The Championship Golf Course
Since it was officially opened in 1967, The Championship Golf Course has been one of the finest facilities of its kind nationwide. It has been nationally recognized by Golf Digest Magazine as one of the top-25 public courses in the country, and in January of 1991 Golfweek Magazine rated all public and private courses in the country by state, and dubbed The Championship Course the number one course to play in New Mexico. The Course is still holding strong in the rankings seven years later, and in 1998, Golfweek tabbed The Championship Course No. 2 in the West, behind only the Stanford University Golf Course in Palo Alto, Calif. The Championship Course is no stranger to major tournaments. It was the site of the 1950, 1976 and 1992 NCAA Division I Men’s Golf Championships as well as the 1998 NCAA Championships. In 1987 the course was the sight of the women’s NCAA tourney.
The Championship Course has been home to the William H. Tucker Invitational for the past 43 years (2nd longest running college tournament), and in 2015 it hosted the 61st incarnation of the event. The course has also been home to three Western Athletic Conference Men’s Championships (1979, 1982, 1989).
Since 1979, The Championship Course has also been home to the prestigious Dick McGuire Intercollegiate, a major tournament in women’s college golf.
Like most class layouts, The Championship Course flashes a personality all its own. The 7,555-yard, par 72 course boasts fairways that stretch out long and wide, bobbing up and down, both right and left – all factors that make it difficult to reach the rolling, well-manicured greens. Stray shots often land in the rough, loose desert sand, water or sagebrush.
The paradise-like climate of Albuquerque makes The Championship Golf Course at The University of New Mexico a perfect oasis for golf, be it January or June!
Come visit The Championship Golf Course at The University of New Mexico!
Home of the Lobos.
COURSE ARCHITECT: Robert (Red) Lawrence
FAIRWAY GRASS: Blue and Rye
GREENS: Bent and Poa Annua
ALTITUDE: 5300 ft.
COURSE RECORD: 61
Honors
Golf Week Best Golf Courses, Campus Courses, #15, 2019
Golf Week Best Courses You Can Play State-by-State, #5, 2021
Best Public Golf Course in New Mexico, #5, Golf.com, 2014
“Top 40 Daily Fee Courses in America” Golf & Travel Magazine, 2000-01
“A four-star award in Places to Play” Golf Digest Magazine, 2000-01
“Fourth Best Course in New Mexico” Golf Digest Magazine, 2001
“#1 College Course Open to Non-members” New England Financial Journal, 199
“Top 100 Courses You Can Play” Golf Magazine, 1996, 1998-99
“America’s Best Public Golf Courses, Top 25” Golf Digest, 1988
Tournaments
Men’s Division I NCAA Championship – 1976, 1992, 1998
Women’s Division I NCAA Championship – 1987, 2008
PGA Tour Qualifying School Final – 1978, 2021
Nike Tour – 1996
Pacific Coast Amateur Championship- 2019