By Bill Sheehan

Last fall, Cal State Fullerton golfers Tegan Andrews and Russell Howlett faced uncertain futures.

Andrews, a redshirt senior from Agoura, was rejoining the team after abruptly leaving in spring 2023 to work on controlling his anger on the golf course. Howlett, a junior who hailsfrom Delta, a Vancouver suburb in British Columbia, Canada, was retooling his swing after recovering from a wrist injury.

Six months later, the two have found their way out of the rough.


Tegan Andrews, left, a redshirt senior, and junior Russ Howlett have overcome personal challenges to power the Fullerton men's golf team, which Coach Jason Drotter says might be his best squad. 

Andrews earned his first collegiate win in October, shooting a 14-under par 202 (71-68-63) to take the Visit Stockton Invitational. He followed that up in February by winning the Wyoming Desert Intercollegiate in Palm Desert with a 10-under par 206 (70-69-67). He was named Big West Golfer of the Month after each victory.

Howlett played only one tournament in the fall as he reworked his swing. But he has bounced back in 2024, placing third at the OC Collegiate Classic in Dana Point in February and second at the Grand Canyon University Invitational Championship in Phoenix in March. Both finishes were team bests.

Titans men's golf coach Jason Drotter said he was surprised but not overly so that the two have been playing at an elite level.

"Tegan has always had an extremely high ceiling. When he gets his mental game squared away, he could be a heck of a college player," said Drotter. "Russ really stepped up his work ethic in the off-season. I expected him to break out earlier, but the wrist injury and [swing] setbacks slowed him down."

Led by Andrews, Howett and Garrett Boe, the Titans have won four of eight golf tournaments this season – a remarkable feat for a college team. They finished second twice, third and sixth in the other four tournaments. Fullerton will compete in the Wyoming Cowboy Classic on Monday and Tuesday in Maricopa, Arizona.

"It's been an incredibly good year. This might be my best team," said Drotter, who is in his 13th year at Fullerton. "We could be a threat to reach the nationals and do some damage."

Boe, a senior from Clovis, said it's the best squad in his four years. "Top to bottom, the entire team is more competitive. You must be on your game to earn a starting spot. The team chemistry is good, and everyone gets along well."

"Tegan and Russ have both been playing a lot better this year," said Boe. "Tegan's strength is putting and driving. He always remains positive and hyping everyone up all the time. Russ is more quiet. He doesn't have a big strength or weakness – he's steady and much more calculated with everything."

A timeout pays dividends for Andrews

In a competitive golf career that began at age 13, Tegan Andrews has often let his temper get the better of him. It reached a crisis stage a year ago at a team qualifier at Cota de Caza in Orange County.

Drotter had warned Andrews months earlier that one more club-throwing incident would cost him his spot on the team. When Andrews missed on an approach shot, he flung his wedge "probably 70 yards in the air," he recalled. After learning of the incident two days later, Drotter told Andrews, "Tegan, you're done. Go home."

Andrews quickly opted to redshirt. "I had had big issues with anger management on the golf course for years. I needed a break for some personal development. I was not being a great teammate, not being a good friend, not being the best person I could be. I was able to take that time and reset."

"I am notorious for being the most problematic player Jason has ever had – I don't take pride in that. He knew it was necessary for me to step away. While I was taking the time off, he wanted me to know that I was still part of the team," he said.

Andrews was able to devote more time to academics. "I got some of my heavier classes out of the way and worked with my favorite professors," said Andrews, who is a Cinema and Television Arts major. "And I switched from production to writing."

He also continued to golf, competing as an individual. In April, he finished 6-under par at the 36-hole SoCal Open in Indian Wells, capturing Low Amateur honors.

In May, he won a an 18-hole U.S. Open local qualifier in Palmer Alaska. He advanced to a U.S. Open sectional qualifier in Columbus, Ohio, where he missed the cut by seven strokes. "It was a great experience, getting to meet some of the pros who I have idolized," said Andrews, who beat 2009 U.S. Open champion Geoff Ogilvy and multiple PGA Tour winners.

Andrews, who uses a Callaway Paradym driver and an TaylorMade Spider putter, has qualified for the California Amateur in June at Sherwood Country Club.

