CARLSBAD, Calif. – The UCLA men's golf team advanced into match play, featuring the top eight teams, at the NCAA Championships after surviving a four-team tiebreak at Omni La Costa Resort & Spa on Monday evening.
 
The Bruins found themselves in a four-way tie with North Carolina, Stanford and Tennessee at the conclusion of Monday's final round of stroke play (18 holes). Stanford and UCLA emerged from the four-team playoff and have moved into the eight-team grouping of match play, which opens on Tuesday morning in Carlsbad.
 
The No. 7-seed Bruins will take on No. 2-seed Texas in one of the four match play quarterfinals on Tuesday. The other quarterfinal pairings include No. 1-seed Auburn versus No. 8-seed Stanford, No. 3-seed Vanderbilt against No. 6-seed Arizona, and No. 4-seed Florida versus No. 5-seed Oklahoma State.
 
UCLA's quarterfinal showdown will begin at 6:50 a.m. (PT). The four teams that advance into the semifinals will compete on Tuesday afternoon.
 
This marks the first time since 2015 in which the UCLA men's golf team has advanced into match play, which incorporates the top eight teams from multiple days of stroke play. Match play was introduced into the championship format in 2009, and the Bruins have advanced into match play five times since then – in 2011, 2012, 2014, 2015 and 2026.
 
"I'm just so overflowing with emotion right now," UCLA head coach Armen Kirakossian said moments after the Bruins clinched, on Golf Channel. "The last three hours have been crazy. We had a huge cushion to make match play and then a colossal collapse coming down the stretch, but I'll tell you what, I'll give credit to our guys. You could have been bigtime discouraged after that, but they weren't. They came out and they were fired up and ready. And I'll give big props to our assistant coach, Mason Banger. He's been talking about this experience of a playoff that he had in college, and he's been reminiscing about how cool and fun it was. So once we got into this situation, I turned to him and said, 'Man, you have been talking about this all year, and here we go.' I think the guys were just fired up for their own experience to do it."
 
UCLA punched its ticket into match play after having shot 6-over 294 on Monday, the Bruins' most challenging effort out of the four days in Carlsbad. The Bruins entered the day in a tie for fourth place, alongside two other teams. In the end, UCLA played well enough in the tiebreak to move past the stroke play format.
 
"It's been a crazy ride for this last month," Kirakossian said on Golf Channel. "The guys just all came together. There was a moment where we were way under.500, in the middle of the spring. We were not playing great golf and were getting our butts kicked. The guys knew it. It's on them, and they just got together and figured it out. It's been amazing."
 
Bruins' sophomore Baylor Larrabee (9-under 279, T-6) became the second UCLA golfer to finish among the top seven individuals in the last two seasons, joining former Bruins' standout Pablo Ereño in that category (Ereño finished sixth on the individual leaderboard at last season's championship event). Larrabee shot even par (72) in Monday's final round.
 
Larrabee finished with UCLA's best score of the day. Freshman Tyler Loree shot 1-over 73, while classmate Josh Kim carded 2-over 74. Senior Kyle An finished 3-over 75 and junior Alex Papayonou carded 4-over 76.
 
The four-team tiebreak took place across holes 15, 16, 17, 18 and 1. All five golfers' scores counted toward the tiebreak, with four UCLA golfers shooting even par on their respective holes and Larrabee logging a bogey on hole No. 17. UCLA finished 1-over in the tiebreak, while Stanford shot even par (20). Both North Carolina and Tennessee shot 2-over par in the tiebreak to miss the final cut of eight teams.
 
Day Three Recap
Sunday, May 31, at the NCAA Championships
 
The UCLA men's golf team advanced into the fourth and final round of stroke play at the NCAA Championships on Sunday, carding 1-under 287 in the third round at Omni La Costa Resort & Spa.
 
The Bruins needed to finish among the top 15 teams out of 30, through the first three rounds of stroke play. UCLA entered the day among the top five and concluded Sunday in a three-way tie in fourth place, alongside Arizona and Oklahoma State.
 
This marks the first season since 2015 in which UCLA has moved past the third round of stroke play, making the cut for Monday's fourth round. UCLA did not advance past the third round in NCAA Championship appearances in 2018 and 2025.
 
UCLA is seeking its first appearance in the tournament's eight-team match play competition since 2015, at The Concession Golf Club in Bradenton, Fla. That UCLA team lost by a 3-2 margin in the quarterfinal round to Illinois. The 15 teams in action on Monday in Carlsbad are all looking to finish among the top eight, in order to advance into match play (which begins on Tuesday).
 
