Colorado State University Athletics
Thursday, September 11
Colorado State
vs
Ram Masters Day 1
Getting the Season Rolling
9/11/2025 7:35:00 PM | Men's Golf
Rams hold lead as course plays tough
In the course of a round, a season, even a career for a collegiate golfer, there will be bouts of adversity. The way Jack Kennedy saw it, might as well start at the top as the 2025 campaign began for his Colorado State men's team as it hosted a 16-team field for the Ram Masters Invitational at the Fort Collins Country Club.
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"You know, I was joking with Chris Davis, who's the superintendent here. Awesome guy: really just knows agronomy really well," Kennedy said. "And we were tired of seeing tournament records being shot the last couple years. So, they're in a phase right now at Fort Collins where the course is really healthy. And they're about to shut down for a while. So, he was allowed to push the envelope for the last couple weeks.
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"The greens were running at 13.5 on the stimpmeter today. We had the rough up as high as it's ever been for the members. And to a coach, everybody said the course played very, very fair. Very, very tough which is exactly what we wanted. We wanted our guys, our team specifically, to know, hey, this is a different level."
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At the end of Thursday's two rounds, Colorado State was the only team to play to par, holding a 1-stroke lead over Long Beach State. There were nine individuals who shot under par, with CSU's Alessandro Trenta a single shot behind Davis McDowell of UC San Diego, who came in at 6-under after shooting 5-under in the first round.
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Yes, the course was tough. And no, it didn't change much as the day went along. Trenta knew what his coach wanted, and he was right in assuming the day went exactly by design.
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"Coach's goal for this year was not to get any closer to setting tournament records anymore. I think by not watering the greens for almost two weeks, and not cutting the rough for almost two weeks, definitely turned it up," Trenta said. "The greens definitely firmed up. Those last three were really tough."
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What Trenta felt was that he was prepared, not just for the course, but the season ahead. He did say he forgot just how tough a 36-hole day was, particularly on the first outing of the season. What he was able to do pretty consistently was birdie holes – 10 overall, seven in the first round. His only hiccup on the final 18 came on 17, where he double bogied. So did his CSU playing partner, Owen Mullen.
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He's a graduate student who transferred from Notre Dame. Adversity he knows well enough – injuries have derailed his ability to play, which he hadn't really done in two years. Then you add in he's playing for a new team and trying to impress, well, his first round (8-over) was the opposite of what he wanted.
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His response was enlightening.
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He birdied the first three holes of the second round, finishing it a 2-under, quite the impressive turnaround.
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"I think my quick chat with Coach between the rounds helped a lot. He just shows a lot of belief in me always, which is huge because I don't have the experience recently and obviously confidence is something that you build through reps, and I just don't have them," Mullen said. "It was definitely a low point at the end of that first round, but he told me, 'don't worry about it.'
Â
"The guys had me this morning and it's a long year. This is round one of tournament one and I had no issue putting it behind me and going to attack. I never doubted that I could, but it is nice to have it set in stone and do something like that for sure. There was never a concern of that same thing happening in the second round. It was more just staying patient and knowing that good things will come. I just seemed to keep doing my thing."
Â
The adversity Trenta was facing wasn't in the present, but in the past, and it had everything to do with his attitude. Saying you're going to change is the first step. Working on it is a big second step.
Â
Going out and actually doing it under pressure is the proof a player needs.
Â
"I was not great with attitude last year," he said. "I had some chit-chats with the coach over the summer and starting the season, and I think that made me more mature."
Â
Which is what Kennedy wanted to see, particularly expecting the course to be difficult to play. What he saw from Trenta is what he needed to see.
Â
Same with what he witnessed from Mullen, each having to overcome their own situations.
Â
Check, check, check.
Â
"I really just wanted Alessandro to enjoy the game. Sometimes last year it just felt like he was going to the dentist every day. We talked a lot all summer, and I don't need him to be jovial. I don't need him to be super happy-go-lucky, but celebrate the success. This game is hard. When you make a 6-foot birdie putt or you save a good par, get a fist bump, get a little more excited."
Â
Now the fun begins. One more round to close the opening show. It comes with a bit of pressure, a lead to hold and competition coming after the Rams.
Â
All five players had at least one round which counted toward the team score, with Jake Rodgers sitting at 1-over for the day. Charlie Doyle and Charlie Tucker, both earning their stripes early in their careers, played steady.
Â
"As a coach, especially this early in the season, and I know you don't worry about results, I'd much rather be in the hunt, in the fire, a shot here, a shot there, as opposed to being up 15 or 20," Kennedy said. "Our guys wouldn't have the same motivation, the same locked-in mentality. We just wanted a chance to win.
