General: Two-time All-ACC and three-time GCAA All-Region performer who played No. 1, 2 or 3 in Tech’s lineup consistently throughout his career … Won the U.S. Amateur, North & South Amateur and the Palmetto Amateur in the summer of 2020 … Rose to No. 32 in the World Amateur Golf Ranking and No. 2 in the Scratch Players World Amateur Ranking … Earned 10 top-10 finishes in 35 events over his career, including one tournament victory and four other top-5 showings … Product of a golfing family who has been one of Tech’s top players on the amateur circuit since his enrollment … One of the nation’s top-ranked juniors in the class of 2016 who led his high school team to a pair of state titles and arrived at Tech on the heels of an excellent amateur schedule in 2016 … Top-ranked player from the state of Florida when he enrolled … Much stronger through work in the gym since his arrival on campus, gained 25-30 yards off the tee … Improved length has allowed him to be more aggressive … High IQ for playing the game, has good strategy for playing the course as well as how he practices … Outstanding student who was named GCAA All-America Scholar in 2019 and 2020 and made the ACC Academic Honor Roll every year … In his community, he regularly served with the EXCEL Program at Georgia Tech, a four-year program offered to students with intellectual and developmental disabilities … Also regularly mentored junior golfers during the summer months, as well as participating in the Michael Isenhour Toy Drive each fall.
Last name pronounced “struh-FAH-chee” … One of two children … His father, Frank, Jr., played collegiate golf at Miami Dade North Junior College (1975-76) and the University of Florida (1976) … His mother was a four-year golf letterwinner at Florida (1975-79) … His grandfather, Frank, Sr., was a highly-ranked amateur golfer during the 1930s, ’40s and ’50s, winning the 1935 U.S. Amateur Public Links Championship and two North & South Amateur titles … Introduced to golf at age 6 … Enjoys fishing in the Florida Keys, basketball and movies … Majored in business administration and completed requirements for his bachelor’s degree in fall, 2020.
2020 Amateur Highlights: Won the 120th U.S. Amateur, the second straight Georgia Tech player to do so and the fourth in program history … Reached the championship with a 4 and 2 opening-round victory over Kelly Chinn of Great Falls, Va., a 2 and 1 win over Julian Perico of Peru in the round of 32, and consecutive 1-up decisions over Segundo Oliva Pinto of Argentina (round of 16), Stewart Hagestad of Newport Beach, Calif. (quarterfinals), Aman Gupta of Concord, N.C. (semifinals), and Charles Osborne (championship match) … Won the North & South Amateur Championship at Pinehurst, N.C., on July 4 becoming the first Georgia Tech golfer to win the title in the 120-year history of the event … Put his name on the trophy his grandfather, Frank, Sr., won in 1938 and 1939 … His father, Frank, Jr., caddied for him all week … Defeated William Holcomb V 3&1 in the championship match after tying for 14th place in the stroke play qualifier … Followed a week later by winning the Palmetto Amateur in Aiken, S.C., by one stroke.
2019-20: Tournament results
Finalist for the Byron Nelson Award from the Golf Coaches Association of America … Earned honorable mention All-America honors and made the All-East Region team by the Golf Coaches Association America … GCAA All-America Scholar for the second straight year … Opened the spring with a tie for sixth place (206, -10) at the Amer Ari Invitational, leading after 36 holes, and tied for 30th at the Southern Highlands Collegiate (221, +5) … No. 52 in both the Golfstat ranking and the Golfweek/Sagarin Index … Listed among 20 Division I golfers on the final fall watch list for the Fred Haskins Award … Finished the fall season as Georgia Tech’s highest ranked player in the nation … Posted a pair of top-10 finishes in the fall, fifth-place at the Golf Club of Georgia Collegiate Invitational and a tie for ninth at the Olympia Fields/Fighting Illini Invitational … Tied with Luke Schniederjans for the team lead in stroke average (71.22) … Teamed with Luke Schniederjans for a fourball victory, and defeated Duke’s Evan Katz, 2 and 1, in singles to help Tech win the Cypress Point Classic.
2019 Amateur Highlights: Two top-10 finishes … Won his local qualifier for the U.S. Open in Plantation, Fla. (66, -6) … Tied for 24th at the Monroe Invitational with a 1-under-par score of 279, winning by two strokes … Finished fifth, three strokes off the lead, at the Players Amateur in Bluffton, S.C. (272. -16) … Finished 10th at the Porter Cup (276, -4).
2018-19: Tournament Results
Made the All-ACC team and named GCAA All-Region for the second straight year … Played in the middle of Tech’s lineup, and ranked No. 76 nationally in the Golfweek/Sagarin Index and No. 82 in Golfstat … Had four top-10 finishes in nine stroke-play events, and won both of his matches in the Jack Nicklaus Invitational in the fall … Finished fourth at the Clemson Invitational (204, -12) and tied for seventh at the Puerto Rico Classic (212, -4) this spring … Tied for 16th at the ACC Championship (213, -3) … Started fast in the fall by tying for sixth place at the Carpet Capital Collegiate (212, -4) and the Maui Jim Invitational (202, -8) … Third on the team in stroke average (career-best 71.15) and head-to-head winning percentage (72.6) … Named a GCAA All-America Scholar, and also named to the All-ACC Academic golf team and the ACC Academic Honor Roll after posting a perfect 4.0 GPA for the year.
