Carlsbad, Calif. – Sophomore Carson Kim (Yorba Linda, Calif.) shot a 2-under-par 70 Friday, leading Georgia Tech’s golf team to a 5-over-par total of 293 and a tie for 14th place after the opening round of the NCAA Men’s Division I Men’s Golf Championship at the Omni LaCosta Spa and Resort in Carlsbad, Calif.
While Kim was the only Yellow Jacket under par, Tech also received strong opening rounds from junior Hiroshi Tai (Singapore), who opened defense of his 2024 NCAA Championship with an even-par 72, and sophomore Kale Fontenot (Lafayette, La.), who shot a 73. The Jackets also counted a 78 (+6) from redshirt freshman Benjamin Reuter.
Kim’s 70 placed him in a tie for 16th place on the individual leaderboard Friday, and Tai’s 72 was a solid effort (tied for 39th). His winning score at last year’s NCAA Championship was 3-under-par.
Tech’s team score Friday tied for sixth-best among the 15 teams in the morning wave. Colorado and California posted the best morning round at 289 (+1).
Round 2 for the Yellow Jackets begins at 12:12 p.m. Pacific Daylight time Saturday. Tech is the No. 20 seed, paired with No. 19 Texas Tech and No. 21 South Florida for the first two rounds. Pairings for rounds 3 and 4 are based on team leaderboard standing.
Thirty teams and six individuals are competing over includes 54 holes of stroke play through Sunday, after which the field will be cut to the top 15 teams and the top nine individuals not on those teams for the final 18 holes of stroke play, which will take place Monday. After Monday’s final round of stroke play, the NCAA individual champion will be crowned, and the top eight teams on the leaderboard will continue on to match play.
Highlights from Georgia Tech's opening round at the NCAA Championship
"Maybe just having a little more grace and patience with myself, not getting too frustrated over bad shots, and trusting that if I stick with it over 54 or 72 holes, it’s going to turn out well."
Carson Kim on his elevated play the last four tournaments
TECH LINEUP – Kim continued his strong play since the beginning of April, which has included a 10th-place finish at the Ford Collegiate and a tie for 18th last week at the NCAA Auburn Regional. The sophomore has averaged a full stroke better (71.9) over his last 11 rounds than his season rate.
“It’s just staying patient and waiting for the results to come around,” said Kim. “I knew I had the game, and it’s really nice to see some results recently. Maybe just having a little more grace and patience with myself, not getting too frustrated over bad shots, and trusting that if I stick with it over 54 or 72 holes, it’s going to turn out well.”
Kim birdied five holes to offset three bogeys on his card, while Tai made four birdies to counter two bogeys and a double-bogey. The Jackets were able to make up ground over the final five holes after all five players birdied the par-4 15th, Tai made birdie at the par-4 17th, and Kim and Fontenot birdied the par-5 18th.
LEADERBOARD SUMMARY – On the strength of three subpar rounds and three players among the top 16 on the leaderboard, sixth-ranked Oklahoma shot 8-under-par 282 and leads by five strokes over No. 4 Texas, No. 7 Florida and No. 9 Florida State, all at 3-under-par 285.
No. 1-ranked and defending NCAA champion Auburn, No. 5 Arizona State and No. 12 Illinois are tied for fifth place at 2-under 286.
Colorado and California led the morning wave teams with a 1-over-par 289, but that score didn’t hold up in the afternoon despite firmer greens and more windy conditions, but they are tied for eighth place with Brigham Young.
No. 22 Georgia (291, +3) is alone in 11th place, followed by No. 24 Texas Tech and Troy at 292 (+4). Georgia Tech is in a five-way tie for 14th place at 293 (+5).
Phichaksn Maichon of Texas A&M shot a 6-under-par 66 in the afternoon to grab a one-stroke lead over Tommy Morrison of Texas and Carter Loflin of Georgia, both with 67s (-5). Eight players are tied at 68 (-4).
Round 1 Photos by Tim Cowie
TECH IN THE NCAA CHAMPIONSHIP
Georgia Tech has reached the NCAA Championship finals 33 times since 1985 (34 times in program history), which is the fifth most in that time period behind Oklahoma State (38), Arizona State (36), Florida (36) and Texas (36).
Tech has posted 18 top-8 finishes in the NCAA Championship, 13 of those since Bruce Heppler became the head coach.
The Yellow Jackets have qualified for match play six times since the advent of the stroke-play/match-play format in 2009, finishing third in stroke play in 2010, second in 2011, second in 2013, fifth in 2014, tied for fifth in 2023 and eighth in 2024.
Tech lost to the eventual champion four times in its six appearances in match play, most recently in the championship match against Florida (3-1) in 2023. Tech fell to Augusta State by the score of 3-2 in the quarterfinals in 2010 and 2011 and to Alabama (3-0-2) in the 2013 semifinals.
