University of Texas Athletics

27th season at Texas

Leadership. Class. Integrity. Player development. Championship culture.

These all define John Fields, who is currently in his 27th season at the helm of The University of Texas men’s golf program in 2023-24. Fields became the Longhorns’ head coach in August 1997 and has guided Texas to 21 NCAA Championship appearances in his 25 opportunities (no NCAA tourney in 2020 due to COVID-19).

Under Fields’ leadership, UT has posted 10 top-five finishes at the NCAA Championship, including NCAA team titles in 2012 and 2022 and runner-up showings in 2016 and 2019. The Longhorns have reached the NCAA quarterfinals (the ‘Match Play’ portion of the national championship) a national-best seven times in their last 11 opportunities. UT owns the nation’s-longest current streak of consecutive Division I Men’s Golf NCAA Championship appearances at 16, dating back to the 2007 season.

Fields was selected as Golfweek’s Men’s National Coach of the Year in 2022. He earned the prestigious accolade for the third time during his tenure at Texas, as he previously received the honor in 2012 and 2016. Fields has been voted the Big 12 Coach of the Year a total of nine times in his time in Austin (2002, 2003, 2004, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017 and 2022).

Texas has claimed a total of nine Big 12 Conference team championships under Fields. The Longhorns have won Big 12 team titles in 2002, 2003, 2004, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017 and 2024. In addition, seven different UT players have captured individual medalist honors at the Big 12 Championship, including David Gossett (1999), Jason Hartwick (2004), Matthew Rosenfeld (2006), Brandon Stone (2013), Scottie Scheffler (2015), Doug Ghim (2018) and Cole Hammer (2021).

Fields has also been instrumental in developing a culture of individual success. Beau Hossler claimed the Fred Haskins Award in 2016, and Doug Ghim received the Ben Hogan Award in 2018 – both awards recognizing the National Player of the Year in men’s collegiate golf. Fields has helped four Longhorns earn the Phil Mickelson Award as the National Freshman of the Year: David Gossett (1999), Brandon Stone (2013), Scottie Scheffler (2015) and Cole Hammer (2019). In addition, Dylan Frittelli was named the winner of the 2012 Byron Nelson Award, given to the nation’s top graduating senior scholar-athlete in men’s collegiate golf.

Fields has produced 27 All-Americans at Texas: Matt Bortis, Matt Brost, Steven Chervony, Parker Coody, Pierceson Coody, Brad Elder, Dylan Frittelli, Doug Ghim, David Gossett, Cody Gribble, Toni Hakula, Gavin Hall, Cole Hammer, Jason Hartwick, Charlie Holland, Beau Hossler, Bobby Hudson, John Klauk, Lance Lopez, Christiaan Maas, Matthew Rosenfeld, Scottie Scheffler, Jordan Spieth, Brandon Stone, Julio Vegas, Travis Vick and J.J. Wall.

Through the Years at Texas

During the 2022 season, Texas claimed its fourth NCAA team title in program history. After dealing with injuries to both Parker Coody and Pierceson Coody during the late fall and early part of the spring schedule, the Longhorns were a much-improved team once the calendar turned to March. UT captured back-to-back team titles at the Augusta Haskins Award Invitational and the Western Intercollegiate, marking the first time the Longhorns won team championships at consecutive tourneys since April 2017.

At the NCAA Championships in Scottsdale, Ariz., Texas had solid showings in the third and fourth rounds of stroke play to finish in fourth place and secure its spot in Match Play. The Longhorns defeated Oklahoma State (3-2-0) in the quarterfinals and beat top-seed Vanderbilt (3-1-1) in the semifinals to advance to the championship match. Texas posted a dramatic 3-2-0 victory over tournament host Arizona State in the final to win its first NCAA team title since 2012.

Fields was tabbed Golfweek’s Men’s National Coach of the Year. Pierceson Coody (second team), Travis Vick (second team), Cole Hammer (third team) and Parker Coody (honorable mention) claimed All-America honors from PING/Golf Coaches Association of America (GCAA), and all five players in the NCAA lineup were named to the PING All-Central Region team.

In 2021, the Longhorns suffered a rash of illnesses leading into nationals and tied for 25th at the NCAA Championships. Texas advanced to the NCAA Championships by winning the NCAA Noblesville (Ind.) Regional by five strokes. Cole Hammer won individual medalist honors at the Big 12 Championships, and Pierceson Coody (first team), Hammer (honorable mention) and Travis Vick (honorable mention) earned All-America accolades from PING/GCAA. The 2020 campaign was stopped in mid-March due to COVID-19, but Pierceson Coody (second team) and Parker Coody (honorable mention) received All-America recognition by PING/GCAA.

