Danny Bowen, the fourth head coach in program history, enters his ninth season at the helm of the NM State women's golf team in 2024-25.
An accomplished NM State golfer himself, Bowen has maintained the Aggies' tradition of excellence since taking over the program. Amid his first eight years leading the women’s team, Bowen guided the program to three conference titles, including back-to-back WAC championships in 2021 and 2022. His tenure has also included four trips to the NCAA Regionals as a team while also helping Emma Bunch to a regional appearance just last season.
Bowen’s teams also continue to excel in the classroom and are coming off a season in which five Aggies were named to the 2023-24 Women’s Golf Coaches Association (WGCA) All-American Scholar Team to mark the 17th consecutive season with at least one WGCA Scholar All-American.
2023-24
In his eighth year leading the charge, Bowen helped the Aggies secure seven top three finishes as a team, including the team title at the GCU Invitational where the Aggies combined to shoot 18-under par en route to winning the tournament by five strokes. This marked the Aggies’ first team title since April 2022 when they took home the WAC title.
In total, the Aggies finished among the top three teams at the Golfweek Fall Challenge (3rd), Golfweek Red Sky Classic (2nd), Golf Iconic Classic (2nd), Rainbow Wahine Invitational (T-2nd), GCU Invitational (1st), the Cowgirl Classic (T-3rd) and the Conference USA Championship (2nd).
At the Conference USA Championship, both Emma Bunch and Alison Gastelum would earn CUSA All-Tournament team honors as they both recorded top-five individual placements.
With Bowen’s guidance, Emma Bunch pieced together one of the best individual seasons in program history as she secured five consecutive individual titles leading up to an appearance in the NCAA Cle Elum Regional where she would finish in a tie for 24th.
Following a stellar sophomore campaign, Bunch became just the fourth golfer in program history to collect first or second team all-America honors while becoming the first to do so since Alena Sharp in 2002-03. Bunch also became the first Aggie in program history to be named one of the 10 finalists for the ANNIKA Award – an honor presented to the nation’s top Division I golfer.
This also led Bunch to earn a spot in the field for the prestigious Arnold Palmer Cup where she represented Denmark.
Additionally, both Angela Garvin and Emma Bunch each collected Conference USA All-Academic honors for their academic and athletic accomplishments during the season. Meanwhile, Emma Bunch, Kaylee Chen, Angela Garvin, Alison Gastelum and Isa Laulhé were each named to the WGCA All-American Scholar Team.
2022-23
In Bowen’s eighth year as the program’s leader, he helped the Aggies notch top three finishes in both the Golf Iconic Classic (2nd) and the Cougar Collegiate Invitational before guiding the team to a third-place finish at the WAC Championships. At the WAC Championships, Alison Gastelum notched a fifth-place finish after shooting 3-over across 54 holes.
Following the WAC Tournament, the league also announced that Alison Gastelum earned First Team All-WAC honors while Emma Bunch, Kaylee Chen and Valentina Origel earned Second Team All-WAC honors.
The year concluded with four Aggies earning WGCA All-American Scholar Team honors as Emma Bunch, Alison Gastelum, Meiji Tungprapunvong and Kaylee Chen each garnered recognition.
2021-22
In what would be the Aggies’ penultimate season in the WAC, NM State earned the program’s seventh WAC Championship and third under the leadership of Bowen as they traveled to Kerrville, Texas, and cleared the field by three strokes at Riverhill Country Club. This also tied the Aggies with Tulsa for most WAC Championships by a single program in the history of the conference. This charge was led by Amelia McKee who shot even par to place second among the field of 60 individuals.
Following the Aggies’ team title, Bowen earned his third-straight WAC Coach of the Year honor and NM State earn a pair of First Team All-WAC honors as both Alison Gastelum and Amelia McKee landed on the first team.
In Bowen’s fifth year, he helped a pair Aggies earn All-WAC honors as Amelia McKee and Alison Gastelum earned first team honors with McKee also being named the WAC Player of the Year.
Bowen would eventually lead the Aggies to the NCAA Albuquerque Regional where they finished 11th in a field that featured nine teams inside the nation’s top 50. This would be the Aggies’ 20th NCAA Regional in program history. At the regional, the Aggies were led by Amelia McKee and Alison Gastelum who both finished tied for 33rd among the 64-woman field.
2020-21
After the 2019-20 season was cut short due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Bowen continued his impressive career as he helped NM State tally three top two finishes during his fourth year with the program.
The season was highlighted by a team win at the Cowgirl Classic hosted by Wyoming and the WAC team title which marked the sixth in program history and second under the tutelage of Bowen.