Tech has been the runner-up in the NCAA Championship five times (1993, 2000, 2002 and 2005 before the introduction of match play, and again in 2023). Only Oklahoma State, which has 18, and Texas (6) have more.
In 1993 and 2002, the Yellow Jackets led after 54 holes, but finished second by one shot to Florida in 1993, and by four shots to Minnesota in 2002.
In 2000, the Yellow Jackets rallied to tie Oklahoma State after 72 holes, but lost to the Cowboys on the first hole of a playoff. Tech and OSU matched the lowest 72-hole team score in NCAA Championship history (36-under-par 1,116) at the Grand National Lake Course in Opelika, Ala. In 2005, Tech finished 11 shots behind Georgia, and seven shots ahead of third-place Washington.
Four Tech players have won national collegiate championships. Hiroshi Tai captured the title in 2024 in Carlsbad, Calif., and Troy Matteson lifted the trophy in 2002 at Ohio State. Watts Gunn (1927) and Charlie Yates (1934) won national titles under a match play format before the NCAA took sponsorship of the championship in 1939.
TECH AND NCAA MATCH PLAY
The 2009 NCAA Championship featured a new twist with the team champion determined via match play. The top eight teams after 54 holes of stroke play advance to a match play tournament format.
The NCAA added a fourth round of stroke play in 2016 for the top 15 teams and nine individuals not on those teams, after which the national individual champion and the top eight teams for match play are determined.
Match play is a format that Tech head coach Bruce Heppler has supported vigorously. Under Heppler, Georgia Tech finished in the top eight of the NCAA Finals seven times in 10 tries under the 72-hole, stroke-play format.
Tech is one of six teams (Oklahoma State 9, Illinois 9, Texas 7, Vanderbilt 7, Oklahoma 6 are the others) to have advanced to match play six or more times in the 16-year history of the stroke play/match play format.
Hiroshi Tai opened defense of his 2024 NCAA title by carding an even-par 72. (photo by Tim Cowie)
EVENT DETAILS
NCAA Men’s Division I Golf Championship
- Dates: May 23-28 (72 holes of stroke play, low 4 of 5 scores count for team score each day, to determine individual champion; top 8 teams seeded for match play brackets to determine team champion)
- Venue: Omni LaCosta Resort & Spa, Carlsbad, Calif. (par 72, 7,548 yards)
- Participating teams (in order of seeding): Auburn, Oklahoma State, Ole Miss, Texas, Arizona State, Oklahoma, Florida, Florida State, Virginia, Texas A&M, Illinois, UCLA, Vanderbilt, BYU, South Carolina, Pepperdine, Georgia, Tennessee, Texas Tech, Georgia Tech, South Florida, Colorado, UNLV, Purdue, San Diego, Wake Forest, New Mexico, Troy, California, Augusta
- Tech appearances (last appearance): 34th (2024)
- Best finish: runner-up (1993, 2000, 2002, 2005, 2023)
- Individual titles: 4 (Watts Gunn 1927, Charlie Yates 1934, Troy Matteson 2002, Hiroshi Tai 2024)
- Schedule (all times Eastern Daylight Time):
- Saturday – Stroke play round 2, 9:30 a.m.
- Sunday – Stroke play round 3, 9:30 a.m.
- Monday – Stroke play round 4, 1:30 p.m.* (Golf Channel coverage, 6-10 p.m.)
- Tuesday – Quarterfinal matches, 9:50 a.m. (Golf Channel coverage, 1-3:30 p.m.)
- Tuesday – Semifinal matches, 4:15 p.m. (Golf Channel coverage, 6-10 p.m.)
- Wednesday – Championship match, 5:25 p.m. (Golf Channel coverage, 6-10 p.m.)
*individual champion crowned, top 8 teams seeded for match play
Full Steam Ahead
Full Steam Ahead is a $500 million fundraising initiative to achieve Georgia Tech athletics’ goal of competing for championships at the highest level in the next era of intercollegiate athletics. The initiative will fund transformative projects for Tech athletics, including renovations of Bobby Dodd Stadium at Hyundai Field (the historic home of Georgia Tech football), the Zelnak Basketball Center (the practice and training facility for Tech basketball) and O’Keefe Gymnasium (the venerable home of Yellow Jackets volleyball), as well as additional projects and initiatives to further advance Georgia Tech athletics through program wide-operational support. All members of the Georgia Tech community are invited to visit atfund.org/FullSteamAhead for full details and renderings of the renovation projects, as well as to learn about opportunities to contribute online.
ABOUT GEORGIA TECH GOLF
Georgia Tech’s golf team is in its 30th year under head coach Bruce Heppler, winning 73 tournaments in his tenure. The Yellow Jackets have won 19 Atlantic Coast Conference Championships, made 33 appearances in the NCAA Championship and been the national runner-up five times. Follow Georgia Tech Golf on social media by liking their Facebook page, or following on X (@GTGolf) and Instagram. For more information on Tech golf, visit Ramblinwreck.com.