Led by the freshman trio of Cole Hammer, Pierceson Coody and Parker Coody, the youthful Longhorns capped an outstanding 2019 season with a runner-up finish at the NCAA Championships in Fayetteville, Ark. After finishing the four rounds of stroke play in a tie for fourth place, Texas defeated Oklahoma (3-2-0) in the quarterfinals and followed with a dramatic 3-2-0 victory over top-ranked Oklahoma State in the semifinals. With the match against Oklahoma State tied at 2-2, senior Steven Chervony made a birdie putt on 18 to even his contest and then closed out his match in 19 holes when OSU’s Zach Bauchou missed a short par putt. The Longhorns fell to Stanford by a 3-2 score in the NCAA Championship match.

UT advanced to the 2019 NCAA Championships by winning the NCAA Austin Regional by 20 strokes, and Chervony and Hammer shared co-medalist honors with TCU’s Stefano Mazzoli. Hammer earned the Division I Phil Mickelson Outstanding Freshman Award and claimed consensus first-team All-America honors, while Chervony, Pierceson Coody and Parker Coody each garnered honorable mention All-America accolades from PING/GCAA.

The senior duo of Doug Ghim and Scottie Scheffler led the Longhorns to a tie for fifth place at the 2018 NCAA Championships. After finishing the four rounds of stroke play in a tie for sixth place, Texas dropped a hard-fought 3-2 decision to second-seeded Duke in the NCAA quarterfinals. The Longhorns advanced to the 2018 NCAA Championships by winning the NCAA Raleigh (N.C.) Regional by 17 strokes. Ghim earned medalist honors at both the NCAA Raleigh Regional and the Big 12 Championship.

Ghim claimed the Ben Hogan Award as the National Player of the Year in men’s collegiate golf. He became just the second Longhorn (Jeff Fahrenbruch, 1997) to earn the prestigious award. Ghim also claimed consensus first-team All-America honors, while Scheffler garnered third-team All-America recognition from PING/GCAA. Scheffler was the low amateur at the 2017 U.S. Open, and Ghim won the Silver Cup after finishing as the low amateur at the 2018 Masters Tournament.

In 2016-17, Fields led the Longhorns to their fifth-straight Big 12 Championship, outlasting Oklahoma State in the final holes of competition. The Longhorns posted eight top-five finishes, including team titles at the UT Longhorn Shootout and Big 12 Championship and a runner-up at the NCAA Regional in Austin. Ghim and Scheffler both were named second-team All-Americans, while Gavin Hall earned honorable mention accolades. Texas closed the year with a 12th-place finish at the NCAA Championship, as Scheffler tied for third in the individual standings.

The 2015-16 season was one to remember, as the Longhorns posted seven team wins and a runner-up finish at the 2016 NCAA Championship. Fields was tabbed Golfweek’s Men’s National Coach of the Year and earned Big 12 Coach of the Year honors, leading Texas to its fourth-straight Big 12 Championship.

Beau Hossler claimed the Fred Haskins Award as the nation’s top male collegiate golfer and was a finalist for the Ben Hogan Award while earning consensus first-team All-America accolades. Hossler earned medalist honors in five tournaments, claimed Big 12 Player of the Year honors for the second straight year and maintained the No. 1 spot in the individual national rankings for the majority of the spring season. Gavin Hall also won medalist honors in two tournaments, and all five golfers in the lineup had at least one top-10 finish and at least one round in the 60s during the season.

At the 2016 NCAA Championship, the lineup of Hossler, Hall, Doug Ghim, Scottie Scheffler and Taylor Funk finished the four rounds of stroke play with the top overall seed headed into Match Play. The Longhorns defeated Oklahoma in the quarterfinals and topped USC in the semifinals to advance to face Oregon in the championship match on the Ducks’ home course. Despite playing without its top player in Hossler (injury) and conceding the first point to Oregon, the Longhorns showed great fight in the finals. Tied at 2-2, the match came down to Funk, who forced extra holes in the deciding match before falling in 21 holes.

The Longhorns tied for 12th place at the 2011 NCAA Championships after taking fifth at the NCAA West Regional Championship. Frittelli collected his second consecutive PING third-team All-America selection after posting a career-best tie for 20th place.

Frittelli, Gribble and Hudson earned PING All-America honors during the 2009-10 campaign that saw the Longhorns win two events (NCAA East Regional, Puerto Rico Classic) and tie for 21st place at the NCAA Championships. Frittelli, the 2010 Big 12 Conference Player of the Year, and Gribble earned third-team All-America honors, while Hudson earned an honorable mention selection.

In 2009, Texas placed 26th at the NCAA Championships after qualifying for the event with a third-place finish at the NCAA Austin Regional Championships at The University of Texas Golf Club. Then-UT junior Lance Lopez captured the regional with a 4-under par effort to become the fourth current Longhorn to have won a college tournament. The win also secured Lopez’s standing as an honorable mention All-American.

