LOS ANGELES – The UCLA men’s golf team will return to action this Sunday morning, competing at the two-day Fighting Irish Classic at the University of Notre Dame.
The tournament runs on Sunday and Monday (Oct. 4-5), with two rounds set for Sunday and the third and final round scheduled for Monday. Last season, UCLA won the Fighting Irish Classic team title with a three-stroke lead over second-place North Carolina. The Bruins shot 7-under 833 across three rounds. Two seasons ago, UCLA finished in seventh place out of 15 teams.
This year’s 14-field of teams will include Augusta University (Georgia), California, Georgia Southern, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kent State, Louisville, Michigan State, North Carolina, (host) Notre Dame, Purdue, Texas A&M and UCLA.
Fans will be able to track the live scoring of the upcoming tournament at Notre Dame by visiting Scoreboard.
UCLA has returned to action this season under the direction of fifth-year head coach Armen Kirakossian, who has been honored as the Big Ten Conference Coach of the Year the past two seasons. Last spring, UCLA won its second consecutive Big Ten Championship before advancing to match play at the NCAA Championships for the first time since 2015. UCLA defeated Texas and Arizona in back-to-back match-play competitions at the NCAA Championships, falling to top-seeded Auburn in the national championship final.
Last season, UCLA had three golfers finish in the top seven on the individual leaderboard. Baylor Larrabee finished in fourth place (4-under 206), while Kyle An and Tyler Loree tied with one other golfer in fifth place (3-under 207). Both Larrabee and An shot under par or even, in each of three rounds.
In action for UCLA will be senior Alex Papayoanou, junior Baylor Larrabee, sophomores Josh Kim and Tyler Loree and freshman Matthew Hull. Bruins’ freshman Baron Nguyen will be making his debut with UCLA this weekend, competing as an individual.
SEPTEMBER 2026
The Bruins have opened their fall with a pair of tournaments in the month of September, having competed at the Sahalee Players Championship just outside Seattle (Sept. 12-13) and at the Ben Hogan Collegiate Invitational in Fort Worth, Texas (Sept. 28-29). UCLA finished in eighth place out of 12 teams at the Sahalee Players Championship before tying with Georgia in eighth place, out of a 16-team field, at the Ben Hogan Collegiate Invitational in Texas.
Most recently, junior Baylor Larrabee shot 2-over 212 through three rounds at the Ben Hogan Collegiate Invitational. He registered round scores of 69-73-70, logging a T-14th finish on the individual leaderboard. Sophomore Josh Kim finished 4-over 214 with round scores of 68-75-71 (T-20th) at the tournament in Fort Worth, Texas.
RETURNING FOR UCLA
The Bruins have returned four golfers from last season’s team – senior Alex Papayoanou, junior Baylor Larrabee and sophomores Josh Kim and Tyler Loree. All four student-athletes competed in the Bruins’ five-man rotation at the conference championships and NCAA Championship events last spring.
Larrabee and Kim earned PING All-West Region honors, as announced at the conclusion of the season by the Golf Coaches Association of America (GCAA), in addition to securing first-team All-Big Ten acclaim. Kim was honored as the Big Ten Freshman of the Year, one year after Larrabee had been recognized as the conference’s Freshman of the Year in 2025.
Papayoanou and Loree each had strong finishes to UCLA’s 2026 campaign. Papayoanou won both of his match-play showdowns at the quarterfinal and semifinal events at NCAA Championships in Carlsbad. Loree won his match-play contest in the semifinal round against Arizona, helping UCLA advance to the championship round the following day.
UPCOMING SCHEDULE (UCLA’s full schedule)
Looking past the upcoming Fighting Irish Classic at the University of Notre Dame, the Bruins will close their fall schedule later this month. UCLA’s final two fall tournaments will take place in Georgia –the Golf Club of Georgia Collegiate Invitational (Oct. 18-19 in Alpharetta, Ga.) and the East Lake Cup (Oct. 26-28 in Atlanta, Ga.).
UCLA’s Lineup: Baylor Larrabee, Josh Kim, Tyler Loree, Alex Papayoanou, Matthew Hull
UCLA’s Individual Competitor: Baron Nguyen
The Field at the Fighting Irish Classic: in alphabetical order – Augusta (Ga.), California, Georgia Southern, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kent State, Louisville, Michigan State, North Carolina, (host) Notre Dame, Purdue, Texas A&M and UCLA
Par and Yardage: Warren Golf Course at the University of Notre Dame, par 70, and 7,023 yards
Weekend Schedule: Competition will begin on Sunday, Oct. 4 (two rounds), and conclude on Monday, Oct. 5 (third and final round). Sunday’s action will begin with a shotgun start at approximately 5:30 a.m. PT (8:30 a.m. ET, at Notre Dame). Tee times are to be determined.
Live Scoring: Fans can follow along with live scoring at Scoreboard.
Weather Forecast: Mostly sunny with temperatures in the mid-to-high 60s.