The first tournament of the Thunderbirds' 2026-2027 campaign was one for the history books.

The UBC men's squad went nuclear at the Oregon Tech Invitational, as Jake Houston snapped a Cascade Collegiate Conference record en route to an individual gold medal, while the women's side got out to a commanding team lead and didn't look back as they added another first-place finish to their mantle.  

"Both teams played well right away. The men had a ton of pressure in both rounds, today especially, and they just dug deep and committed to each shot," reflected UBC head coach Corey Renfrew. "Both Kier Smith and I are incredibly proud of both teams and just how hard they fought."  



Houston led the charge, but it was a complete team effort as the men's side closed out the two-day event with a combined final score of 831 – the second-lowest score in program history for a 54-hole round, narrowly trailing the 'Birds' 829 performance at the Western Washington University Championship in 2014-15.

Individually, Houston etched his name into T-Bird history, finishing with a combined score of 201 (-15) to win the tournament. Not only did the Quebec native break the Cascade Collegiate Conference record for total strokes in a 54-hole round; he also cemented his name as second on the all-time list for a 54-hole outing in program history – surpassing his current coach, Renfrew, who posted a 204 when he was donning the blue and gold in 2008-09.

"I'm rooting for all of these guys to crush all of my records and all the UBC records," mused coach Renfrew. "They're a special group. We're so deep this year, with a lot of guys that could slot in at any moment and play well."

Teeing off in Klamath Falls, the third-year T-Bird consistently shot in the high 60's in each of the three rounds (67, 66, 68), meaning Houston's final combined score only trails T-Bird alum Dylan McDonald in 54-hole play, who shot a 199 in 2024-2025 at the UBC Thunderbird Men's Invitational.



Houston began the tournament on the right foot, racking up eight birdies in each of the first two rounds to take the lead. After starting the third off with a bogey on the first hole, Houston followed with pristine play, never going over par again while sinking five more birdies – four of which came on the back nine – to finish atop the leaderboard.

"Starting the day with a bogey is always kind of unnerving," began coach Renfrew on Houston's final round. "He did a little refocus, got the nerves out after the first hole. We had a lot of guys play well to add it all together, so I'm incredibly proud of them, and of course with Jake getting the win."
 
The 15th-ranked T-Birds were neck and neck with the 20th-ranked Lewis-Clark State Warriors all throughout, but by the end of three rounds, the latter came in just behind UBC in the team standings with an impressive 835 (-29).

Alongside Houston, Manpreet Lalh added a stellar outing of his own, finishing fourth on the individual table. Highlighted by an eagle on the par-five eighth hole of the final round, the second-year ended the event with a score of 207 (-9). Fellow T-Bird Leighton Wright placed fifth with 210 (-6), and Forrest Van Alstine tied for the sixth spot with a 214 (-2).  



For the women, the T-Birds delivered a dominant performance of their own. Grace Yao bookended her first round with birdies – collecting four total – and finished the top spot on the leaderboard with a 70 (-2), marking the second-year as the only woman to finish under par.

That changed on the following day of the event as Lewis-Clark State's Isabella Barquet surged. She bounced back from her 74 (+2) on the opening round and delivered six birdies in her final 18 holes to secure a 69 (-3) and a 147 total score to earn individual gold.

Three T-Birds were not far behind Barquet as Sienna Harder, Keira Hou and Grace Yao tied for second with all three posting even par (144). Despite the silver medal, the team as a whole dealt damage, combining for a score of 579 (+3), with the second-placed Warriors holding a 596 (+20).



After emphatically setting the tone to start the season, the 'Birds will be back in action as soon as next weekend. Both the men's and women's teams will be making their way to the GreenTee Country Club in Langley for BC Golf match play against the University of Fraser Valley Cascades. The two-day event tees off on Sunday, September 13, before concluding on Monday, September 14.