Trip to Augusta helped Ryder Cowan’s career

EDMOND – The moment wasn’t too big for Ryder Cowan.

Two years ago when he was in eighth grade, Cowan roamed the grounds of Augusta National Golf Club as a participant. He wasn’t playing in the Masters, but he had a competition of his own.

Cowan was playing in the Drive, Chip & Putt National Finals.

The competition pits some of the best junior boys and girls golfers in the country against one another the Sunday before the Masters. Competitors have to advance through different qualifying stages to make the national finals.

In the drive portion of the competition, Cowan pulled his first shot out of bounds before hitting a 253-yard shot on his next attempt, which placed second. He also placed second in the chipping portion and tied for fifth in putting, which helped him finish as runner-up for the 12-13 age division.

Now, Cowan is a sophomore golfer at Oklahoma Christian School. He has won the only two high school tournaments of his career, both coming at the Purcell Invitational. Cowan has also had success nationally, but none bigger than his runner-up finish at the 2019 Drive, Chip & Putt National Finals at Augusta National Golf Club, which was a springboard to all of his success in the two years since.

“It was just a great experience,” Cowan said. “There were so many good people there. It helped me a lot. It really was my big start.”

As the high school golf season gets in full swing, Cowan and numerous other golfers across the metro are ready to compete for championships after last season’s were canceled because of the coronavirus pandemic.

For Cowan, it’s another chance to continue building.

He was going to be a key piece of last season’s OCS team that also included The Oklahoman’s 2018-19 All-City Golfer of the Year, Jaxon Dowell, as well as Boston Benn. The Saints had won back-to-back team state titles, and Dowell won individual championships.

Dowell missed the team’s first tournament, but Cowan showed his promise, winning the Purcell Invitational.

Then the spring season was canceled. Cowan’s freshman year was finished.

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This year, OCS again started its season at the Purcell Invitational, and Cowan repeated as champion.

Two high school events, two wins.

“There’s definitely a lot of similarities between he and Jaxon,” OCS coach Tosh Hays said. “But he’s his own player and does it his own way. I think what he can achieve and what he can accomplish is limitless.”

Cowan’s success continued last year. He won the boys 14-15 Division at the Oklahoma Junior Golf Tour match play championship. In October, he won the Westrock Coffee Junior, an American Junior Golf Association tournament.

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He credits his family and teammates for always providing support and encouragement. He’s thankful for Hays and Steve Ball, one of his instructors, for their help in his development.

Cowan heads into the season as one of the top players in the state. He can drive the ball strong, but his short game and putting stands out. He’s looking forward to continuing OCS’ winning ways.

“I’m excited to see how we can come together and get better as a team,” Cowan said. “I just want to help them get better and see how we can do at state.”

Reporter Cameron Jourdan covers high school sports across the Oklahoma City metro and state. Have a story idea for Cameron? He can be reached at cjourdan@oklahoman.com or on Twitter at @Cam_Jourdan. Support Cameron’s work and that of other Oklahoman journalists by purchasing a digital subscription today at oklahoman.com/subscribe or by using the link at the top of this page.