BIRMINGHAM, Alabama (May 9, 2023) –  C.M. Mixon is a veteran of this tournament, he understands its significance and he is hungry to win it as he caps off his Louisville Cardinal golf career.

Mixon has played in the PGA WORKS Collegiate Championship (PWCC) presented by Chase Sapphire since his sophomore year, and he’s earned consecutive top-10 finishes the last two springs. But as a senior at Louisville, he is tied for the lead in the men’s Individual Division at 3 under par after Tuesday’s second round at Bent Brook Golf Course.

“Just the fact that I can be invited back and compete against these guys, it’s a blessing,” said Mixon, who is in the transfer portal and will get another year of eligibility as a graduate student at another university because of the COVID-19 season. “The camaraderie of this event is what makes it so good. It’s one of the few events where everyone's rooting for each other. Even though we want to beat each other badly, I would love to see everyone else do well.”

During the first round, Mixon did exactly that. He shot a bogey-free 67 at Shoal Creek Club. But he was up and down during day two. He played the first six holes a shot under par, but a bogey on no. 7 brought him back to even for the day. 

He made another birdie at 16, but a bogey on 17 and a double bogey on 18 pushed him to 2-over 73 and into a three-way tie for the lead with defending champion Sahasawat Ariyachatvakin of Delaware (70-70) and Purdue’s Kentaro Nanayama (70-70) at 3-under par. 

“I think the key was I just didn’t make as many putts today,” Mixon said. “I am normally a pretty consistent putter and try to keep it under 30 a round and today they just didn’t drop.”

While Mixon would love to cap his Louisville career with a win at the most culturally championship in collegiate golf, he also knows this event is about much more than his eventual place on the leaderboard. 

“I think the camaraderie definitely makes it a priority and it also keeps things in perspective,” Mixon said. “I'm a huge competitor, hate to lose, love to win, but it reminds me why we’re here. I think golf is something that I’m going to continue to do and carry on to the professional level just as some of the other players will as well. However this is just a vessel to do better.”

In men’s Division I, Howard University continued its march to a second consecutive team title, shooting 14-under 270 to move to 21-under par at Bent Brook. Defending low medalist Greg Odom Jr. shot a 3-under 68 to put himself back into contention after a first-round 71. His teammate Everett Whiten Jr. was 3-under for the round and is 6-under for the tournament, one shot behind the leader, Kieran Hogarth from Chicago State. 

In all, the Bison men occupy four of the first five spots on the leaderboard, with junior Joshua Siplin making the biggest move in the division, jumping 14 spots into a tie for 14th place with a 2-under 69.

“I knew the day was going to come down to patience, because the day really played tougher than a lot of people thought,” Howard coach Sam Puryear said. “The wind really kicked up and so it made for a different challenge. The blessing for us is we played in the wind last week. We played in the wind in Florida and there were gusts up to 40 miles per hour. So the wind didn’t catch us off guard. We were prepared for it.” 

The women found it equally as tough at Bent Brook, but Montevallo’s Madison Rincon shot the low round of the day at 2-under 69 to finish in fourth place. North Alabama’s Allycia Gan and North Carolina Wilmington’s Phu Khine both shot 1-under 70. Gan is tied for the overall lead at 1-over par with Charlotte’s Kaiyuree Moodley, and Khine is a shot back at 2-over.

Over at Shoal Creek, the Texas A&M-Corpus Christi women moved another day closer to its third consecutive Division I team championship. It shot 306 in round two to build a 20-shot lead over Delaware State. Corpus Christi freshman Lucia Ramirez led the way with a 1-over 73 to finish even par for the tournament, overtaking teammate Lucie Charbonnier, who struggled to a 6-over finish and is now 1-over (67-78) for the tournament. Howard’s Kendall Jackson tied for third with Corpus Christi’s Maria Beltran at 5-over.

In the men’s Division II group, Micah Stangebye continued to roll with a 6-under 66 at Shoal Creek to shoot the round of the day. He carries a seven-shot lead into the final round Wednesday.

GOLF Channel and Peacock will present the third round at Shoal Creek Club on Wednesday from 2:00-5:00 p.m. CT. PGA.com will also stream the PGA WORKS Collegiate Championship live.

For more information on the 2023 PGA WORKS Collegiate Championship, visit https://pgaworkscollegiate.org/.

Media Contacts

Greg Dillard, PGA of America, 561-308-8013, gdillard@pgahq.com

Jared Minski,  Mastro Communications, jared@mastrocomm.com, 732-546-4325