UAPB Men’s Golf Team Earns PGA Invite to Florida Development Camp, Napa Invitational and PGA Tour Film Segment

Pine Bluff, AR — After a remarkable fall 2023 season, the UAPB Golden Lions Men’s Golf team looks past their SWAC Fall Invitational in Birmingham win and their win at the inaugural Bridgestone HBCU (Historically Black Colleges and Universities) Invitational at TPC Sugarloaf in Duluth, GA. Their journey continues with a campus visit by the PGA Tour Entertainment film crew to document their story and a two-day development camp on Feb. 14-15, 2024, at TPC Sawgrass in Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida, home of The Players Championship earned as part of their Bridgestone win. 

UAPB Golf Team Win at TPC Sugarloaf in GA. Lf-Rt: Jose Berenguel, Ismael Garcia, Timur Alalin, UAPB Golf Coach Roger Totten, Angel Perez, Jules De Reu, Dan Murphy, President and CEO of Bridgestone Golf.

In addition to the development camp at TPC Sawgrass, the UAPB Golden Lions team earned an invitation to the Bridgestone Collegiate Invitational, set for March 24-26, 2024, at Silverado Country Club in Napa, California. To highlight the accomplishment, the PGA Tour Entertainment crew visited the campus in November to capture and tell the story of the UAPB golf program and team for a segment scheduled to air in December as part of the Bridgestone PGA Tour.

The film crew worked with UAPB Athletics, Communications, Golf Coach Roger Totten, UAPB Athletic Academic Advisor, Shon Pilcher, UAPB Golf team members, and the UAPB School of Business & Management to film interviews and capture campus life, the student academic experience, the athletic facilities, the golf facilities, and the golf team practicing for the segment.

Coach Roger Totton commented, “Join us in congratulating the UAPB Men’s Golf Team for being selected to attend the prestigious Florida Development Camp and Napa Invitational. This invitation is a testament to their dedication and hard work. We are thrilled to see them get this opportunity to showcase their skills and bring pride to our university.” The UAPB Golf team members that participated in the inaugural Bridgestone tournament are Ismael Garcia, UAPB School of Business & Management Sophomore, 1st Team All-Conference & Freshman of the Year (featured in the PGA Tour Entertainment segment), Angel Perez, Sophomore, 2nd Team All-Conference and three outstanding Freshmen, Timur Alalin, Jose Berenguel and Jules De Reu.

The March Bridgestone Collegiate Invitational tournament will feature top-level NCAA Division 1 men’s golf programs, HBCU schools, and high-ranking individual golfers from underrepresented communities in golf. Korn Ferry will award the winner an exemption into a 2024 Korn Ferry Tour event later in the year.

UAPB competed in the Bridgestone HBCU Invitational in November alongside Alabama State, Chicago State, North Carolina Central, Tennessee State, Florida A&M, Southern University, and Prairie View A&M to participate in the Bridgestone Collegiate Development Program as part of the PGA Tour’s Pathway to Progression, which aims to achieve greater diversity in golf through increased focus on developing talent from diverse and historically underrepresented groups. 

Keep up with #UAPBGOLF at https://uapblionsroar.com/sports/mens-golf. Learn more about the UAPB School of Business and Management program: https://www.uapb.edu/academics/school_of_business_and_management.aspx.