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THE FLATS – Georgia Tech begins its quest for a 30th all-time trip to the NCAA Championship finals Monday at the NCAA Tallahassee Regional at the Seminole Legacy Golf Club. It is one of six regional qualifying tournaments being held around the country Monday through Wednesday to determine the 30-team field for the NCAA Division I Men’s Championship, which begins May 28 in Scottsdale, Ariz.
The top five teams in each regional qualifier advance to the NCAA Championship. Tech is the No. 5 seed in Tallahassee, behind host Florida State, Georgia, Liberty (Atlantic Sun Conference champion) and LSU. Georgia Southern (Sun Belt champion), TCU, Indiana, Kansas and Southern California are seeded 6 through 10, followed by Ohio State, Davidson (Atlantic 10 champion), Florida A&M (MEAC champion) and Long Island University (Northeast champion).
The Yellow Jackets are playing in an NCAA regional for the 23rd straight year and for the 30th time in the 32 years the NCAA has used a regional qualifying format for its championship (the NCAA Championship and regionals were not conducted last spring due to COVID-19).
Tech is playing in an NCAA regional in Tallahassee for the second time, having finished fourth and advancing to the finals from Tallahassee in 2013 at Golden Eagle Golf and Country Club. The Jackets have won five NCAA regionals all-time, most recently in 2014 in Raleigh, N.C. Since then, Tech has advanced only twice (2015, 2019) in five regionals, twice falling short by one stroke.
As the fifth seed, the Yellow Jackets will begin round 1 from the 10th tee from 9 to 9:44 a.m., paired with LSU and Georgia Southern. Teams and individuals will be re‐paired according to score after the first and second rounds.
Junior Connor Howe was Tech’s highest finisher at the ACC Championship, tying for ninth place. (photo by Clyde Click)
TEAM UPDATE – Georgia Tech sits No. 27 nationally in the most recent Golfstat rankings and No. 26 in the Golfweek/Sagarin Index. The Yellow Jackets tied for fifth place at the 2021 Atlantic Coast Conference championship against a field that included four top-10 teams and 10 altogether that reside among Golfstat’s top 50 teams. Also this spring, the Jackets won the Wyoming Desert Intercollegiate in February in California, and posted runner-up finishes at the Calusa Cup and Linger Longer Invitational.
Tech’s quintet to compete in the NCAA regional has quite a different look from the team that competed in 2019 and advanced to the NCAA Championship in Fayetteville, Ark. Gone are two U.S. Amateur champions in Andy Ogletree and Tyler Strafaci, as well as a Georgia Amateur champion in Luke Schniederjans.
Only senior Noah Norton (Chico, Calif.), a two-time All-ACC honoree, and junior Connor Howe (Ogden, Utah), who had combined to play 118 of those 160 rounds, return to compete during the 2021 postseason and have NCAA postseason experience.
Freshman Christo Lamprecht (George, South Africa) has been a regular in the Yellow Jackets lineup since the first spring event in January, and head coach Bruce Heppler has rotated five other players through the two other spots in the lineup. Senior Will Dickson (Providence, R.I.) and junior Ben Smith (Novi, Mich.) competed for the Yellow Jackets in their two events, a second-place finish at the Calusa Cup and a tie for fifth at the ACC Championship.
Redshirt sophomore Bartley Forrester (Gainesville, Ga.), who owns the only collegiate victory (2020 Puerto Rico Classic) among the current members of the team, has seen action in five events this spring and will be the alternate in case one of the Yellow Jackets is sidelined.
TOURNAMENT INFORMATION/FORMAT – Eighty-one teams and 45 individuals are competing for spots in the NCAA Division I Men’s Golf Championship finals in six regional qualifying tournaments. The top five teams and one individual from each regional will advance to the finals, which will be conducted May 28-June 2 at Grayhawk Golf Club in Scottsdale, Ariz., which has a field of 30 teams and six individuals.
Each regional is a 54-hole, stroke-play event with 13 teams and 10 individuals, or 14 teams and five individuals, competing. Tech is part of a regional field that includes 14 teams and five individuals.
The Tallahassee regional in which Tech will compete includes eight teams that are ranked among the top 50 teams in the nation according to Golfstat. In order of seed, the field includes Florida State (No. 2), Georgia (11), Liberty (16), LSU (23), Georgia Tech (27), Georgia Southern (32), TCU (43) and Indiana (46).
Competition begins at 8:30 a.m. Monday and Tuesday, and at 8 a.m. for Wednesday’s final round at Florida State’s campus course, Seminole Legacy Golf Club, which measures 7,505 yards and plays to a par of 72.
The other five regional sites are: Albuquerque, N.M. (UNM Championship Course, host: New Mexico); Kingston Springs, Tenn. (Golf Club of Tennessee, host: Vanderbilt); Stillwater, Okla. (Karsten Creek Golf Club, host: Oklahoma State); Cle Elum, Wash. (Tumble Creek Golf Club, host: Washington); and Noblesville, Ind. (Sagamore Golf Club, host: Ball State).
