Jackets Score Top-10 Ranking in Final Polls

Golfstat rankings  |  Golfweek/Sagarin Index  |  GCAA Coaches Poll

THE FLATS – For the 13^th time in the last 16 years and for the 16^th time since 2000, Georgia Tech has been ranked among the top 10 teams in the nation in the final polls in both Golfstat and the Golfweek/Sagarin Index. The Yellow Jackets are No. 7 in the final Golfstat rankings and No. 3 in the Golfweek/Sagarin Index, and additionally, came in at No. 5 in the final Bushnell coaches polls announced by the Golf Coaches Association.

Tech, in its 25^th year under head coach Bruce Heppler, won four tournaments, including the Puerto Rico Classic in February before the season prematurely ended due to the coronavirus outbreak. The Yellow Jackets won three of four events in the fall, capturing a 20-stroke victory at the Carpet Capital Collegiate and a share of the title at the Olympia Fields/Fighting Illini Invitational with No. 9 Baylor before sailing to the championship of the Cypress Point Classic match play event. Only No. 3 Texas Tech, No. 11 Washington and No. 20 Notre Dame won as many events.

The Yellow Jacket trio of seniors Andy Ogletree (Little Rock, Miss.), Luke Schniederjans (Powder Springs, Ga.) and Tyler Strafaci (Davie, Fla.) helped Tech win 14 events altogether over the last three years. Schniederjans won three times and Strafaci one, and while Ogletree hasn’t won a college tournament, he did win the U.S. Amateur championship and the Monroe Invitational last summer. They have combined for 29 top-10 finishes in their careers.

Tech players captured two individual titles in 2019-20, with Schniederjans winning the Carpet Capital Collegiate for the second time in his career, and redshirt freshman Bartley Forrester (Gainesville, Ga.) earning a surprise victory at the Puerto Rico Classic. Yellow Jackets combined for 10 top-10 individual finishes.

According to the Golfweek/Sagarin Index, Tech played the sixth-toughest schedule in the nation, compiling a record of 17-17-1 against top-25 teams, 37-22-1 against top-50 teams and 57-22-1 against top-100 teams.

2019-20 National Rankings

• Golfstat – 7
• Golfweek/Sagarin Index – 3 (strength of schedule=6)
• Head-to-Head – 63-22-1 (57-22-1 vs. top 100, 37-22-1 vs. top 50, 17-17-1 vs. top 25)

Individuals – (Golfstat/Sagarin)

• Andy Ogletree – 20 / 25
• Tyler Strafaci – 52 / 52
• Luke Schniederjans – 105 / 57
• Bartley Forrester – 154 / 124
• Noah Norton – 156 / na* (did not play enough events (due to injury) to be ranked

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 A-T Fund’s Annual Athletic Scholarship Fund, which directly provides scholarships for Georgia Tech student-athletes, and Athletics Initiative 2020, Georgia Tech athletics’ ongoing $125 million initiative to allow Tech to recruit the nation’s most elite student-athletes, build a better student-athlete once they arrive on The Flats and, ultimately, win! To learn more about supporting the Yellow Jackets, visit atfund.org.   

ABOUT GEORGIA TECH GOLF

Georgia Tech’s golf team is in its 25^th year under head coach Bruce Heppler, winning 63 tournaments in his tenure. The Yellow Jackets have won 18 Atlantic Coast Conference Championships, made 29 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.