Kohala Coast, Hawai’i – Hiroshi Tai (Singapore) led the Yellow Jackets with a 5-under-par 67 on Thursday and was one of four Jackets under par as No. 17 Georgia Tech stands in 11th place after carding a 14-under-par team total of 274 in the opening round of the Amer Ari Intercollegiate.
No. 5 Auburn leads after the first 18 holes at 32-under-par after all five Tigers turned in subpar rounds. Auburn holds a five-stroke lead over second-place No. 35 Stanford at 27-under-par (261). No. 15 North Carolina and No. 36 Hawaii-Hilo are the only top-50 teams behind the Yellow Jackets in 12th and 18th place, respectively.
Georgia Tech is one of 20 teams that descended upon Hawai’i for the three-day tournament at the Mauna Lani Golf Club for the 36th edition of the elite tournament. A strong field, the tournament features eight programs ranked in the nation’s top-25.
Round 2 begins at 12:30 p.m. Eastern time on Friday with a shotgun start.
Hiroshi Tai fired a 5-under-par 67 in round one on Thursday. (Photo courtesy of Hawaii-Hilo athletics)
TECH LINEUP – Tai played a nearly flawless round Thursday, recording six birdies against one bogey to lead the Jackets and stand tied for 23rd individually at five-under-par 67. Sophomore Albert Hansson (Fiskebäckskil, Sweden) fired four birdies on the day to finish four-under-par 68 and is tied for 28th individually.
Kale Fontenot (Lafayette, La.) follows closely behind, rounding out the day at 3-under-par 69 behind four birdies to one bogey. Benjamin Reuter (Naarden, The Netherlands) delivered the Jackets’ fourth counting score with a two-under-par 70.
Senior Aidan Tran (Fresno, Calif.) concluded Tech’s starting lineup with an even-par 72.
TEAM LEADERBOARD – Auburn had five players enter the clubhouse subpar for the opening day, including Jackson Koivun who stands in second place with a 10-under-par 62, to post a team 32-under-par total of 256, five shots ahead of Stanford (261, -27). No. 7 Arizona State stands in third place after a 23-under-par total 265. No. 16 Texas Tech and No. 11 Oklahoma State are tied in fourth place at 267 (-21).
Nineteen of the 20 teams competing are under par after the opening round Thursday.
INDIVIDUAL LEADERBOARD – Pepperdine’s Mahanth Chirravuri owns a one-stroke lead over Koivun (Auburn) after posting an 11-under-par 61. Koivun stands in second place, while Luke Potter (Texas) and Michael Mjaaseth (Arizona State) are tied for third-place at 9-under-par 63. Four players are tied for fifth place at 8-under-par 64.
After round one, 81 players of the 122-player field are under par.
EVENT DETAILS
Amer Ari Intercollegiate
- Dates: 5-7 (stroke play, 54 holes)
- Format: 18 holes Thursday, Friday and Saturday (shotgun start at 7:30 a.m. local time each day)
- Venue: Mauna Lani Golf Club (par 72, 6,900 yards)
- Participating teams (20): Arizona State, Auburn, Georgia Tech, Hawaii, Hawaii-Hilo, North Carolina, Oklahoma State, Oregon, Oregon State, Osaka Gakuin, Pacific, Pepperdine, San Jose State, Stanford, Texas, Texas Tech, UCLA, UC Davis, UT Arlington, Washington
- Tech appearances (last year): 27 (Tech finished in 10th place of 20 teams, Benjamin Reuter finished 13th)
- Championships: 1999, 2000, 2002, 2004, 2006
- Individual titles: Carlton Forrester (1999), Matt Kuchar (1999, 2000), Bryce Molder (2000), Troy Matteson (2002), Cameron Tringale (2006)
- History: The event began in 1991 as the Taylor Made Big Island Intercollegiate before being renamed the Amer Ari Intercollegiate in 2010 after a longtime UH-Hilo supporter.
Alexander-Tharpe Fund
The Alexander-Tharpe Fund is the fundraising arm of Georgia Tech athletics, providing scholarship, operations and facilities support for Tech’s 400-plus student-athletes. Be a part of the development of Yellow Jackets that thrive academically at the Institute and 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 is in its 31st year under head coach Bruce Heppler, winning 73 tournaments in his tenure. The Yellow Jackets have won 19 Atlantic Coast Conference Championships, made 34 appearances in the NCAA Championship and been the national runner-up five times. Follow Georgia Tech Golf on social media by liking their Facebook page, or following on X (@GTGolf) and Instagram. For more information on Tech golf, visit Ramblinwreck.com.
