“See you at La Costa,” were the words uttered by the ringleader of SDSU’s men’s golf team as he concluded his Wednesday video interview on Golf Channel.
Aztecs’ head coach Ryan Donovan commanded the attention of everyone in the auditorium, including his players, with his confident final statement. Commanding attention is nothing new to Donovan, however. He has rapidly built a reputation for producing competitive, quality teams and players during his nearly 22 years at the helm of Aztec men’s golf.
Donovan was a highly respected golfer in his own right as a youngster. He was a four-year member of the men’s golf team at SDSU and also competed on the Golden State Tour and Gateway Tour after his time on the Mesa.
After being asked why he went into coaching following his playing career, Donovan shared an emphatic response.
“I was caddying and parking cars, and when Tim Mickelson went to take the head job at USD, I got a call,” said Donovan. “It was kind of my calling. It has been a blessing ever since.”
Donovan began as an assistant coach to Dale Walker in 2003 and was almost immediately named interim head coach at the beginning of the 2004 spring season.
Despite being sprung into the spotlight, Donovan’s first full season as a head coach (2004-2005) was a prosperous one. He led the Aztecs to their second NCAA championship appearance in three years, setting the tone for the years to come.
As Donovan became more seasoned in the realm of men’s college golf, so did his players. Since officially being named head coach in the fall of 2004, Donovan has had a knack for taking young recruits and morphing them into mature competitors.
“When I started, we were definitely going international [to recruit],” Donovan mentioned in a press conference on Wednesday. “We are not getting the top kid in the country ranking-wise; there are just too many schools ahead of us. We are getting a kid that has a bigger upside, someone who is committed to San Diego State, and wants to be an Aztec for life.”
Looking through SDSU men’s golf rosters throughout the years, it can be concluded that coach Donovan is a man of his word. Golfers like Johan Carlsson, Riccardo Michelini and, most recently, Justin Hastings have all made huge impacts as international recruits. On the domestic side, under-recruited golfers like J.J. Spaun and Xander Schauffele were mentored by Donovan during their years as Aztecs. The skills and practices instilled in Spaun and Schauffele by their ever-knowledgeable head coach have enabled them to have excellent professional careers.
Coach Donovan is still in communication with many of his former athletes, particularly Schauffele. He and his team will connect with the two-time major winner from time to time.
“[Xander] will come play with the guys [and] they’ll see him practicing while he is in San Diego,” Donovan shared. “I talked to him at Augusta a couple of weeks ago, which was cool. He follows the Aztecs pretty closely and is proud of what they have done.”
Staying in close contact with former players is one of coach Donovan’s favorite things about coaching men’s golf. He enjoys it when “guys are successful with their families and with their careers.” Donovan also loves “going to weddings… and seeing [his players] progress throughout their life.”
Donovan’s formula for success combines connection with practice, allowing his players to grow both as people and as golfers. In the 2024-2025 season, his formula has paved the way to the promised land.
The Aztecs won three of the last four tournaments to close their regular season (R.E. Lamkin Invitational, Western Intercollegiate and Mountain West Championship, respectively). With their win this year, SDSU men’s golf has won the last four Mountain West Championships, tying New Mexico for the longest consecutive conference title win streak.
Additionally, coach Donovan and the Aztecs were selected as the No. 3 seed in the 2025 Tallahassee Regional hosted by Florida State and played at Seminole Legacy Club in Tallahassee, Florida (lasting from May 12-14). Including this year’s selection, SDSU has now been selected to 20 NCAA regional tournaments under coach Donovan.
After the conference championship season comes the real test: playing outside of your conference on the biggest stage. Aware of this obstacle, coach Donovan vocalized his postseason mentality.
“Our goal is to put together a great schedule all year, so we have seen all of these teams throughout the year,” said the confident head coach. “We’re really not intimidated by anybody; we have a great group of guys ourselves. I just sit back and try to get good players here and support them as much as I can.”
SDSU men’s golf, along with Donovan and his staff, looks to be within the top five in Tallahassee in order to advance to the NCAA Championships 30 miles up the road at Omni La Costa Resort & Spa in Carlsbad (lasting from May 23-28).
May 12 marks the beginning of a grueling and taxing postseason regimen for Donovan and his team. Despite the lengthy endeavor, coach Donovan does not shy away from the challenge and is chomping at the bit to bring SDSU its first NCAA men’s golf championship.
