April 21, 2006
ATLANTA –
Mike Barbosa set a competitive course record with a seven-under-par 65 Friday, while Georgia Tech posted a 12-under-par score of 276 for a two-shot lead after the first round of the 53rd Atlantic Coast Conference Men’s Golf Championship.
Barbosa began and ended his round with eagles, with four birdies and a bogey in between, in posting the lowest round of his career. It was the lowest round ever shot by a Tech player in the ACC Championship, beating 66s shot by David Duval, Mikko Rantanen, Matt Kuchar and Bryce Molder, all on other golf courses. The former Old North State Club (7,102 yards, par 72) mark of 66 was set by Florida State’s Richard Fulford in 1996, and tied in 2002 by North Carolina’s Dustin Bray.
“I played a good tee ball and had a lot of wedges in my hand,” said Barbosa, a senior from St. Petersburg, Fla. “I didn’t feel like I was unconscious with the putter or anything, but I just hit a lot of quality shots and kept giving myself good putts all day.”
Barbosa, continuing a recent hot streak in which he tied for fourth at least week’s United States Collegiate Championship in Alpharetta, Ga., has a two-shot lead over Matthew Savage of Florida State, who carded a 67. Clemson’s Brian Duncan, Maryland’s John Eades and North Carolina’s Martin Ureta and Robert Riesen each shot 68.
Meanwhile, Tech freshman Cameron Tringale (3-under 69) and Taylor Hall (70) combined to shave five more shots off par for the fourth-ranked Yellow Jackets, and All-American Roberto Castro added an even-par round to count for Tech. Kevin Larsen, Tech’s stroke average leader playing No. 1, eagled the 18th hole for a 73 but did not count for the Jackets.
Tech posted three subpar rounds on the same day of the ACC Championship for the first time since 2004, when the Yellow Jackets finished off a third-place finish with a 274. Tringale is tied for seventh place, and Hall is tied for ninth.
“With the weather the way it is and the condition of the golf course, there can be some low scores shot here,” said Tech coach Bruce Heppler. “There will be a whole lot more birdies before the tournament’s over. There are several teams that are capable of shooting that score.
“Mike played a great round, but if you check with the other four, they might tell you they left some (strokes) out there. You get one guy playing well, then you get another, and then that pulls the others along. Some of them have worked really hard, even in the last five or six days before we got here.”
Ureta and Riesen combined to play the back nine at Old North State Club in 8-under-par, rallying North Carolina to within two shots of Tech at 10-under-par 278. The Tar Heels are followed by NC State and Maryland at 4-under 284, while Florida State and Clemson are tied for fifth at 3-under 285.
Live scoring of the tournament can be followed at Golfstatresults.com, and a live internet video broadcast of the event can be viewed at TheACC.com.
ATLANTIC COAST CONFERENCE MEN'S GOLF CHAMPIONSHIPOld North State Club, New London, N.C.First-round Results
TEAM STANDINGS Georgia Tech 274 (-12) North Carolina 278 Maryland 284 NC State 284 Florida State 285 Clemson 285 Duke 287 Virginia Tech 291 Wake Forest 292 Virginia 293 Boston College 314
TOP INDIVIDUALS Mike Barbosa, Georgia Tech 65 (-7) Matthew Savage, Florida State 67 Brian Duncan, Clemson 68 Robert Riesen, North Carolina 68 John Eades, Maryland 68 Martin Ureta, North Carolina 68 Nathan Spoon, NC State 69 Cameron Tringale, Georgia Tech 69 Ryan Blaum, Duke 70 Taylor Hall, Georgia Tech 70 Nick McDonald, Virginia Tech 70
GEORGIA TECH SCORES Mike Barbosa (1st) 65 (-7) Cameron Tringale (T7) 69 Taylor Hall (T9) 70 Roberto Castro (T21) 72 Kevin Larsen (T28) 73