TECH LINEUP NOTES
Will Dickson (Senior, Providence, R.I.) – Has three top-20 finishes to his credit this spring after seeing action in just two events over his career previously at Tech … Tied for 41st at the ACC Championship, and is fifth on the team in stroke average (73.72) … Began to show promise last fall by finishing 13th or higher in all four amateur events he played, including a fourth-place effort in the Orlando International Amateur in December … Was Tech’s top finisher in both January events (15th at Camp Creek Invitational, 11th at Southwestern Invitational), and tied for 15th in a strong field at the Calusa Cup … Golfstat ranking is 319, Golweek/Sagarin 318 … Graduated May 8 with a degree in business administration.
Bartley Forrester (Sophomore, Gainesville, Ga.) – The only member of Tech’s current team to win a collegiate tournament, sharing medalist honors at the Puerto Rico Classic last February in his second career start … Had a solid summer in amateur competition, tying for seventh place at the Palmetto Amateur and 19th at the Southeastern Amateur … Highest finish in five events this spring was a tie for 18th at the Amer Ari Intercollegiate … Other finishes all between 27th (Linger Longer Invitational) and 46th (Camp Creek Invitational) … Has a 73.87 stroke average over 18 rounds … Current Golfstat ranking is No. 407, Golfweek/Sagarin rating No. 401.
Connor Howe (Junior, Ogden, Utah) – Has been a regular in the Tech lineup since his freshman year, mostly middle-of-the-order in the lineup … Tech’s highest finisher at the ACC Championship, solo 9th place, with a 3-under-pr 207 … Ranked No. 168 nationally in the Golfweek/Sagarin Index, No. 186 in Golfstat … Earned his first career top-10 finish with a tie for seventh at the Amer Ari Intercollegiate and has tied for 19th at the Wyoming Desert Intercollegiate and finished 26th at the Linger Longer Invitational since then … Has Tech’s third-lowest stroke average at 72.38 in a team-high 24 rounds this spring … Career stroke average of 72.59 over 69 rounds … Won the Southeastern Amateur last summer and tied for ninth at the Patriot All-America in December.
Christo Lamprecht (Freshman, George, South Africa) – At 6-foot-8, he may be the tallest player ever in the Tech golf program … Sits No. 103 in the Golfstat rankings and No. 79 in the Golfweek/Sagarin ratings, highest in both among the Jackets … Tops the team in stroke average at 71.67 in 21 rounds, and has three top-10 finishes, including a tie for third most at the Calusa Cup … Also tied for sixth at the Wyoming Desert Intercollegiate and fifth at the Linger Longer Invitational … Tied for 15th at the ACC Championship (211, +1) … No. 165 in the World Amateur Golf Ranking, No. 150 in the Scratch Players World Amateur Ranking, and South Africa’s No. 2-ranked amateur … Ranks high nationally in subpar strokes per round (20th) and par-5 scoring (28th) … Ranks fourth in eagles with eight this spring … Enrolled at Tech for the fall but had to take all classes virtually from South Africa because COVID prevented his departure to come to Atlanta … Arrived in January too late to participate in team qualifying and missed the Jackets’ first tournament (Camp Creek Invitational), but has played in every event since.
Noah Norton (Senior, Chico, Calif.) – Two-time All-ACC honoree … Has top-10 finishes in three events, including a runner-up at the Wyoming Desert Intercollegiate and a tie for third in the Linger Longer Invitational, giving him 11 career top-10 finishes … Tied for 31st at the ACC Championship … Currently No. 2 on the team in scoring average (72.33) and ranks high nationally in most subpar holes (10th), most subpar strokes per round (57th) according to Golfstat … Career stroke average of 71.66 across 94 rounds, which would rank No. 8 in Tech history if his career were ended … Third-highest among the Jackets in Golfstat ranking (No. 185) and second in Golfweek/Sagarin (No. 154) rankings … Sits No. 48 in the PGA Tour University ranking, No. 72 in the World Amateur Golf Ranking and No. 89 in the Scratch Players World Amateur Ranking … Advanced to match play (round of 32) at the U.S. Amateur last summer and earned his way into two Korn Ferry Tour events, tying for eighth place at the Wichita Open … Made it through U.S. Open local qualifier on May 5 … Graduated May 8 with a degree in business administration.
Ben Smith (Junior, Novi, Mich.) – Has competed in four spring events, playing solidly in all four, including a tie for ninth place at the Calusa Cup in Tech’s most recent competition … Tied for 33rd at the ACC Championship … Also posted a tie for 20th finish at the Camp Creek Seminole Invitational and a tie for 32nd at the Amer Ari Intercollegiate, playing as an individual … Owns team’s fourth-best stroke average at 73.00 across 12 rounds … Current Golfstat ranking is No. 236, Golfweek/Sagarin rating No. 252 … Former Michigan Amateur Champion has 21 collegiate rounds under his belt in two-plus years … Had three top-15 finish in fall GCAA Amateur events, tied for fifth at Orlando International Amateur and sixth at South Beach Amateur in December.
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 Support The Swarm Fund, which helps Georgia Tech athletics offset the significant financial challenges associated with Covid-19, and 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 26th year under head coach Bruce Heppler, winning 65 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.
