May 31, 2001
Durham, N.C. – The second-ranked Georgia Tech men’s golf team found itself scrambling to make pars once again and finished with a team round of 4-over-par to find itself in sixth place after two rounds of the 2001 NCAA Men’s Golf Championships. The 72-hole event is being contested at the 7,086-yard, par-72 Duke University Golf Club in Durham, N.C.
The Yellow Jackets did not have a round under par over the second 18 holes of play, but did have three players record even-par rounds on the day to finish with a team score of 4-over-par, 292 and stand alone in sixth place at 5-over-par, 289-292-581. Tech trails team leader Arizona (280-289-569) by 11 shots entering Friday’s third round. The top team round of the day came from Florida, which fired a 10-under-par total of 278, and is at 2-under-par, 296-278-574, to stand in second place.
“We finally made some birdies today,” said Tech head coach Bruce Heppler. “We also made some mistakes today, and ended up having to count four double bogeys and a triple bogey and that’s really just too much to put a good round together. We’ve not had our good round yet. As far as I’m concerned, Secretariat hasn’t gotten out of the gate yet.”
Junior Kris Mikkelsen added, “We are a really good golf team and we play very well together. I think I’ve played well to this point and everyone else is right there ready to make a move. If we can remedy the mental mistakes we’ve had, we can shoot as low as we need to.”
Tech’s individuals in the field continue to be led by Mikkelsen, who carded an even-par round of 72 on Thursday and is one of four players tied for second place at 6-under-par, 66-72-138. He trails individual leader Ricky Barnes of Arizona by five shots, as Barnes was one of two players to tie the course record on the day with 7-under-par score of 65. He is at 11-under-par, 68-65-133 for the tourney. Jamie Elson of Augusta State also fired a 65 on the day and is at 6-under-par, 73-65-138.
The next Tech individual in the field is senior Bryce Molder, who improved his play on the second day and is one of seven players tied for 28th place at 1-over-par, 73-72-145. Molder is followed by fellow senior Wes Latimer, who bounced back from a 76 on Wednesday to card an even-par 72 on Thursday and is part of a eight-way tie for 53rd place at 4-over-par, 76-72-148. Sophomore Troy Matteson finished as part of a group of 21 players in 81st place at 74-76-150. The final member of the Yellow Jacket contingent is junior Matt Weibring, who is at 76-78-154.
The Jackets will begin play in the third round on Friday in threesomes with in-state rivals Georgia and Augusta State beginning at 8:15 a.m. Live scoring of the event is available at www.golfstat.com.
TOP 15 TEAMS AFTER 36 HOLES
1. Arizona 280-289-5692. Florida 296-278-5743. Wake Forest 294-282-5764. Augusta State 292-288-580 Georgia 296-284-5806. Georgia Tech 289-292-5817. East Tennessee State 293-289-5828. Clemson 294-289-5839. Oklahoma 294-291-585 Virginia Tech 294-291-58511. Arizona State 298-288-586 UAB 297-289-58614. Oregon State* 295-295-590 College of Charleston 294-296-590 Pacific* 299-291-590
* Won Playoff to Advance
TOP 10 INDIVIDUALS & TECH PLAYERS
1. Ricky Barnes, Arizona 68-65-1332. Jamie Elson, Augusta State 73-65-138 Chez Reavie, Arizona State 71-67-138 Troy McKinley, Pacific 70-68-138 Kris Mikkelsen, Georgia Tech 66-72-1386. Nick Gilliam, Florida 69-70-1397. Chris Wisler, ETSU 71-69-1408. Nick Watney, Fresno St. 71-70-141 Nick Cassini, Georgia 70-71-14110. Four Players Tied at 142
GEORGIA TECH INDIVIDUALS
T28. Bryce Molder 73-72-145T53. Wes Latimer 76-72-148T81. Troy Matteson 74-76-150T130. Matt Weibring 76-78-154