Texas posted six top-five team finishes during the 2008-09 season and won the season-opening Gopher Invitational and the Turtle Bay Collegiate Invitational. Additionally, Frittelli took medalist honors at the Puerto Rico Classic as a true freshman.

In 2008, Fields led Texas to the NCAA Championships after placing second at the Big 12 Championships and emerging from a three-team playoff at the NCAA West Regional Championship. Texas missed the final-round cut and placed 19th overall at the event. Fields guided Texas to the team title at UT’s Morris Williams Intercollegiate, where redshirt freshman Bobby Hudson took medalist honors behind a course-record 65 at The UT Golf Club. In addition, Holland scored his first tournament victory at the Fresno State Lexus Classic.

In 2007, Fields led the Longhorns to a tie for 11th place at the NCAA Championships, as redshirt freshman Charlie Holland chipped in UT’s top individual showing by tying for 22nd place. Texas qualified for the NCAA Championships by placing ninth at the NCAA Central Regional Championship in Sugar Grove, Ill.

Fields’ Longhorns came alive in the fall of 2006, scoring victories at the Isleworth Collegiate Invitational and the Aloha Purdue Collegiate. UT ran away with a 12-stroke victory at the Isleworth before closing out the fall with a six-stroke win at the Aloha Purdue Collegiate. Texas later added top-five showings at the Morris Williams Intercollegiate (4th) and the Big 12 Championship (4th).

In 2005-06, Fields guided Matt Rosenfeld to UT’s 36th all-time conference medalist honors at the 2006 Big 12 Championship. The Longhorns finished the season ranked 18th by Golfstat.com and placed among the Top Five at five of 12 tournaments. Matthew Mills and Jeff Bell were both named to the PING South All-Region team and Bell joined Rosenfeld on the Academic All-Big 12 team. The Longhorns fell one-stroke short of qualifying for the NCAA Championship with an 11th-place finish at the Central Regional.

In 2004-05, Texas finished fourth at the Big 12 Championships and 24th at the NCA Championships. Matthew Rosenfeld was named a PING All-American for the third time in his career and Jeff Bell was named to the PING South All-Region Team. UT finished in the top five of seven out of its 11 regular season tournaments and had three individuals place among the top three on separate occasions.

During the 2003-04 season, Fields’ team once again proved itself on the course with 13 consecutive top-10 showings to close the season, including a record-setting third-straight victory at the Big 12 Championships and a fourth-place effort at the NCAA Championship. In addition to the team’s other victory at the Cleveland Golf Classic, Longhorns copped four individual titles.

Senior Jason Hartwick alone scored three wins, including the Big 12 Championship with his nine-stroke victory. Matthew Rosenfeld also won the Cleveland Golf Classic, leading a pack of three UT golfers at the top of the leader board as Hartwick and Jeff Bell finished tied for second. Hartwick was chosen as the 2004 Big 12 Golfer of the Year and later added his fourth-career All-American nod with a first-team selection. Fields earned his third straight Big 12 Coach of the Year honor after his record-setting third-consecutive Big 12 title.

The 2002-03 season typified the type of successful golf Fields coaches. The Longhorns finished in the top 10 in all 13 stroke-play tournaments the team played. The team’s continued success at the conference championships parleyed into similar results for the rest of the season as UT went on to finish fourth at the NCAA Central Regional in Manhattan, Kan., and tied for ninth at the NCAA Championships in Stillwater, Okla. At the conclusion of play in 2003, Texas was ranked fifth in the final Golfweek/Sagarin ratings. Wall continued to play well in the twilight of his UT career, finishing in a three-way tie for third at the regional. In his final collegiate tournament, he helped usher in a new team leader on the course as freshman Matthew Rosenfeld capped a tremendous first-year campaign with a third-place finish at the national championships. Hartwick captured a tie for sixth place in the final event of the year.

At the conclusion of the season, several Longhorns - including Fields - were honored for their success on the course. Hartwick (third team) and Rosenfeld (honorable mention) were PING All-America selections, and both joined Wall on the All-Big 12 team. Rosenfeld was also honored as the Big 12 Freshman of the Year, and Fields was recognized by his peers as the Big 12 Coach of the Year for the second-consecutive season. Hartwick’s All-America honor was the third of his three-year career in Austin.

The 2001-02 campaign proved to be one of the best in school history. The Longhorns posted a total of five tournament team titles during the season, including a stretch of four consecutive wins during the spring schedule. This marked the first time that Texas had won at least five team titles in a season since 1992-93, when the Horns also captured a total of five tourney crowns. The four consecutive team wins tied a school record, set in both the 1972-73 and 1982-83 campaigns.

