April 2, 2015
Live Scoring via Golfstat | Tech stats and results | Coach Heppler interview on the Tech practice range
THE FLATS – Georgia Tech continues its run-up to the Atlantic Coast Conference Championship by traveling to play in the Mason Rudolph Championship Friday through Sunday at the Vanderbilt Legends Club outside Nashville, Tenn.
TOURNAMENT INFORMATION – The Mason Rudolph Men’s Championship is a 54-hole collegiate event, with the low four scores out of five counting each round. Eighteen holes will take place on Friday through Sunday, with fixed tee times on number one and 10 starting at 9 a.m. Eastern time on Friday and Saturday and 8:30 a.m. Eastern time Sunday.. The event is played at the Vanderbilt Legends Club South Course (7,100 yards, par 71) in Franklin, Tenn. The 14-team field features eight teams in the current Golfweek/Sagarin top-50, including No. 6 and host Vanderbilt, No. 16 Georgia Tech, No. 21 Kennesaw State No. 28 Alabama, No. 32 SMU, No. 40 Georgia Southern, No. 44 East Tennessee State and No. 47 Louisville. Ball State, College of Charleston, Indiana, Liberty, Mercer and Notre Dame round out the field
TOURNAMENT HISTORY – Georgia Tech is playing in the Mason Rudolph Championship for the second time, having finished fourth among 17 teams in the 2009 event, which was held in the fall. Tech’s lineup for that event includes current PGA Tour pro Chesson Hadley, John-Tyler Griffin, Paul Haley, Kyle Scott and James White.
TEAM UPDATE – Georgia Tech is ranked No. 16 in this week’s Golfstat ranking and No. 11 in the Golfweek/Sagarin ratings. The Yellow Jackets finished 10th at the Valspar Collegiate Invitational in their last outing two weeks ago after finishing second at the Puerto Rico Classic and fourth in the Seminole Collegiate. Anders Alberton paced the Yellow Jackets by tying for 11th place individually. All three spring tournaments have featured at least eight teams which were ranked among the top 50 in the nation, against whom the Jackets have a 42-25-1 record this year. Tech’s schedule is ranked the 11th-most difficult in the nation according to the Golfweek/Sagarin Index.
TECH LINEUP – Senior All-Americans Ollie Schniederjans (Powder Springs, Ga.) and Anders Albertson (Woodstock, Ga.) anchor the Tech travel squad for this event. Albertson has been particularly strong of late, averaging 69.67 over his last 12 rounds dating back to the Warrior Princeville Makai Invitational to end the fall season. He has broken par in 10 of 12 rounds and posted two fourth-place ties and two 11th-place ties. Schniederjans, a six-time winner in the last two years, looks to expunge one of the poorer performances of his career last time out at the Valspar Collegiate.
They are joined by a pair of sophomores in Michael Hines (Acworth, Ga.), who won the team qualifier for this event, has the team’s fourth-best stroke average (72.27) and one top-10 finish, and Vincent Whaley (McKinney, Texas), playing in his sixth event. Chris Petefish (Danville, Calif.), also is playing his sixth event, has been the steadiest of Tech’s four freshmen with a 71.47 stroke average, third on the team, with one top-10 finish and 11 subpar rounds out of 15.
COACH Bruce Heppler SAYS – “This is a good event with a strong field for us to play, and it’s on a weekend, as we get closer to the ACC Tournament. We haven’t been up there in a while, but the greens are fast, which is what you’re looking for. Vanderbilt’s had a very good year, and Alabama is there. Again, we’re taking a different lineup, and we’re trying to get these young guys as many events as we can as we determine who the five guys are going to be for post-season.”
ABOUT GEORGIA TECH GOLF
Georgia Tech’s golf team is in its 20th year under head coach Bruce Heppler. The Yellow Jackets have won 15 Atlantic Coast Conference Championships, made 27 appearances in the NCAA Championship and been the national runner-up four times. Connect with Georgia Tech Golf on social media by liking their Facebook page, or following on Twitter (@GT_Golf). For more information on Tech golf, visit Ramblinwreck.com.
