THE FLATS – Georgia Tech’s Christo Lamprecht is among 10 of the nation’s most accomplished collegiate golfers across all levels who have been named semifinalists for the 2023 Ben Hogan Award presented by PNC Bank. The joint announcement was made Friday by the Hogan Trophy Award Foundation, the Friends of Golf (FOG) and the Golf Coaches Association of America (GCAA).
The 10 contenders, listed in alphabetical order, are Ludvig Aberg of Texas Tech, Texas A&M’s Sam Bennett, Adrien Dumont de Chassart of Illinois, North Carolina’s David Ford, Nick Gabrelcik of North Florida, North Carolina’s Austin Greaser, Lamprecht, Pepperdine’s William Mouw, Gordon Sargent of Vanderbilt and Stanford’s Michael Thorbjornsen.
Ranked No. 10 nationally by Golfstat and No 5 in the Golfweek/Sagarin Index, Lamprecht has a victory and three runner-up finishes in 2022-23. The junior from George, South Africa won the Inverness Intercollegiate in the fall, and this spring has finished second at the Watersound Invitational, the Linger Longer Invitational and The Goodwin. His 69.21 stroke average would stand as a Georgia Tech record if maintained for the remainder of the spring. Lamprecht is currently No. 9 in the World Amateur Golf Ranking and No. 2 in the International team rankings for the 2023 Arnold Palmer Cup.
The Ben Hogan Award, presented by PNC Bank annually awards the top men’s NCAA Division I, II or III, NAIA or NJCAA college golfer based on all collegiate, amateur and professional events over the previous 12 months. Three of the top 10 players in the Official World Golf Ranking—Masters champion and World No. 1 Jon Rahm (2015, 2016), No. 4 Patrick Cantlay (2012) and No. 9 Viktor Hovland (2019)—are past recipients of the honor.
The award has never gone to a Georgia Tech player. Bryce Molder was the last Yellow Jacket to win a national player of the year honor in 2001, the year before the current Ben Hogan Award was established. Five seniors, three juniors and two sophomores comprise the list of 2023 semifinalists. Aberg was the 2022 Ben Hogan Award recipient, while Bennett was a Finalist for the award last year. Aberg (2021, 2022), Bennett (2021, 2022), Gabrelcik (2021), Mouw (2020) and Thorbjornsen (2022) have previously been recognized as semifinalists.
Christo Lamprecht is No. 9 in the current World Amateur Golf Ranking, No. 10 among collegians by Golfstat. (photo by Clyde Click)
The Atlantic Coast Conference leads the way with three semifinalist honorees, while the Southeastern Conference (2) is the only other league with multiple honorees. Three of the universities represented by semifinalists—Pepperdine, Stanford and Texas Tech—are home to past Hogan Award winners at Colonial.
On Thursday, May 4, the 10 semifinalists will be pared down to three Finalists. The Finalists will attend a black-tie dinner Monday, May 22, at Colonial Country Club in Fort Worth, Texas, where the winner will be crowned. The winner will receive an exemption into the PGA TOUR’s 2024 Charles Schwab Challenge, played annually at Colonial.
The award’s selection committee, which votes during each stage of the process, is made up of nearly three dozen leaders and experts in professional, amateur and collegiate golf both domestically and internationally. In addition, past recipients will be eligible to vote on the final ballot.
The Ben Hogan Award presented by PNC Bank began honoring the outstanding amateur collegiate golfer at Colonial Country Club in 2002. Prior to its move to Fort Worth, the original Ben Hogan Trophy, which utilized a different set of criteria for its winner, was issued at Bel-Air Country Club in Los Angeles beginning in 1990.
Hogan Award winners at Colonial have combined to accumulate 78 worldwide victories, including 57 PGA TOUR wins, and have amassed more than $390 million in prize money on the PGA TOUR and DP World Tour. Additionally, the group has appeared in 12 Ryder Cups, a dozen Presidents Cups and won two FedExCup championships.
In addition to Aberg, Cantlay, Hovland and Rahm, past recipients include: Ricky Barnes (2003), Matt Every (2006), Rickie Fowler (2008), Doug Ghim (2018), Bill Haas (2004), Chris Kirk (2007), Hunter Mahan (2003), Maverick McNealy (2017), Ryan Moore (2005), John Pak (2021), Patrick Rodgers (2014), Kyle Stanley (2009), Nick Taylor (2010), Sahith Theegala (2020), D.J. Trahan (2002), Peter Uihlein (2011) and Chris Williams (2013).
Since 2002, the Ben Hogan Award presented by PNC Bank has distributed over $900,000 in scholarships and donations to more than 30 universities and charities. For more information, visit TheBenHoganAward.org and follow @BenHoganAward on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.
2023 BEN HOGAN AWARD SEMIFINALISTS
- Ludvig Aberg, Texas Tech, Sr., Eslov, Sweden
- Sam Bennett, Texas A&M, Sr., Madisonville, Texas
- Adrien Dumont de Chassart, Illinois, Sr., Villers la Ville, Belgium
- David Ford, North Carolina, So., Peachtree Corners, Ga.
- Nick Gabrelcik, North Florida, Jr., Trinity, Fla.
- Austin Greaser, North Carolina, Sr., Vandalia, Ohio
- Christo Lamprecht, Georgia Tech, Jr., George, Western Cape, South Africa
- William Mouw, Pepperdine, Sr., Chino, Calif.
- Gordon Sargent, Vanderbilt, So., Birmingham, Ala.
- Michael Thorbjornsen, Stanford, Jr., Wellesley, Mass.
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 is in its 28th year under head coach Bruce Heppler, winning 70 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.
