Junior Espen Kofstad grew up playing golf in Oslo, Norway, and has traveled around the world winning tournaments, including the Norwegian National Championships this past August.
“The biggest thing was that there were a lot of good players there and I got to improve my game,” said Kofstad. “It felt good to win. It was one of my summer goals.”
Golf has been a major part of Kofstad’s life since he was 6-years-old, playing with his whole family.
“My aunt and uncle got into it and then the rest of my family did too,” said Kofstad.
Though most of his family does not play as much anymore, Kofstad never stopped playing the game that he loves and excels at. Golf in Norway is not much different from the way it is played here besides that it is measured in meters not yards, and the altitude is much higher here than in Oslo, which is at sea level.
Just before he started playing for Denver, Kofstad won the World Boys Championship in Japan in 2006.
“It was a great experience for me,” said Kofstad, “definitely one of the highlights of my career.”
Kofstad not only traveled to Japan during his golf career, he has also played in tournaments all over Europe. In Italy he won silver in the European Boys Team Championship, the Telia Tour Qualificaton, Swedish Pro-Tour, and the Nordic Championship, all in 2005.
Kofstad met the coach from Denver, Eric Hoos, at a tournament he was playing in Finland and decided to play for Denver. He knew that he wanted to come to the United States for school and golf and only applied to DU for school.
“You can play better here,” said Kofstad. “There are more people and you can improve your game.”
Though he enjoys living here, Kofstad goes home to Oslo in the summers. He joins summer leagues and plays in tournaments, always working on improving his game.
During his freshman year at Denver, Kofstad played in 12 of 13 tournaments and tied for second on the team. His sophomore year was similarly successful. Again he played in 12 of 13 tournaments and tied for the team high.
He is looking forward to this upcoming year and one of his goals for the season is to be named an All-American.
“I just have to play solid and consistent all year,” said Kofstad.
