Tech Men's Golf Inks Three In Early Signing Period

ATLANTA — The Georgia Tech men’s golf team wrapped up its November recruiting efforts by signing three American Junior Golf Association (AJGA) All-Americans to national letters of intent on November 13. Included in the class are: Michael Barbosa of St. Petersburg, Fla., Nicholas Thompson of Coral Springs, Fla., and Chan Song Wongluekiet of Bradenton, Fla. All three rank among the top junior players in the country.

All three members of Tech’s class of 2005 were named to AJGA All-America squads in 2000, with Thompson and Wongluekiet earning first-team recognition and Barbosa being an honorable mention selection. The trio combined for 10 AJGA victories in their careers, five of which came last season. Each should make an immediate impact on the Yellow Jacket lineup upon arriving on the Flats in the fall of 2001.

“This was a really important recruiting year for us with the graduation of Matt Kuchar and Carlton Forrester last year and with Bryce Molder and Wes Latimer graduating this year,” said Georgia Tech head coach Bruce Heppler. “All three of these players were recruited by schools throughout the country and we feel very fortunate that all of them wanted to come here.”

Wongluekiet wrapped up his junior career with six AJGA event wins to his credit and was named a first-team Polo Golf Junior All-American in 1999 and 2000. He won three AJGA tournaments this past season, including the Thunderbird International (69-68-71=208) and the Justin Leonard/Deloitte & Touche Jr. Team Championship, where he teamed with fellow Tech signee Michael Barbosa in the event. His final win of the 2000 season came at the PING Myrtle Beach Junior Classic as he finished with a three-day total of 65-70-68=203. He was also a member of both the 1999 and 2000 East Canon Cup teams, joining both Barbosa and Thompson on the victorious East team this past season.

Thompson is coming off a strong 2000 season where he earned first-team All-America honors for the first time in his career, along with picking up his first AJGA win. He won the Shell World Golf Village Junior Championship with his three-day total of 70-69-70=209. Thompson finished the year with five Top 5 finishes in 13 tournaments. He competed for the U.S. in the 2000 AJGA IZZO Cup in Sweden and was a member of the victorious East team at the 2000 Canon Cup. He has eight AJGA Top 5 finishes in 32 career tournaments and has placed in the Top 10 on 10 different occasions. This past spring, Thompson finished second in the Florida State High School 6A state championship with his score of 69-70=139.

The final member of the class of 2005, Michael Barbosa captured the fourth AJGA tournament crown of his career in 2000, winning the Justin Leonard/Deloitte & Touche Jr. Team Championship with fellow Tech signee Chan Song Wonluekiet. Barbosa also finished second in the 1999 Orange Bowl International. During the 1999 season, Barbosa as a first-team Polo Golf Junior All-American after winning three AJGA events. Included among those was the Southern Junior (71-70=141), the JCPenney Junior Classic (69-76-72=217) and the Robert Trent Jones Golf Trail Junior Classic with a score of 68-73-73=214. He was a member of both the 1999 and 2000 Canon Cup East teams and competed for the U.S. in both the 1999 Junior Match against Europe and in the 2000 AJGA IZZO Cup in Sweden. His high school team won the 2000 Florida High School Championship.

“All three are good friends and have played junior golf together for a long time,” said Heppler. “I think that rather than going to separate schools and being ‘the man’ there, they wanted to come and not only get the Georgia Tech experience, but be able to play together on a good team. We feel that we did as well as we could have in recruiting this year and looking at their junior results you would predict that they all would have good college careers.”