"The golf course played a little bit more challenging today," UCLA head coach Armen Kirakossian said. "The greens were definitely a little more firm and touched quicker. The boys hung tough and fought hard. I was proud of the way that they were fighting, even if we maybe did not hit it our best today. The guys were working hard on getting up and down and just hanging in there, so I'm just proud of that. We are excited for an opportunity to be playing on Monday. Last year, we did not get that chance, but this year we do. That is a nice step in the right direction for us. We look forward to having that chance, enjoying the opportunity as much as we can, and we'll go try to compete for one of those spots in the final eight."
 
Through three rounds, UCLA has shot 8-under 856 as a team. Auburn currently leads the field at 22-under 842, followed by second-place Texas (19-under 845) and third-place Vanderbilt (9-under 855).
 
Trailing UCLA and Arizona and Oklahoma State are seventh-place North Carolina (6-under 858) and eighth-place Duke (1-under 863).
 
Bruins' sophomore Baylor Larrabee recorded UCLA's lowest score of the afternoon, shooting 4-under 68. Larrabee carded 5-under 67 on Friday and shot even par (72) on Saturday. He is currently tied for fifth place (9-under 207) and stands two strokes shy of the individual lead.
 
Freshman Tyler Loree was UCLA's only other golfer to shoot under par on Sunday. He finished the afternoon 1-under 71 and is currently tied with senior Kyle An on the individual leaderboard in 66th place, overall.
 
Junior Alex Papayoanou concluded the day 2-over 74 and is currently tied for 32nd overall (3-under 69 on Friday, and even par 72 on Saturday).
 
Both Papayoanou and An shot 2-over 74 on Sunday, while freshman Josh Kim finished 3-over 75 in the third round.
 
UCLA's final round of stroke play will get underway at 11:25 a.m. (PT) on Monday, June 1. The top eight teams at the conclusion of the fourth round will advance into Tuesday's match-play quarterfinals. The tournament format on Tuesday includes a pair of quarterfinal matches (head-to-head) in the morning, and the advancing teams will move into the afternoon semifinals that day. The championship match will take place on Wednesday, June 3.
 
UCLA, Stanford and San Diego are the only three teams from the West Coast who have moved into the top 15 teams for Monday's final round. In addition, UCLA is the only competitor from the Big Ten to have made the 15-team cut for the fourth round of stroke play.
 
Larrabee shot 4-under 68 on Sunday, posting better scores in each round at this season's championship event (stroke play) than in any of his three rounds in Carlsbad one year ago. Larrabee has recorded round scores, through Sunday, of 67-72-68 and has totaled a score of 9-under 207, marking the Bruins' best three-round individual score at the NCAA Championships since Lorens Chan shot 3-under 207 (tied, 9th) in 2014 at Prairie Dunes Country Club in Hutchinson, Kan. Larrabee has registered six rounds under 70 in his last 12 rounds.
 
BROADCAST DETAILS: Monday's action at Omni La Costa Resort & Spa will be available via livestream and television on Golf Channel. Golf Channel's live stream will be running from 10:30 a.m. until 12:30 p.m. Golf Today will air from 12:30 p.m. until 2:30 p.m., and then the final holes of final-round stroke play will be televised live on Golf Channel from 2:30 p.m. until 6:30 p.m. (PT), as well as through the network's livestream. Golf Central will air from 6:30 p.m. until 7:30 p.m. (PT).
 
Day Two Recap
Saturday, May 30, at the NCAA Championships
 
UCLA closed the second round of the NCAA Championships on Saturday among the top five teams, through two rounds. The first three days of stroke play at Omni La Costa Resort & Spa features 30 teams.
 
The Bruins carded 1-over 289 on Saturday after having shot 8-under 280 on Friday. The Bruins (7-under 569) are finished the day tied with Oklahoma State in fourth place, trailing Auburn (20-under 556), Texas (12-under 564) and Vanderbilt (12-under 564) on the team leaderboard.
 
The third round takes place on Sunday, May 31, at Omni La Costa Resort & Spa.
 
Following UCLA and Oklahoma State (fourth-place tie) on the leaderboard are Duke, Virginia and Arizona (all tied in sixth place at 4-under 572), and a ninth-place tie with Pepperdine and North Carolina (both at 1-under 575).
 
Bruins' sophomore Baylor Larrabee remains among the top 10 golfers on the tournament's individual leaderboard. Larrabee, junior Alex Papayoanou and senior Kyle An all shot even par (72) on Saturday. Larrabee is currently tied in ninth place, having carded 5-under 139 through both rounds. Papayoanou (T-20) has shot 3-under 141, while An and freshman Josh Kim have posted scores of 1-over 145 through the first two rounds. Kim finished 2-over 74 on Saturday, while freshman Tyler Loree shot 1-over 73 in the second round.
 
