Yannik Paul grew up in a country where the game of golf is not king.

The former CU Buffs star golfer was born and raised in Frankfurt, Germany. Soccer is the top sport in his home country. But golf has a strong presence as well. Major championship winners Benhard Langer and Martin Kaymer are from Germany.

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“Everyone plays soccer there,” Paul, who was CU’s first All-Pac-12 first team golfer, said. “We started at 7 years old. One weekend we would play golf but the next weekend we would play soccer.”

Paul’s dad, Heinz Paul, and his grandparents, Frank and Birgit, got Yannik and his twin brother Jeremy into golf. By the age of 13, the brothers decided that playing on the links was the way they wanted to go. The brothers helped his prep school, Albertus-Magnus Schule, to second-place finishes in Germany’s National School Team Championships in both 2011 and 2012.

So how did two brothers from Germany end up in Boulder to play golf for the CU Buffs? It all started with a coaches’ connection.

“Ted Long, our coach in Germany, was friends with CU golf coach Roy Edwards,” Yannik said.

Edwards, who has coached at CU since 2006, was overseas watching junior events when he met Long. Edwards asked Long, who was the swing instructor for the Pauls, if there were any players he should focus on. Long suggested the brothers.

“I probably started watching them before they were a recruitable age,” Edwards said. “They were around 16 then and I just stayed in contact with Ted. I went and watched them in Germany a couple times.”

The brothers visited Boulder in June 2012 and committed that day. Yannik and Jeremy, who plays on the Korn Ferry Tour and finished tied for third in last year’s The Ascendant presented by Blue at TPC Colorado in Berthoud, were leaving their home in Germany to play golf in the United States.

“One of the main things about college is it helps you grow up as a person,” Yannik said. “Once you are on your own it is a different atmosphere.

“Tough to beat Boulder.”

Yannik had strong seasons his freshman and sophomore years in Boulder. He had a second-place finish in the UTEP Invitational and finished in a tie for 19th at the Pac-12 Championships. After his sophomore season, he took a year off and returned to Germany before opting to return to Boulder.

“Every great player is stubborn but every really great player is stubborn and has a strong willingness to learn,” Edwards said. “He became a lot of more comfortable with his game.”

He finished second in the Pac-12 Championship as a senior. His career scoring average of 72.11 is second in school history only to his brother Jeremy’s 71.72.

“I really enjoyed my time in Colorado. It is an amazing place. I love to ski as well,” Yannik said.

Yannik turned pro in May 2018 and went to play on PGA Tour Canada until 2021. He made the move to the Challenge Tour in Europe which is very similar to the Korn Ferry Tour in the U.S. He finished ninth in the tour’s final rankings which secured his spot on the DP World Tour.

And now, Yannik is flourishing as a pro. He earned his first career win at the Mallorca Golf Open in Spain where he birdied the final hole to win by one. Yannik also shot 64 and 62 in the second and third round respectively.

“That first win was amazing,” Yannik said.

He also finished second in back-to-back weeks at the Hero Indian Open and Thailand Classic in February. Yannik now is taking time off and living in Scottsdale, Ariz., before getting back on the course on April 20 for the ISPS-Handa Championship in Japan.

His ultimate goal is to make it to the PGA Tour and with some rules in place in professional golf, that goal has more clairty.

“There is a clear path to the PGA Tour,” Yannik said. “The top 10 guys (who are not already on the PGA Tour) from the DP World can get their card.”

Yannik also has himself in the mix for some of golf’s biggest events. Currently he sits in third place of the European Ryder Cup standings. He also will have chance to play in The British Open this season and hopes to qualify for the U.S. Open through sectional qualifying, he played in last years but missed the cut, and the PGA Championships through climbing up the World Golf Rankings.

“The Ryder Cup is a big goal for golfers,” Yannik said. “It is a great atmosphere and I love team sports.”

***

This week in golf

PGA

Valspar Championship

When: Thursday-Sunday

Site: Innisbrook Resort (Copperhead Course) – Palm Harbor, Fla.

Defending champ: Sam Burns

Purse: $8.1 million

TV: Thursday-Friday, Noon-4 p.m. (Golf Channel); Saturday-Sunday, 11am-1 pm (Golf Channel), 1-4 p.m. (NBC).

Champions

Hoag Classic

When: Friday-Sunday

Site: Newport Beach Country Club – Newport Beach, Calif.

Defending champ: Retief Goosen

Purse: $2 million

TV: Friday, 4-6 pm (Golf Channel); Saturday-Sunday, 2-5 pm (Golf Channel)

LIV

LIV Golf Invitational Tucson

When: Friday-Sunday

Site: The Gallery Golf Club – Tucson, Ariz.

Purse: $25 million

TV: Friday, 11 am-4 pm (The CW App); Saturday-Sunday, 11 am-4 pm (CW Network).

DP World Tour

SDC Championship

When: Thursday-Sunday

Site: St. Francis Links – Eastern Cape, South Africa

Defending champ: N/A

Purse: $1.5 million

TV: None

***

Skins game

Odds to win Valspar Championship

Justin Thomas +1000

Jordan Speith +1400

Matt Fitzpatrick +1600

Justin Rose +1800

Sam Burns +1800

—Odds from SuperBook Colorado

***

World Golf Rankings

Player, points

1. Scottie Scheffler, 540.74105

2. John Rahm, 421.76567

3. Rory McIlroy, 400.34009

4. Patrick Cantlay, 289.50833

5. Cameron Smith, 249.15474

6. Max Homa, 272.17444

7. Xander Schauffele, 256.90963

8. Will Zalatoris, 238.44141

9. Viktor Hovland,  267.87375

10. Justin Thomas, 227.56309

Ryder Cup standings

United States

Captain: Zach Johnson

Player, points

1. Scottie Scheffler, 15,336.423

2. Max Homa, 6,271.810

3. Will Zalatoris, 5,461.634

4. Justin Thomas, 5,080.175

5. Collin Morikawa, 4,661.095

6. Kurt Kitayama, 3,880.605 

7. Cameron Young, 3,465.003

8. Patrick Cantlay, 3,465.003

9. Tom Hoge, 3,259.809

10. Chris Kirk, 3,180.545

11. Keegan Bradley, 2,870.499

12. Jordan Speith, 2,504.430

Note: The U.S. team will be made up from the top six eligible players in the points rankings with six captain’s picks

Europe

Captain: Luke Donald

European points

1. Rory McIlroy, 1,856.5

2. Jon Rahm, 1,850

3. Yannik Paul, 1,269.97

4. Victor Perez, 1,252.49

5. Adrian Otaegui, 1020.51

6. Alex Noren, 1017.5

 World points

1. Jon Rahm, 204.95

2. Rory McIlroy, 155.9

3. Tyrell Hatton, 107.95

4. Viktor Hovland, 102.14

5. Shane Lowry, 60.92

6. Seamus Power, 52.15

Note: The European team will be made up from the top three eligible players from the European Points List, the top three eligible players from the World Points List and six captain’s picks.

Local Links

Harvard Gulch Sidewalk Sale

When: April 1-2, 8 am-4 pm

Where: 660 E Iliff Ave, Denver 80212

What: Get great deals on used clubs, bags and more for the season.  A portion of the proceeds go to help support Denver’s Junior Golf Program, First Tee-Colorado Rocky Mountains

Info: 720-865-0450