Mickelson, who left after five seasons


at ASU to manage Rahm’s pro career, also left Thurmond with an impressive recruiting class, including transfer Ryan Douglass, who was a second- team All-American last season at South Mountain Community College. The Sun Devils’ five freshmen


feature Alejandro Del Ray Gonzalez, who is a two-time Spanish junior national champion, and Chun An Yu of Taiwan, who is the top-ranked junior by Polo Golf Rankings and Junior Golf Scoreboard and the winner of last year’s Western Junior and Junior Players championships. Thurmond expects Yu to join the team at semester break. “I think the real story of our


team in a lot of ways will be the newcomers,” Thurmond said. “If Yu joins the team in January, which we hope will be the case, our freshman class will be pretty special. “I don’t know that we have


another Jon Rahm in there but it’s a talented team, for sure, with a lot of potential for this year and beyond.” Anderson noted that Thurmond’s credentials aren’t just limited to


accomplishments on the golf course. He led the fundraising for and helped direct Washington’s multimillion- dollar Husky Golf Center and practice facility. Thurmond coordinated the


I love Washington, and have my life invested there. But when the ASU position became


available, I realized this might be a once-in-a- lifetime opportunity. —Matt Thurmond, ASU golf coach


concept, funding and construction of the cutting-edge, 8-acre practice facility and team center. That will come in handy when


the ASU program moves to Papago Golf Course as its home facility. No


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timetable for that transition has been set but there is speculation that it could happen around the end of this decade. “Beyond his ability to coach top-


level talent, his skill at directing capital projects and fundraising within the golf community will prove invaluable in establishing the program’s future home,” Anderson said. Thurmond embraces ASU’s stellar


golf history, which includes two men’s NCAA team titles, six NCAA individual titles and 12 Pac-12 championships, but said the school’s focus on the future is even more alluring. “I love to look at the future and I


love optimism and energy and I love moving forward in a strong direction,” he said. “That really connects to my values and I see that at ASU and really in this whole Valley. People are flocking here because they see the future here and I love that energy. “I think we can win many


championships here and have a program where the best players in the world flock to it. That’s what gets me going, gets me excited and that’s what made it such as easy decision to come here.” n


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