Golf Preview: Cowboys Excited to Blend the Old with the New

LARAMIE -- The University of Wyoming men’s golf will look quite a bit different in 2025-26. Only two players return with five new faces entering the fray, and head coach Joe Jensen is eager to see how all the pieces fit together.

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“I’ve got five new faces that I’m excited about and two very good players in Kristof and Brody,” Jensen said. “The new guys have impressive resumes coming into college and Kristof and Brody were right on the bubble to make All-Conference last year. Now, we just have to morph into a team.”

Kristof Panke and Brody Leid are solid pieces to a strong foundation. Panke held a team-best scoring average of 71.3 last season, while Lied wasn’t far behind at 72.4.

Panke enjoyed some incredible highs in 2024-25, matching a school record tournament score, with relation to par, of 199 (-14) at the Palouse Collegiate en route to a third-place finish. And that wasn’t even Panke’s best finish of the season. He took runner-up at the Duck Invite at 205 (-8) and added another top-five finish at the Mark Simpson Colorado Invite where he placed fourth at 205 (-11).

Leid needed a couple tournaments to settle in as a freshman but when he did, he grew into the most consistent player on the squad. He paced the Pokes five times last season including four of the last five tournaments. Leid’s best finish was tying for 14th at the Arizona Thunderbirds Intercollegiate where he fired a 218 (+2).

“Brody and Kristof had good years last year, and I want them to build on that,” Jensen said. “I feel good about where they’re both at following strong summers.”

After those two, it’s a bunch of unknowns. Five freshmen will be vying for three starting spots, but the benefit of a roster of only seven is that everyone will travel and play in each regular-season tournament as either a starter or an individual.

“They’re going to gain an incredible experience,” Jensen said. “You can’t beat being right in the middle of things, and that’s what’s exciting about it. There’s going to be some good days and some tough days with the youth we have. We will just work through the process and the organic ups and downs.”

The five newbies include guys from Colorado, Texas and a Wyomingite. Kellen Ball (Windsor, Colorado), Austin Barry (Fort Collins, Colorado), Brody Knowlton (Montgomery, Texas), Ryker Lind (Evanston, Wyoming) and Connor Scheich (Highlands Ranch, Colorado) will look to show well in their inaugural collegiate seasons.

The 2025-26 season begins at the Ram Masters Invite next week. That kicks off a fall featuring five tournaments. The spring encompasses six more regular-season tournaments before the Mountain West Conference Championships in early May.

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