The conference title was the Aggies seventh in eight years and led Bowen to earn his second consecutive WAC Coach of the Year honor after coaching the Aggies to their second straight conference title after they cleared the field of WAC foes by seven strokes to hoist the trophy at Riverhill Country Club in Kerrville, Texas.
This also led to awards for Aggie standouts Amelia McKee and Alison Gastelum as McKee was named the WAC Player of the Year and Gastelum was named the WAC Freshman of the Year. Additionally, Mckee and Gastelum earned First Team All-WAC honors and were joined by Pun Chanachai.
Ultimately, Bowen led the Aggies to a top-10 finish at the NCAA Stanford Regional as NM State placed in a tie for 10th to mark its highest finish since the 2016 campaign.
Upon the conclusion of the season, four Aggies garnered WGCA All-American Scholar honors as Amelia McKee, Pun Chanachai, Alison Gastelu and Karen Miyamoto each received recognition.
2019-20
The Aggies' bid at their sixth WAC team title in seven years was cut short due to the coronavirus pandemic in 2019-20, but not before NM State had great success on the golf course. Bowen's squad won three tournaments in the regular season, including the Ptarmigan Ram Classic, Aggie Invitational and UTRGV Invitational.
Under Bowen's tutelage, newcomers Amelia McKee and Alex Quihuis were each named WAC Golfer of the Week during the shortened season. McKee, along with Alison Gastelum and two-time WAC Golfer of the Year Pun Chanachai, were also named to the Women's Golf Coaches Association (WGCA) All-American Scholar Team after the campaign.
2018-19
In 2018-19, the Aggies captured their fifth WAC team title in six years and their first under Bowen. Galloway, the conference's Golfer of the Year, won the individual championship with a one-under-par 214, becoming the fourth Aggie in the last five years to claim the individual title and the eighth individual champion for NM State overall.
The Aggies earned a trip to the NCAA Cle Elum Regional that season, finishing in 16th place as a team.
2017-18
In his first season leading the program in 2017-18, the Aggies got off to the hottest start imaginable. NM State won the team title at its first two events of the campaign - the Hobble Creek Fall Classic and the Colonel Wollenberg's Ptarmigan Ram Classic.
Bowen's squad's success carried throughout the year, as the Aggies claimed a second-place team finish at the WAC Championship. NM State was led by the repeat WAC Golfer of the Year Chanachai, who shot an overall three-under-par 210 to finish in second place on the individual leaderboard.
Prior to NM State
Prior to taking over the program, Bowen spent five seasons as an assistant coach for the Aggie women's golf program. In 2016-17, he helped the squad capture its fourth consecutive WAC title and earn an NCAA Regional appearance. Under Bowen’s mentorship, Chanachai was named WAC Golfer of the Year and WAC Freshman of the Year.
At the end of the 2016-17 season, NM State earned five All-WAC honors with Chanachai, Kristen Cline and Camille Orito being named to the First Team, while Vale Macias and Kennedie Montoya earned second-team honors.
Bowen saw two golfers – Cline and Orito – named WGCA All-American Scholars for the fourth year in a row. The team also came in at No. 25 on the WGCA Top-25 All-Scholar Team GPA list with a 3.703.
After the 2015-16 season, the Aggies had five student-athletes earn All-WAC honors. Macias collected WAC Golfer of the Year honors, and Montoya was the WAC individual champion.
As a Player
Bowen, an Albuquerque native, played golf at NM State from 2002-06. As an Aggie, he helped the men's golf program win four tournaments, including two conference championships. Bowen was a three-time conference first team honoree and was also invited to participate in the NCAA West Regional Golf Tournament as an individual on two separate occasions.
As a freshman, he played in all 11 tournaments and was the top Aggie finisher in seven of those tournaments. His 73.79 strokes per round average was the best average on the NM State team that season, as Bowen helped NM State win its first Sun Belt conference title.
As a junior, Bowen, a two-time first-team all-Sun Belt honoree in his career, once again led the Aggies with a 75.52 strokes per round average. He compiled four top-10 finishes and, for the first time, participated in the NCAA West Regional as an individual.
In the summer of 2005, Bowen also qualified for the 2005 U.S. Amateur after finishing second at a sectional qualifier.
NM State moved from the Sun Belt to the WAC after Bowen's junior year. He was named first team all-conference for the third consecutive year as he picked up first team All-WAC honors. His performance on the golf course helped carry NM State to a WAC title in its first year in the conference.
That season, Bowen again led the Aggies in average per round with a 71.96 average. He tied for first place at the Cowboy Classic held in Scottsdale, Ariz., sharing the title with fellow NM State golfer Ben Kreger.
Bowen attended Eldorado High School in Albuquerque prior to beginning his collegiate playing career at NM State. In 2002, he won the New Mexico Individual State Championships as a senior in the high school.