Â
"We're playing in the final group against a really good team on our home course. It's going to be fun."
Â
Particularly after putting some adversity in the rear-view mirror right from the start.
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"You know, I was joking with Chris Davis, who's the superintendent here. Awesome guy: really just knows agronomy really well," Kennedy said. "And we were tired of seeing tournament records being shot the last couple years. So, they're in a phase right now at Fort Collins where the course is really healthy. And they're about to shut down for a while. So, he was allowed to push the envelope for the last couple weeks.
Â
"The greens were running at 13.5 on the stimpmeter today. We had the rough up as high as it's ever been for the members. And to a coach, everybody said the course played very, very fair. Very, very tough which is exactly what we wanted. We wanted our guys, our team specifically, to know, hey, this is a different level."
Â
At the end of Thursday's two rounds, Colorado State was the only team to play to par, holding a 1-stroke lead over Long Beach State. There were nine individuals who shot under par, with CSU's Alessandro Trenta a single shot behind Davis McDowell of UC San Diego, who came in at 6-under after shooting 5-under in the first round.
Â
Yes, the course was tough. And no, it didn't change much as the day went along. Trenta knew what his coach wanted, and he was right in assuming the day went exactly by design.
Â
"Coach's goal for this year was not to get any closer to setting tournament records anymore. I think by not watering the greens for almost two weeks, and not cutting the rough for almost two weeks, definitely turned it up," Trenta said. "The greens definitely firmed up. Those last three were really tough."
Â
What Trenta felt was that he was prepared, not just for the course, but the season ahead. He did say he forgot just how tough a 36-hole day was, particularly on the first outing of the season. What he was able to do pretty consistently was birdie holes – 10 overall, seven in the first round. His only hiccup on the final 18 came on 17, where he double bogied. So did his CSU playing partner, Owen Mullen.
Â
He's a graduate student who transferred from Notre Dame. Adversity he knows well enough – injuries have derailed his ability to play, which he hadn't really done in two years. Then you add in he's playing for a new team and trying to impress, well, his first round (8-over) was the opposite of what he wanted.
Â
His response was enlightening.
Â
He birdied the first three holes of the second round, finishing it a 2-under, quite the impressive turnaround.
Â
"I think my quick chat with Coach between the rounds helped a lot. He just shows a lot of belief in me always, which is huge because I don't have the experience recently and obviously confidence is something that you build through reps, and I just don't have them," Mullen said. "It was definitely a low point at the end of that first round, but he told me, 'don't worry about it.'
Â
"The guys had me this morning and it's a long year. This is round one of tournament one and I had no issue putting it behind me and going to attack. I never doubted that I could, but it is nice to have it set in stone and do something like that for sure. There was never a concern of that same thing happening in the second round. It was more just staying patient and knowing that good things will come. I just seemed to keep doing my thing."
Â
The adversity Trenta was facing wasn't in the present, but in the past, and it had everything to do with his attitude. Saying you're going to change is the first step. Working on it is a big second step.
Â
Going out and actually doing it under pressure is the proof a player needs.
Â
"I was not great with attitude last year," he said. "I had some chit-chats with the coach over the summer and starting the season, and I think that made me more mature."
Â
Which is what Kennedy wanted to see, particularly expecting the course to be difficult to play. What he saw from Trenta is what he needed to see.
Â
Same with what he witnessed from Mullen, each having to overcome their own situations.
Â
Check, check, check.
Â
"I really just wanted Alessandro to enjoy the game. Sometimes last year it just felt like he was going to the dentist every day. We talked a lot all summer, and I don't need him to be jovial. I don't need him to be super happy-go-lucky, but celebrate the success. This game is hard. When you make a 6-foot birdie putt or you save a good par, get a fist bump, get a little more excited."
Â
Now the fun begins. One more round to close the opening show. It comes with a bit of pressure, a lead to hold and competition coming after the Rams.
Â
All five players had at least one round which counted toward the team score, with Jake Rodgers sitting at 1-over for the day. Charlie Doyle and Charlie Tucker, both earning their stripes early in their careers, played steady.
Â
"As a coach, especially this early in the season, and I know you don't worry about results, I'd much rather be in the hunt, in the fire, a shot here, a shot there, as opposed to being up 15 or 20," Kennedy said. "Our guys wouldn't have the same motivation, the same locked-in mentality. We just wanted a chance to win.
Â
"We're playing in the final group against a really good team on our home course. It's going to be fun."
Â
Particularly after putting some adversity in the rear-view mirror right from the start.
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Players Mentioned
/ Men's Golf
/ Men's Golf
/ Men's Golf
/ Men's Golf
/ Men's Golf
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