A red-eye flight Sept. 18 to the East Coast was the beginning of a long but rewarding trip for the University of the Pacific men’s golf team.

The Tigers competed in The Goat, hosted by Navy at Naval Academy Golf Club in Annapolis, Maryland, and finished first by nine strokes after three rounds. The tournament win is Pacific’s first in a decade.

“It’s exciting to see all the hard work these guys are putting in pay off,” said tenth-year head coach John Cook. “It was a team effort and that is what made me happy.”

Three of Pacific’s golfers finished in the top five with Travis Robbie ’26, Timothy Jung ’26 and Deitrek Gill ’26 leading the charge in the lineup.

“It was nice to get a win,” said Gill, who stood in first place after the opening day of the tournament. “As a team, I think this is a big step for us. It’s a super positive week to build off.”

On Day 1 at The Goat, Gill collected three eagles and four birdies en route to a course record of 62 at the new Navy venue. The 62 by Gill was the second-lowest round by a Pacific golfer in school history.

“I got a lot of confidence from the summer,” Gill said. “It started out as a good round. I took an aggressive line on the 11th hole. I followed it up on 12 and made an eagle there too. At that point, it was surreal making back-to-back eagles. On 15, I got another one and you could just feel the joy. My grandparents were there and everyone watching went crazy. It was pretty unbelievable.”

Robbie and Jung also stood out for the Tigers, securing top-three finishes as individuals.

“I managed my way around and posted a score that was very competitive with the rest of the field,” Jung said. “We never gave up and fought our way to the finish.”

“We played really well,” Robbie added. “It speaks to Coach Cook and Coach [Andy] Moren’s leadership. To come away with a win this early in the year is a big confidence booster.”

The Tigers look to build on their tournament victory as they head into the October portion of their schedule. Pacific will host the Visit Stockton Pacific Invitational Oct. 14-16. See the full golf schedule.

“This win gives us a lot of confidence,” Jung said. “We know how to win. It’s a great confidence booster. We can definitely be proud of ourselves and continue to have success going forward.”