup on the men’s roster? Are their commits safe? When UCLA got a new coach it seemed like he cleaned house. 

[golferdad8]

35 minutes ago, Archimedes65 said:

 

Hmmm, didn’t their men just win the National Champions 5-6 years ago?  And haven’t they won 7 or 8 over the years vs. Cal’s 1?  They also won the PAC-12 five of the last ten years, and finished runner up two times as well.

 

Stanford GC is a huge advantage for that program.

The past does not equal the future - Stanford & Duke will continue to fade vs recent programs as neither are focused on NIL.
 

Not saying they won’t get good players but imho, they will not get the top golfers going forward that will get them to compete against the southern schools (who don’t require much academics). 

[Golfquant]

53 minutes ago, happygolucky said:

Are their commits safe?

they are in a "safe space" with hand being held on way to tour, according to some

 

no, they are not safe

[golferdad8]

No commits are safe, especially this year. Add to that coaching changes & NCAA/NIL lawsuit in limbo, and there's extra uncertainty all the way around. 

[Archimedes65]

2 hours ago, golferdad8 said:

The past does not equal the future - Stanford & Duke will continue to fade vs recent programs as neither are focused on NIL.
 

Not saying they won’t get good players but imho, they will not get the top golfers going forward that will get them to compete against the southern schools (who don’t require much academics). 

 

Stanford won the PAC 12 championship twice in the last five season, including just two years ago, and they were national champions just five seasons ago.  Oh, and they had the individual men’s champion in the Pac 12 last year.  And the #1 one player in the nation this season.   And a hall of fame coach.  Yeah, sounds like they’re really struggling with the program.

Edited September 10, 2024 by Archimedes65

[happygolucky]

Not making this about race, just an observation.  The most recent cal transfers and commitments seem like a departure from the cal team of the past. Intentional or coincidence?

[Tugu]

56 minutes ago, happygolucky said:

Not making this about race, just an observation.  The most recent cal transfers and commitments seem like a departure from the cal team of the past. Intentional or coincidence?

Do you mean Ethan Lien, Matthew Miyamoto, Ziqin Zhou, Kai Hirayama, Joshua Wang from 24 and 25 vs one Charlie Bundy from W & M?

 

Looks like a bunch of future finance/tech/consultants in the making. Same ole same ole.

Edited September 10, 2024 by Tugu

[MB19]

4 hours ago, Golfquant said:

Where does the team currently practice?

 

$23mm sounds like the min/going rate to build a facility these days?

It probably is in the Bay Area.

 

FSU's home course renovation was a paltry $8M and Tallahassee isn't a terribly expensive place to do these kinds of things.

 

Seminole Legacy is nice and all, but nobody will confuse it with a TPC course.

 

https://golfweek.usatoday.com/2019/11/01/golf-seminole-legacy-golf-club-in-tallahassee-nears-completion-after-nicklaus-renovation/

[golferdad8]

Just now, Tugu said:

Do you mean Ethan Lien, Matthew Miyamoto, Ziqin Zhou, Kai Hirayama, Joshua Wang from 24 and 25 vs one Charlie Bundy from W & M?

Tough to imagine more Asian than being 13/15 like before...so as 4 Asians transfer out, anything will look like being more mixed. 

 

That said, 3 out of the 4 new recruits from this past summer are not Asian (2 transfers and 2 new commits for 2025/2026). In addition, they cut one of the 2025 commits who's Asian. 

 

 

[LOB-Dwight]

17 minutes ago, Tugu said:

Do you mean Ethan Lien, Matthew Miyamoto, Ziqin Zhou, Kai Hirayama, Joshua Wang from 24 and 25 vs one Charlie Bundy from W & M?

 

Looks like a bunch of future finance/tech/consultants in the making. Same ole same ole.

Trevor Cox 2025 announced verbal today

[happygolucky]

19 minutes ago, Tugu said:

Do you mean Ethan Lien, Matthew Miyamoto, Ziqin Zhou, Kai Hirayama, Joshua Wang from 24 and 25 vs one Charlie Bundy from W & M?

 

Looks like a bunch of future finance/tech/consultants in the making. Same ole same ole.

I consider those guys WC’s recruits. I’m just saying Wilson’s recruits seem all non-Asians so far. 

[Tugu]

2 minutes ago, happygolucky said:

I consider those guys WC’s recruits. I’m just saying Wilson’s recruits seem all non-Asians so far. 

"If" Cal decide to go after golfers as opposed to the academically inclined who use junior golf to this end, how many parents plans have just been dashed? Communications is still a major at Cal right?

[Archimedes65]

1 hour ago, happygolucky said:

Not making this about race, just an observation.  The most recent cal transfers and commitments seem like a departure from the cal team of the past. Intentional or coincidence?

 

There is a very large Asian community in the Bay Area and in the student body at Cal.  It would not be unusual or surprising for their golf team to be reflective of that.  Nor is it unique to Cal, as many schools have multiple international players from Asia.

[Golfquant]

51 minutes ago, happygolucky said:

I consider those guys WC’s recruits. I’m just saying Wilson’s recruits seem all non-Asians so far. 

 

so will they play longer courses?

[mrshinsa]

29 minutes ago, Golfquant said:

 

so will they play longer courses?

What does being non-asian have to do with playing longer courses?  

[golferdad8]

I think the question is whether playing tournaments w longer course might change recruiting strategy, ie prioritize 300+ hitters vs 265-275 guys w solid short games. I’d say in general, the Asian players appear to be shorter than the longest hitters (often white). 

[leezer99]

41 minutes ago, golferdad8 said:

I think the question is whether playing tournaments w longer course might change recruiting strategy, ie prioritize 300+ hitters vs 265-275 guys w solid short games. I’d say in general, the Asian players appear to be shorter than the longest hitters (often white). 

 

I'll let you start the junior thread about the golf ball rollback and how it will impact the future of golf.