The University of California, Los Angeles Bruins men’s golf team will compete at the Fighting Irish Classic at the Warren Golf Course at the University of Notre Dame on October 4-5, 2026. The Bruins enter the tournament as defending champions after winning the event last season by three strokes over North Carolina.
The Fighting Irish Classic features a 14-team field including Augusta University, California, Georgia Southern, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kent State, Louisville, Michigan State, North Carolina, host Notre Dame, Purdue, Texas A&M, and UCLA. The course at Notre Dame is a par 70 that measures 7,023 yards.
The tournament format includes two rounds on Sunday followed by the final round on Monday. Fans can follow live scoring online at Scoreboard.
UCLA is coached by Armen Kirakossian, now in his fifth year, who was named Big Ten Coach of the Year for the past two seasons. The Bruins had a notable spring season, winning their second consecutive Big Ten Championship and advancing to the final of the NCAA match play championship, where they fell to Auburn.
The Bruins roster for the Fighting Irish Classic features senior Alex Papayoanou, junior Baylor Larrabee, sophomores Josh Kim and Tyler Loree, and freshman Matthew Hull. Freshman Baron Nguyen will also compete as an individual. Larrabee and Kim each earned PING All-West Region and first-team All-Big Ten honors last season, with Kim being named Big Ten Freshman of the Year this season.
UCLA began its fall campaign with eighth-place finishes at the Sahalee Players Championship and the Ben Hogan Collegiate Invitational. The Fighting Irish Classic offers the Bruins an opportunity to build on that momentum in a competitive regional field.
CSB Take
The UCLA Bruins men’s golf team enters the 2026 Fighting Irish Classic positioned to showcase their depth and experience as defending champions. With a blend of seasoned upperclassmen and promising underclassmen, the Bruins have the leadership and talent to contend strongly at Notre Dame. Their performance in this early-season event will be a key indicator of how the team could perform as they aim for postseason success under Coach Armen Kirakossian’s guidance.
Source: Original report
