ODESSA, Texas (June 12, 2026) – UTPB's Will Tate was named a Third-Team NCAA Division II PING All-American, the Golf Coaches Association of America (GCAA) announced on Friday. Tate was one of only three players from the South Central Region to be named a Third-Team All-American or better this season.

"It is an honor to be named an All-American," said Tate. "As an international student-athlete, before coming to the United States to play college golf, I was unaware of these sorts of accolades. It was never a goal, but it is certainly something I am proud of. My senior season was a lot of fun, and I definitely saved the best for last. After having a successful fourth year, it was nice to continue the momentum and push on for more good finishes and another college win. It was also great to go to regionals with the team this year after going as an individual last year."

This season saw Tate become just the second Falcon in program history to earn All-Region and All-American honors, be named First-Team All-Lone Star Conference, and earn two All-LSC certificates in their career.

"Being just the second All-American in program history is very cool," said Tate. "To have my name in the record books, alongside one of my former teammates and great player, Sangha Park, shows how much I have improved since the start of my college career."

He was also the first UTPB golfer with two top-five finishes (All-Tournament honors) in their career at the LSC Tournament. Additionally, he broke UTPB's three-round scoring record (203) and earned his second career win, ranking him second all-time at UTPB in wins.

"The one word I was use to summarize my time at UTPB is growth," said Tate. "When I transferred here after my sophomore year, I felt extremely lost. But UTPB gave me the opportunity to discover who I am as a golfer and as a person. Under the guidance of Coach Chavez and all of my teammates, I constantly improved, and I think the results are a very good reflection of that. I am extremely appreciative of my time at UTPB, the experiences I've had, and the friends I've made."

Tate posted a 70.7 adjusted scoring average, and finished the season with an NCAA Division II National Ranking of No. 28 and a ranking of No. 5 in the South Central Region. He won one tournament (Midwestern State Invitational), totaled nine top-10 finishes, and finished top-25 in all 11 tournaments. He also finished in the top-10 in all seven tournaments in the Spring, including the LSC Championship and the NCAA Regional Championship. In addition, he finished under-par in five tournaments this season, including a score of 10-under in each of the last two tournaments heading into the postseason.

Tate finished in third place after shooting plus-two (77-69-72; 218) at the LSC Championship and totaled a one-under (73-69-73; 215) to finish in 10th place at the Regional Championship. Tate's 10th-place finish was the third-best among all UTPB players at the regional championship while his one-under tied for the third-lowest par-score in program history at the championship.

Tate concluded, "When I think about my time at UTPB, I definitely think of all the fun and laughs we had at tournaments as a team. I think it's very important to be able to switch on and off at the right times. We were very focused during tournament rounds, but we were able to have a good laugh and some fun times when we weren't playing. This built up our friendships and our chemistry as a team, and I think this is one of the main reasons we had great success this year."