2018 Amateur Highlights: Became the first Georgia Tech undergraduate since 1998 to qualify for the U.S. Open … Shot 78-72 (+10) at Shinnecock Hills to miss the cut by two strokes … Prevailed in a 6-for-1 playoff in his U.S. Open sectional qualifier in Jupiter, Fla., taking the final available spot to qualify … Finished T2 (67, -5) to advance from his U.S. Open local qualifier in Plantation, Fla. … Qualifying for the U.S. Open earned him an exemption into the U.S. Amateur … Tied for seventh at the Players Amateur (-9), and tied for second at the Porter Cup (-8) … Tied for seventh in 72 holes of stroke play and advanced to the match play portion of the Western Amateur in Northfield, Ill. … Tied for 19th in stroke play at the U.S. Amateur but fell in the first round of match play, 4 & 3, to Luis Gagne of Costa Rica … Was one of 20 amateurs selected to participate in USA Walker Cup practice session in December … Tied for 18th place (-1) at the South Beach International Amateur.
At U.S. Open: Tech’s Strafaci plays it upbeat amid all high scores — Atlanta Journal-Constitution, June 14, 2018
2017-18: Tech’s No. 2 player most of the year, No. 1 at the NCAA Raleigh Regional, where he was Tech’s top finisher (T-13) … Recorded a pair of top-10 finishes in 10 events, and led the team with a 71.30 stroke average … Made the All-ACC team for the first time, and was also named to the GCAA All-East Region team … Best finish of the spring was a tie for seventh at the Puerto Rico Classic, and tied for 12th at the ACC Championship, firing a 5-under-par 31 on the back nine of the final round to help lift Tech to victory … Tied for 23rd at the Valspar Collegiate and 24th at the Irish Creek Intercollegiate most recently … Three top-20s in the fall, including a fourth-place finish at the Maui Jim Intercollegiate … Played in the PGA Tour’s Valspar Championship in March on a sponsor exemption he earned for winning the Valspar Collegiate last spring … Ranked No. 54 by Golfstat and No. 62 in the Golfweek/Sagarin Index … Named to the All-ACC Academic golf team and the ACC Academic Honor Roll.
#TGW: #TGW: Professional Training.
Sophomore Tyler Strafaci gets valuable experience ahead of a potential PGA Tour career.https://t.co/MquXxKmEnB— Georgia Tech Golf (@GTGolf) March 26, 2018
2017 Amateur Highlights: Reached the round of 32 at the U.S. Amateur, defeating Matthew Wolff of Oklahoma State, 3 and 2, before falling to Mark Lawrence of Virginia Tech, 1-up … Tied for 35th to advance out of stroke play … Won his sectional qualifier for the U.S. Amateur in Miami Beach (67-66) … Tied for seventh place at the Monroe Invitational … Tied for 12th place in stroke play and reached the semifinals of match play at the North & South Amateur … Tied for fifth at the Trans-Mississippi Championship … Competed in the U.S. Junior Amateur and lost a 10-for-1 playoff for the final spot in match play.
2016-17: Played in only one stroke-play event in the fall but became a solid member of Tech’s starting five in the spring, winning the Valspar Collegiate (211, -2) and tying for 18th at the Seminole Intercollegiate … Did not finish below 48th in any tournament … Third on the Tech team with a 72.54 stroke average, and was ranked No. 142 nationally in the Golfstat rankings (No. 155 in Golfweek/Sagarin Index) … Teamed with Luke Schniederjans to win both of their foursomes matches at the Cypress point Classic match play event in the fall.
2016 Amateur Highlights: Busy and excellent amateur schedule, beginning with a fifth-place finish at the Terra Cotta Invitational and a tie for 30th at the Sage Valley Junior Invitational … Also tied for 27th at the Monroe Invitational, tied for 35th at the Porter Cup.
High School: Played six years of varsity golf at American Heritage School in Plantation, Fla., for coach Brandt Moser … Team captain as a junior and senior … Won the individual state championship in 2015 and helped his team to state titles in 2012 and 2014 and runner-up finishes in 2013 and 2015 … Made the all-county team from 2012-15 and was named county golfer of the year in 2015 … Set a county record for consecutive 18-hole rounds under par (7) in 2015 … National Honor Society member who graduated with highest honors.
Junior Golf: An honorable-mention Rolex Junior All-American in 2015 by the American Junior Golf Association … Ranked as high as No. 24 nationally, No. 4 in the class of 2016 by the AJGA … Ranked as high as No. 7 overall by the Golfweek/Sagarin index and 19th by the Junior Golf Scoreboard … Top-ranked player in Florida in all three services … Logged a pair of victories, another top-5 finish, seven top-10s and 11 top-20s out of 14 junior events in 2015 … Captured victories in sectional qualifying tournaments for the U.S. Amateur and U.S. Junior Amateur, and reached the round of 32 in match play at the U.S. Junior Amateur.
| Low | Par/- | Finish Top | |||||||||
| Season | Rounds | 54-holes | Round | Rounds | Events | 1 | 5 | 10 | W-L | W-L% | Average |
| 2016-17 | 24 | 208 | 69 | 13 | 8 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 434-207 | .677 | 72.54 |
| 2017-18 | 30 | 208 | 66 | 20 | 10 | – | 1 | 2 | 615-182 | .772 | 71.30 |
| 2018-19 | 33 | 202 | 65 | 20 | 11 | – | 1 | 4 | 685-259 | .726 | 71.15 |
| 2019-20 | 18 | 206 | 64 | 10 | 6 | – | 2 | 3 | 387-132 | .746 | 71.94 |
| Totals | 105 | 202 | 64 | 63 | 35 | 1 | 5 | 10 | 2121-780 | .731 | 71.65 |