"He has all the physical tools needed," Drotter said of the 6-foot-2 Andrews. "You don't have to be great on the fairways if you can hit a ball 330 yards straight and make putts. And he's spent a lot of time developing his wedge game and controlling his spin."

The 22-year-old Andrews said the Titans will need a good start to win the Big West Championship, which will be held April 28-30 at La Quinta Country Club. Last year, Fullerton finished two strokes behind winner Long Beach State.

"If we continue our current trend, we have a chance to be one of the top teams in the country. But it's going to take a lot more mental fortitude down the stretch," said Andrews.

"We have been a little slow getting into the rounds. In fact, we've been down 10 or 12 strokes going into the final round and have pulled it out. I would like us to get ahead fast and keep the momentum."

His grandfather Gene Andrews was a top amateur golfer, who won the 1954 U.S. Amateur Public Links Championship and the 1970 U.S. Senior Amateur. Gene also invented the yardage book, a players' guide to golf courses.

Gene died a month before Tegan was born in 2001. "As he was going to heaven, Tegan was coming down, and my dad chucked Tegan the keys to his golf game," said Tegan's father, Geno.

Andrews played football, basketball and other sports before concentrating on golf. "I let Tegan decide. When he was 13, he told me, 'I just want to focus on golf,' " said Geno.


Tegan Andrews was a member of the Agoura High School golf team as a junior and a senior. 

"It's very special when we get to play golf together. I'm stoked he has become a good player. When he was 13, I gave him five strokes. A few years later, he was giving me five strokes."

Andrews was home-schooled six years before enrolling at Agoura High School as a junior and joining its golf team.

Geno, who is retired, was an actor, rock musician and a film writer. Andrews' mother, Salina Bartunek-Andrews, was an actress, production manager and speed rock climber who appeared as Electra on the TV show "American Gladiators." She is now a yoga instructor and works in the health and wellness field. Andrew's younger sister, Dakota Lorén, 21, is an actress who enjoys making short films and writing scripts.

"My competitive nature comes from my mother. My capacity to have fun and let loose comes from my father," said Andrews.

Andrews appeared in a TV commercial as a 3-week-old. "Apparently I was the only baby on the set who wasn't crying and would look into the camera." He continued to appear in commercials as an infant and toddler.

At age 11, he took a software editing class, learning all about Adobe programs. By 16, he was working professionally as a freelance video editor.

He has been employed the past two years by Worldwide Golf in Santa Ana, shooting and editing YouTube videos to promote the company's clubs and retail products. He is working with his sister on a television script. "I will always be telling stories, in one form or another," he said, Andrews plans to compete next season as a fifth-year senior and graduate with a degree in spring 2025. Then he will try to earn a PGA Tour card.

Augusta National tops Andrews' bucket list of golf courses. "I would love to play Augusta. My grandfather got to play there three times in tournament play. Now decades later, I want to carry on his legacy."

For Howlett, a wrist injury and a comeback

A year ago, Russ Howlett surprised many, including himself, by shooting a 5-under par 211 (70-73-68) to finish in a three-way tie at the Big West Championship at La Quinta.

"I never check the leader board when I'm out there, so it was a surprise for me. I knew we were close for the team title, but it never crossed my mind that I would be heading off to the 18th tee for a playoff," said Howlett. "Jason [Drotter] was pumped for sure. We don't get that many passionate reactions from him."

Long Beach State's Ian Gilligan won a sudden death playoff to take Big West medalist honors.

Two weeks after the Big West Championship, Howlett injured his right wrist while practicing. His wrist pain went away shortly afterward, but he was forced to find a new swing that wouldn't reactivate the injury.

"My revised swing technically wasn't as good as my previous one -- it wasn't functional for ball striking," said Howlett, who attended the University of British Columbia in Vancouver for one year before transferring to Fullerton.

He explored different swings with his Canadian golf instructor Brett Saunders during the summer and continued tinkering in the fall with Josh Park, a former Fullerton player and assistant coach.

"I wasn't playing well early in the season," said Howlett, who competed in only one tournament in the fall. In September, he finished 53rd at the Nick Watney Invitational in Fresno.

