Kirakossian Honored as NCAA West Region Coach of the Year
June 03, 2025 | Men's Golf
UCLA head coach Armen Kirakossian has secured NCAA Division I Golf Pride Grips West Region Coach of the Year honors, as announced on Tuesday by the Golf Coaches Association of America (GCAA).
Kirakossian, who had been named a finalist for the 2025 NCAA Division I Coach of the Year Award, secured his first-ever West Regional Coach of the Year honor this season. Currently in his third season as the Bruins' head coach, Kirakossian guided UCLA to the NCAA Championships for the first time since 2018.
The other NCAA Division I regional coach award winners include Will Green in the Northeast (Princeton), Bowen Sargent in the East (Virginia), JC Deacon in the Southeast (Florida), Steve Bailey in the Midwest (Marquette) and Alan Bratton in the Central (Oklahoma State). Oklahoma State won the 2025 NCAA Division I Championship against Virginia in the title contest.
During the 2024-25 season, UCLA won three titles. The Bruins finished in first place out of 13 teams in the fall, competing at The Preserve Golf Club Collegiate in Carmel, Calif. That marked the Bruins' first-ever team title under Kirakossian. During the spring season, UCLA won the team title at The Goodwin as the best team out of 30 programs (hosted at Stanford University). The Bruins won the Big Ten Championships in late April in Baltimore, finishing in first place out of 18 teams.
UCLA seniors Pablo Ereño and Omar Morales were named unanimous choices on the 10-man list of first-team All-Big Ten Conference selections. Under Kirakossian's direction, Ereño was honored as the Big Ten Conference's Men's Golfer of the Year, while Baylor Larrabee was recognized as the league's Freshman of the Year. Ereño finished in sixth place through four rounds of stroke play at the NCAA Championships, marking the Bruins' best individual finish at the annual event since Patrick Cantlay in 2012.
Both Ereño and Morales were honored as NCAA Division I PING All-West Region honorees by the GCAA for the second consecutive season.
Players Mentioned
