The Bruins have a chance to make a strong return after three months away from collegiate play.

Following a victory at the Preserve Golf Club Collegiate, its last event of 2024, No. 10 UCLA men’s golf is starting the winter season with the Southwestern Invitational in Thousand Oaks, California. The Jan. 27 to Jan. 29 tournament is the closest event of the season to Westwood – being a 35-minute drive away – and offers the team an opportunity to bring their winning ways into the new year.

The gap in the golf season presents a unique challenge. An important step in January is shaking the rust off, said coach Armen Kirakossian.

“We’ve done quite a bit of practice in the last couple weeks, and they’re starting to look a little bit sharper.”

Kirakossian said that while momentum is slippery in golf, last year’s win gave the team a confidence boost.

“Just because we won our last tournament of the fall doesn’t mean anything,” he said. “But I do think it still changes the belief of the team. … They know that if they play well, they can win tournaments.”

The field features former Pac-12 opponents No. 11 Arizona and California, along with current conference rivals in Washington and USC. No. 5 Texas, No. 15 Vanderbilt and No. 19 Pepperdine round out the ranked competition.

The event also brings two teams who the Bruins tangled with late last year.

Duke posted a 17-under third round in the Golf Club of Georgia Collegiate to claim first place over UCLA, who were leading going into the last day, by three strokes. And San Diego State was the second-place finisher in UCLA’s win at the Preserve Golf Club Collegiate, with Aztec Chanachon Chokprajakchat tying senior Pablo Ereño for second individually at an 8-under 208.

Ereño, who posted a 6-under 66 in the third round of last year’s win, spent his offseason back home in Spain.

“I’ve been working with a lot of pros in Spain, and all of them do certain things with the wedges that I didn’t used to do,” Ereño said. “Wedges are probably the most room of improvement I have in my game”

Ereño also played at the Bonallack Trophy in Dubai earlier this month, an amateur event that pits a European team against an Asia/Pacific one. He added that the camaraderie the Bruins share makes the transition back to steady college play easier.

“The team we have is great,” he said. “We like practicing together, which is great, because we push each other to get better.”

Sherwood Country Club is about 30 miles away from UCLA. Both Kirakossian and Ereño said they were glad to be in familiar territory, with the opportunity for fans to make an appearance.

Come Monday, the Bruins will have to play precisely on a demanding course. Ereño, the 18th-ranked male amateur in the world, said he played a practice round Thursday, where he noted the fast, firm greens. He added that some blind holes offer an opportunity to gain strokes on opponents.

“Being able to play the right strategy off the tee with the right line, and being able to control the greens, is going to be key for success in this first event,” Ereño said.