But combining what he learned from Saunders and Park, things slowly improved and Howlett was more confident when the Titans resumed play in February. After finishing sixth at the Wyoming Desert Intercollegiate, he finished a team-best third at the OC Collegiate Classic and second at the Grand Canyon University Invitational.

"I seem to be turning in the right direction. The spring tournaments have gone well, and I'm not worrying about my wrist, thanks to technical moves I've learned from Josh," Howlett said.

He also credits extra time in the weight room for his comeback. "I've changed my tune a little bit. I used to think, 'Instead of spending an hour in the gym, I could be putting or chipping.' This year I've picked up 5 to 6 mph of clubhead speed from my workouts."

Drotter, the Titans coach, said Howlett's game management is among the best on the team.

"Russ is a very smart player and mature beyond his years – that is his biggest asset. He keeps the ball in play – he fairways you to death -- and is a good putter. He's honest about what he has that day and what he doesn't," said Drotter.

Howlett placed second at the British Columbia Junior Championship in 2020. After playing on the 2021-22 University of British Columbia golf team, Howlett pursued his dream of playing for a Division 1 school in Southern California where he could practice year-round.


Russ Howlett competes at the 2020 Vancouver Open. He placed second at the British Columbia Junior Championship that same year. 

Howlett's father, Keith said UBC golf coach Chris MacDonald encouraged his son to reach out to Fullerton and Drotter.

"Russ had always wanted to play at a university with access to good coaching, good weather and good facilities as well as teammates who were just as committed as he was and shared a love of the game. We feel very fortunate that this option was available," said Keith.

Howlett, who grew up in Delta, 14 miles south of Vancouver, said he made a relatively smooth transition to life in the U.S. "My first year here was an adjustment, just like anyone going to a new school. But not seeing my family wasn't the easiest thing."

"Jason gives us a lot of freedom to practice and play, and he will help us if we ask. He gives us everything we need to compete," said Howlett, who uses a TaylorMade Stealth driver and an Odyssey 2-Ball putter.

Tying for first at the 2023 Big West Championship "was a big success personally because the rest of my season had been a bit of a disappointment," he said. "I've improved this year, and I'm glad to be helping the team."

"We have a good chance to win the Big West this year. We haven't played Long Beach State yet, so I don't know how we match up," said Howlett. "I like playing La Quinta. It's a good course for us, and the greens are pure."

The 6-foot-2 Howlett was a multisport athlete growing up, with hockey occupying most of his free time. At age 12, a friend introduced him to golf.

"I knew Russ had been bitten by the golf bug. He was hooked," said Keith. "By 14, he was focusing all his time outside of school on golf. He had found his passion." As a teenager, Howlett spent a year teaching golf to children indoors as part of a volunteer program.

"Russ is a pretty chill guys who loves his family time and hanging out with friends," said his father. "He has an even-keel temperament, which is well situated for golf. With Russ, what you see is what you get. He doesn't take anything for granted and appreciates everything that comes his way."

Both of Howlett's parents are high school educators. His father is a counselor, and his mother, Anne, teaches physical education and special education. Keith played high-level youth hockey, and Anne ran track in high school.

He has three older sisters: Christine, Nicole and Lauren. Christine was an outside hitter in volleyball at Simon Fraser University near Vancouver. Nicole played hockey at McGill University in Montreal, and Lauren was a high school hockey player.

Howlett, 22, is majoring in English. "I've always liked reading and writing. I want to play professional golf or teach the sport. But things might change, and English is a good baseline degree that could lead me to law school or an MBA program. "

At Fullerton, he's enjoyed studying the transcendentalism movement and the writings of Ralph Waldo Emmerson and Henry David Thoreau. "In Canada, we didn't get exposed to a lot of American literature. The idea of these academics coming together and talking about philosophy and what was going on in the world is cool to read," Howlett said.

Three golf courses are atop Howlett's buck list: the Old Course in St. Andrews, Scotland; Cabot Cliffs in Inverness, Nova Scotia, Canada; and Bandon Dunes in Oregon.

For tourists to Vancouver, he recommends a stroll down Granville or Robson streets. "They have some very good cafes, and there are some popular Asian and Italian restaurants," he said. "Whistler, the site of 2010 Olympics, is a two-hour drive north. And Vancouver's hiking trails and beaches are beautiful."