CARLSBAD, California — Competing in his third and final NCAA Championship from May 23-25, University of Utah senior Braxton Watts closed the curtain on a standout collegiate golf career this weekend at Omni La Costa Resort & Spa.
Watts, who qualified for the NCAA Championships as one of six individual golfers nationwide after winning the Bremerton Regional, represented the Utes for the last time on college golf’s biggest stage. His road to Carlsbad included back-to-back 6-under rounds at regionals, helping him surge to the top of the leaderboard and earn his second career collegiate victory.
“Braxton has played in three NCAA Championships, which is the most all-time for any Utah golfer, so I’m happy he was able to end his career here,” Utah head coach Garrett Clegg said. “I’m really proud of him and all that we accomplished this year.”
Watts’ final tournament began with a tough first round Friday, where he posted a 6-over 78. Despite playing 16 solid holes, a double and quadruple bogey derailed an otherwise steady round. He salvaged momentum with a birdie on the 18th hole.
“He played good golf yesterday but just ran into a couple of major disasters,” Clegg said after the opening round. “He avoided those today and that was really the difference.”
In Saturday’s second round, Watts bounced back with a 1-over 73, climbing 33 spots on the leaderboard. His round included four birdies, including two back-to-back on the back nine. Despite a few bogeys, Watts showed resilience to stay in contention for Monday’s final round cut.
However, Sunday’s third round saw Watts card a 5-over 77, bringing his 54-hole total to 12-over-par. The result placed him in a tie for 108th overall, outside the top nine individual cut line needed to advance to the final round of stroke play.
“He started off really solidly but couldn’t quite convert birdie opportunities,” Clegg said of the third round. “He struggled with his driver on a few holes and it cost him a number of strokes.”
Watts’ career at Utah ends with numerous accolades, including being just the fourth Ute in program history to compete at the NCAA Championships as an individual. He joins the ranks of Dustin Pimm (2006), Kyler Dunkle (2019) and Tristan Mandur (2021). Mandur holds the best individual finish in program history, placing 17th in 2021.
While Watts didn’t make the final day, his performance caps a historic season for the Utes, who narrowly missed qualifying as a team at the Bremerton Regional. Watts was the lone player in the fixed starting lineup to not record a win this season, until his regional title punched his ticket to Carlsbad.
As the top eight teams advance to match play, Watts can reflect on a career defined by consistency, grit, and leadership traits that earned him the nickname “The Captain.” His final walk on the NCAA stage may not have ended with hardware, but his legacy as one of Utah golf’s all-time greats is firmly cemented.
