Located 5,085 feet above sea level in the heart of Albuquerque, the UNM North Course has served as the home of Lobo cross country since the 2000 season and has helped establish the Duke City as one of the region’s premier destinations for collegiate distance running. Built in 1942 as a nine-hole golf course, the picturesque urban layout has been described as “Albuquerque’s Central Park” and sits less than a mile from UNM’s main campus.
The course is run almost entirely on grass across the golf course’s fairways, with only a few short dirt sections. Its route winds over gentle rolling slopes, around mature trees and through several spectator-friendly viewing areas that allow fans to see the runners multiple times throughout a race. Combined with Albuquerque’s generally favorable fall weather and high-altitude setting, the North Course provides a distinctive championship environment for both athletes and spectators.
Over more than two decades as UNM’s home course, the venue has hosted some of the region’s biggest collegiate cross country meets.
The North Course has also become a familiar postseason destination, previously hosting NCAA Mountain Region Championships in 2002, 2006, 2009, 2015 and 2022 as well as multiple Mountain West Championships, most recently in 2021. The 2026 NCAA Mountain Region Championships on Nov. 13 will mark the seventh time the Lobos have hosted the event since the NCAA regional format was adopted in 1997.
New Mexico most recently hosted the regional championships in 2022, when the Lobo women captured the Mountain Region team title on their home course. This year’s meet will once again bring many of the nation’s top programs and individuals to Albuquerque, with the top two men’s and women’s teams earning automatic qualification to the NCAA Championships and additional teams and individuals advancing through the NCAA’s at-large selection process.
PARKING for Teams, Athletes and Spectators:
Teams can unload next to the golf course on Yale Blvd, but are not permitted to park along the street. Parking will be enforced, and will take place in G lot (Tucker and University Blvd NE) and M lot (Tucker & Yale Blvd). Do not park in lots that are not designated as such. You will be ticketed by UNM parking services. The small parking lot in front of the clubhouse is reserved for meet management.
DIRECTIONS:
UNM North Golf Course
2201 Tucker Ave NE
Albuquerque, NM 87131
UNM’s North Golf Course is located near the corner of Yale Blvd. and Tucker Rd. on the UNM North Campus. From I-25 north, take Lomas exit and head east, towards the mountains. Turn left on Yale Blvd. and continue north before turning right on Tucker Rd. The golf course clubhouse and parking lot will be on the left.