Texas concluded its win streak with a one-stroke victory at the Big 12 Conference Championships at Prairie Dunes Country Club in Hutchinson, Kan. The Longhorns trailed Oklahoma by 10 strokes entering the final round, but made up 13 strokes on the Sooners and held off a late surge by Oklahoma State to capture their first-ever Big 12 team title. UT’s winning score of 10-over-par 850 marked a Big 12 Championships record.

Texas capped off the season with a tie for third place at the NCAA Championships in Columbus, Ohio, which marked the best finish for Texas at NCAAs since 1995 when the Horns also placed third. For his efforts, Fields was tabbed the Big 12 Coach of the Year. Senior John Klauk claimed second-team GCAA (Golf Coaches Association of America) All-America honors, while sophomore Jason Hartwick was named to the third team. In addition, junior J.J. Wall was tabbed an honorable mention All-American. The 2000-01 Longhorns finished in the top five in 10 of 13 tournaments, including a team title at the Waikoloa Intercollegiate. UT concluded the campaign ranked No. 6 in the final MasterCard national rankings. Freshman Jason Hartwick and junior John Klauk earned honorable mention All-America accolades, while Hartwick was tabbed the Big 12 Conference Newcomer of the Year.

Texas enjoyed an excellent season under Fields in 1999-2000, when it earned two tournament victories and finished in the top five in seven of 13 events. The Longhorns capped off the season by winning the team title at the NCAA Central Regional and recording a fifth-place finish at the NCAA Championships. Sophomore David Gossett earned first-team All-America recognition for the second straight year, while sophomore Matt Brost garnered honorable mention All-America accolades.

Prior to his sophomore season, Gossett won the 1999 U.S. Amateur title, defeating Sun Yoon Kim by a score of 9 & 8 in the 36-hole match-play final. He then went on to post three top-five individual finishes and tied for third place at the NCAA Championships. In July 2000, Gossett became the seventh player under Fields to turn professional and play on the PGA Tour or the Nationwide Tour (formerly the Buy.com Tour).

UT posted three tournament victories and finished in the top three in seven of its 14 appearances during the 1998-99 campaign. The Longhorns placed third at the Big 12 Championships and ended the year ranked No. 15 in the final MasterCard national rankings.

In Fields’ first season with the Longhorns in 1998, UT recorded four top-10 showings in 12 appearances, highlighted by a second-place finish at the Big 12 Championships. Senior Brad Elder earned third-team All-America honors and ended his collegiate career as the nation’s No. 1 amateur according to the Golfweek/Titleist amateur rankings.

Prior to Texas

Fields came to Austin after leading the University of New Mexico to nine NCAA Championship appearances in 10 years (1988-97). His consistent effort on the recruiting trail translated into building a successful program - a formula that has continued to prove successful at Texas. While at the helm of the New Mexico men’s golf program, the Lobos won three Western Athletic Conference titles and never finished lower than third in the league championships during Fields’ 10 seasons. At the NCAA Championships, New Mexico placed in the Top 15 a total of five times, including a sixth-place finish in 1996, the school’s best showing since 1979.

He tutored four WAC Players of the Year, three WAC individual champions, nine All-Americans, 24 all-conference players and six Academic All-Americans. He earned four WAC Coach of the Year honors (1989, 1993, 1995 and 1996) and four NCAA District VII Coach of the Year honors (1993, 1995, 1996 and 1997). Fields’ efforts also helped bring the NCAA Championships to Albuquerque in both 1992 and 1998. PGA Tour veterans Doug LaBelle and D.J. Brigman earned second-team All-America honors under Fields at New Mexico.

Tim Herron graduated from New Mexico in 1993 after earning first-team All-America honors and turned pro the year he graduated. Kent Jones, a two-time Academic All-American, earned his degree from New Mexico in 1990 and turned pro in 1992. Fields also tutored Sean Murphy, who turned professional in 1988.

A native of Las Cruces, N.M., Fields was a four-year letterman at New Mexico before earning his degree in 1982. He was a member of Lobos golf teams that finished fifth and seventh at the NCAA Championships.

While earning his degree as a fifth-year senior, he served as a part-time assistant for the Lobos program during the 1981-82 season, before spending the next year on the PGA European Tour. After his stint on the professional circuit, Fields became the assistant head golf professional at Mesa del Sol Golf Course in Yuma, Ariz., where he became a Class A PGA member in 1986. He then took the New Mexico coaching job in November 1987.

Fields, born on January 10, 1959, and his wife, Pearl, a 1982 graduate of New Mexico, have two children, Marshall and April.

John Fields Year-by-Year

*the 2020 season was canceled due to COVID-19