Axel Ochoa enters eighth season as Head Coach of West Texas A&M Men's Golf ahead of the 2026-27 season after being named the eighth head coach in program history history on January 31, 2020.
Ochoa has led the Buffs to new heights, appearing in three consecutive NCAA Championships.
2025-26 saw the Buffs register eight different top five team finishes highlighted by victories at the Shootout at PGA Riviera Maya as well as the Oak Tree Invitational. WT finished second at the NCAA Regional Championships in Stockton, California followed by a ninth place showing at the NCAA Championships. Ochoa was named the Lone Star Conference Co-Coach of the Year in 2025-26, the first ever WT men’s golf head coach to win the award. He was also tabbed the Golf Pride South Central Region Coach of the Year.
The 2024-25 campaign saw the Buffs continue the program's growth as one of the top programs in the South Central Region. The Buffs finished inside of the Top-10 in 10 of their 12 tournaments highlighted by a runner-up finish at the RJGA South Central Shootout. WT finished sixth at the NCAA Regional Tournament to punch their ticket to National for the second straight season, finishing the season with a 14th place performance in Palm Beach, Florida at the Division II Championships.
2023-24 was the most successful season in WT Men's Golf history as the Buffs advanced to the NCAA Division II Championships for the second time in school history following a fourth place finish at the NCAA South Central/West Regional Championships in Las Cruces. WT tied for seventh during the stroke play portion of the National Championships to advance to medal match play, the Buffs took down top-seeded West Florida in the quarterfinals before falling to fifth-seeded North Georgia in the semifinals by a stroke.
Freshman Wyatt Provence made history as the Randall High School alum won the NCAA Division II National Championship by five strokes, firing a 201 (-12), the lowest three-round score in Division II Championship history. Provence claimed the 2024 Arnold Palmer National Individual Champion Award while also being named a First Team PING All-American to go along with claiming the 2024 NCAA Division II Phil Mickelson Outstanding Freshman Award.
The Buffs registered another big season under Ochoa during the 2023-24 campaign as they advanced to the NCAA Division II South Central/West Regional Championship for a second consecutive season, marking the first back-to-back trips by the Buffs in program history.
The 2021-22 campaign saw the Buffs climb to new heights as they qualified for the NCAA Division II Men's Golf Postseason for the first time since 2015. The Buffs finished in the Top-5 as a team during five different tournaments during the season highlighted by a victory in the Ryan Palmer Foundation Invitational at Amarillo Country Club, picking up the fourth event crown in program history and the first since the 2004-05 campaign.
Ochoa came to Canyon from Allendale, Michigan where he spent two and a half seasons as the women’s golf assistant at Grand Valley State. The Lakers claimed a pair of Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference Championships (2018, 2019) with two trips to the NCAA Division II National Championships including a ninth-place finish at Bay Oaks Country Club in Houston back in 2018.
Prior to his time in Allendale, Ochoa founded a company to assist colleges and universities identify and recruit international student-athletes to the United States. He helped guide these students through the entire recruiting process, from initial exposure to coaches to securing scholarship offers through the visa process and ultimate matriculation to U.S.-based institutions.
The Buenos Aires, Argentina native registered a standout collegiate career at Oklahoma Christian where he was a four-time NAIA All-American while leading the Eagles to a pair of NAIA National Championships in 2009 and 2011. He was the National Runner-Up to teammate Oscar Stark during his senior campaign in 2011 while finishing his career with four individual event titles. Ochoa still holds the lowest single-round for the Eagles, firing a 63 (-8) during the 2010 SHSU Harold Funston Invitational as he ranks eighth on OC’s all-time career scoring list (73.1) over 120 rounds during his time in Edmond.
Ochoa received his Bachelor’s Degree in Business Management from OC in 2011, following his collegiate career Axel played on the NGA Pro Golf Tour for one season.
Ochoa and his wife, Jenna, are the proud parents of three daughters: Josie, Sunny and Emmie.