UCLA's third round in Carlsbad on Sunday will begin at approximately 6:52 a.m. (PT) from the 10th hole.
 
Day One Recap
Friday, May 29, at the NCAA Championships
 
UCLA finished the first round of the NCAA Championships on Friday in first place out of 30 teams. The Bruins shot 8-under 280 and have secured a four-stroke lead above second-place Auburn at the conclusion of the first day.
 
Sophomore Baylor Larrabee carded 5-under 67 in his second appearance at the NCAA Championships in as many seasons, but at the Omni La Costa Resort & Spa in Carlsbad, Calif. He concluded the day in fourth place on the tournament's individual leaderboard.
 
In all, three UCLA golfers were among the top 34 individual finishers, through round one. Larrabee was in fourth place, junior Alex Papayoanou (3-under 69) was tied in ninth place and freshman Josh Kim (1-under 71) finished in a tie in 25th place.
 
Senior Kyle An (T-57) shot 1-over 73, while freshman Tyler Loree (T-91) carded 3-over 75.
 
The second round of action will continue on Saturday, May 30, at Omni La Costa Resort & Spa. Stroke play runs from Friday through Sunday for all 30 participating teams. The top 15 teams, after the third round (Sunday) will advance toward one additional day of stroke play on Monday. The top eight teams after those four rounds will move on to the tournament's match play quarterfinals on Tuesday.
 
Friday's top five teams included (1) UCLA, (2) Auburn, (3) Pepperdine, (T-4) San Diego and (T-4) Duke. The Bruins have a six-stroke lead on San Diego and Duke, heading into Saturday's second round.
 
Glancing at the individual leaderboard, Larrabee finished the day in fourth place behind a trio of top finishers who shot 6-under 66 – Connor Williams of Arizona State, Ian Maspat of San Diego and William Jennings of Alabama.
 
Last season as a freshman, Larrabee shot 3-over 75 in the first round of the tournament in Carlsbad. He followed last May with scores of 5-over 77 in the second round and 9-over 81 in the third round.
 
UCLA's second round of action this Saturday will begin at approximately 12:45 p.m. (PT) from the course's first hole.
 
Quotes from Friday's opening round in Carlsbad
 
Head Coach Armen Kirakossian: "I'm just really proud of how the guys came out, really steady, a lot of pars. And I don't think we really had a counting bogey until hole 15 or something like that. It was a lot of steady golf for us early. The guys did a good job of sticking to the gameplan and staying patient. One thing we noticed right away was that the greens were much softer than they had been, compared to last year at least. We had some rain overnight. Then we had some rain when we were teeing off today. That softened the golf course, and that adjusted everybody's strategy just a touch. I am proud of the guys for making that adjustment and realizing it might be a little bit different of a day than what we had originally planned. We thought that we might have some firmer, faster conditions. But it was a touch softer than we had thought. They did a good job of making the quick adjustment. When you have the morning round, you have to do your best to take advantage of that. That is typically when scoring is a little easier. The guys did a good job of doing that. We're looking forward to our opportunity to get back on the golf course. We will have an afternoon round and I'm sure it will be much firmer and faster, and we'll try to do our best to be prepared and ready to go for that."
 
Bruins' sophomore Baylor Larrabee: "Today's round was great. The biggest thing, in terms of success, was just the team vibes that we've had. From today and into our last few tournaments, it's really easy to play well when you look over, a couple of fairways over, and your teammates are just smiling and people are grateful for the moment that they're in. So yeah, the round was awesome. It was a lot fun to be out there, looking over at the boys a few fairways over. This is what we want. This is where we know we could be. I'd say that my experiences here last May helped a lot. It's been really cool to play this course again after playing it last year – just seeing that, OK this par five is reachable in two, just really seeing where you have improved in spots. I think that is really cool and is a great part about this course – because the margins are so small that once you have improved over time, you can see that you're a very different player than I was back then. The moments we had last May really helped. And being able to get comfortable under the pressure of a national championship is really important for me, this year. Last May, there definitely was more tension and more stress. But this year, it's felt comfortable. It's about enjoying the moment. Be grateful for the moment that you are in because you only get to do this for a few years, so you have to be appreciative of that. You have to keep that mindset for the next round, to be grateful that you get to play at this awesome event. There are some unbelievably talented teams that have not been able to make it here. You have to be grateful to get teed up here and play another round with the boys each day. That is a blessing. You have to be grateful for the moment. This is the energy that we've had and the energy that we want to keep so we can stay steady tomorrow."