THE FLATS – Georgia Tech rising junior Christo Lamprecht turned out to be a key member of the International team in helping his side complete a 33-27 victory over Team USA in the 2022 Arnold Palmer Cup in Geneva, Switzerland.
The native of George, South Africa did not earn automatic qualification for the International team based on points – he ranked seventh and the top six were automatic choices to represent the International side – but earned a spot on the team as a captain’s pick. Lamprecht wound up winning three of his four matches in the annual event, a three-day event in which 12 men’s ad 12 women’s players representing each side compete in mixed fourball, mixed foursomes, men’s and/or women’s foursomes and singles matches.
Lamprecht teamed with Taiwan’s Heather Lin, a senior at the University of Oregon, to defeat the Stanford duo of Michael Thorbjornsen and Rose Zhang, 1-up, in the opening round, then downed the American team of Jake Doggett and Olivia Mitchell, 3&2, in the third round. The 50th-ranked amateur in the world added a third point for the International team Sunday by taking down the 15th-ranked amateur Travis Vick of Texas, 3&2, in the final-round singles.
An All-Atlantic Coast Conference selection and a third-team All-American last spring, Lamprecht finished the spring ranked No. 27 in the nation by both Golfstat and the Golfweek/Sagarin Index. He tied for ninth place (287, -1) in June in the European Amateur Championship in Valencia, Spain.
Lamprecht posted six top-10 finishes in 12 events in the collegiate season in 2021-22, including a tie for third place in stroke play and a pair of match victories at the ACC Championship. He also tied for second place at the Southern Highlands Collegiate, fourth at The Calusa Cup and eighth at The Goodwin in the spring. He led the Yellow Jackets in stroke average at 70.22, which ranks No. 6 in program history for a single year.
Lamprecht and Heather Lin of Taiwan and the University of Oregon teamed up for two victories for the International team. (photos courtesey of the Golf Coaches Association of America)
STEELMAN REACHES ROUND OF 16 AT NORTH & SOUTH AMATEUR
Rising senior Ross Steelman enjoyed a successful week at the North & South Amateur in Pinehurst, N.C., reaching the round of 16 in match play after tying for second place in the stroke-ply portion of the tournament.
Steelman shot rounds of 69-66 in stroke play, posting his 66 on the famed Pinehurst No. 2 course, for a 36-hole total of 5-under-par 135, one stroke behind Karl Vilips (Stanford) of Australia. The Columbia Mo., native defeated 16-year-old Joshua Bai of New Zealand, 2&1, in the round of 32 before falling in 20 holes to 19-year-old Ben James of Milford, Conn.
Steelman is No. 23 in the World Amateur Golf Ranking.
FIVE YELLOW JACKETS IN ACTION AT MONROE INVITATIONAL
Connor Howe and Bartley Forrester headline a group of five Yellow Jackets in action this week at the Monroe Invitational in Pittsford, N.Y. Howe is ranked 65th according to WAGR and will be looking to build upon his tie for seventh place finish a year ago. It will be his fourth time taking part in the event after taking 60th in 2019 and 31st in 2018. The Ogden, Utah native recently finished 10th at the Northeast Amateur Invitational, June 22-25. Forrester is on a heater as well, qualifying for his second U.S. Amateur Championship on Tuesday (6/28) winning co-medalist honors in the 36-hole qualifier at the Standard Club in Johns Creek, Ga. The rising senior will play in the U.S. Amateur August 15-21 in Paramus, N.J. The 113th-ranked player according to WAGR also recently finished in third place at The Dogwood Invitational, June 8-11.
Rising juniors Aidan Kramer, who won the Rice Planters Amateur two weeks ago, and Andy Mao, who fell to Kramer in a playoff at that event, are competing along with incoming freshman Hiroshi Tai.
GEORGIA AMATEUR THIS WEEK IN SAVANNAH
Incoming freshman Brady Rackley IV and former Georgia Tech football player R.B. Clyburn are the only players with Georgia Tech ties in the field for this week’s Georgia Amateur Championship in Savannah, Ga. Both players came up short in qualifying early last week for the U.S. Junior Amateur and U.S. Amateur, respectively.
Alexander-Tharpe Fund
The Alexander-Tharpe Fund is the fundraising arm of Georgia Tech athletics, providing scholarship, operations and facilities support for Georgia Tech’s 400-plus student-athletes. Be a part of developing Georgia Tech’s Everyday Champions and helping the Yellow Jackets compete for championships at the highest levels of college athletics by supporting the Annual Athletic Scholarship Fund, which directly provides scholarships for Georgia Tech student-athletes. To learn more about supporting the Yellow Jackets, visit atfund.org.
ABOUT GEORGIA TECH GOLF
Georgia Tech’s golf team has completed 27 years under head coach Bruce Heppler, winning 70 tournaments in his tenure. The Yellow Jackets have won 18 Atlantic Coast Conference Championships, made 31 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 (@GTGolf) and Instagram. For more information on Tech golf, visit Ramblinwreck.com.
