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The two coaches who led the University of Texas Longhorns to a men’s golf national championship the weekend before last are former Lobos.
UT men’s golf head coach John Fields and men’s golf assistant coach Ryan Murphy used to play and coach at UNM.
Fields, a native of Las Cruces, was a four-year letterman during his playing days at UNM from 1978-81. After graduating in 1982, he tried his hand at professional golf. He spent one year on the PGA European Tour before becoming a golf professional at the Mesa del Sol Golf Course in Yuma, Ariz.
He became the head men’s golf coach at UNM in 1987, where he made nine NCAA tournament appearances in 10 years and snagged three Western Athletic Conference titles. He coached five players who are current PGA tour members.
Fields said his success at UNM helped him build a strong program at UT.
“When we came to Texas, we ended up having some great recruiting years,” Fields said. “And we went on to win the national championship 15 years later.”
Murphy, a native of Lovington, N.M., played at UNM from 1994-97 under Fields. He was an assistant coach at UNM under current men’s golf head coach Glen Millican. He got the job as the assistant head coach at UT in 2008 after a head-coaching stint at Division II St. Edwards University in Austin, Texas.
Murphy said that when he was growing up, becoming a national champion at the Division I level seemed out of reach.
“I never would have thought I was going to be here in a million years,” Murphy said. “Growing up in Lovington, we had a nine-hole golf course, and there wasn’t much else to do, so I became a golfer.”
“Not only playing there (at UNM), but being the assistant coach there under Glen Millican for four years definitely prepared me for what I do now,” he said.
Fields also attributes his current success to his playing and coaching days at UNM.
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Murphy’s relationship with Millican started before he worked as his assistant. The two played together under Fields and have been good friends ever since.
“We were in each other’s weddings,” Millican said. “To see those guys win (the NCAA championship) was awesome.”
Fields said Murphy was the perfect fit for the program he was running at UT.
“He’s just an outstanding, very competitive person,” Fields said. “He’s a really great recruiter and has a lot of passion for the game, and as a result, he’s brought a lot to the table and helped us win this tournament.”
Even though he is a big-time Texan now, Fields said he hasn’t forgotten where he comes from.
“We all have a special place in our heart for New Mexico,” Fields said.
Murphy said the food in New Mexico is what he misses the most about his home state.
“I definitely miss the green chile, that’s for sure,” he said.
