Pinehurst, N.C. – Georgia Tech and Wake Forest, the top two seeds in the Atlantic Coast Conference Men’s Golf match play championship and the winningest men’s golf programs in ACC history, will meet for the conference title Monday morning at the Country Club of North Carolina.
The Yellow Jackets eliminated fourth-seeded Duke, 3-1-1, in their semifinal match as four of the five individual matches went at least 17 holes. The Blue Devils’ Kelly Chinn scored the first point of the match for Duke by edging Connor Howe, 2&1. But Georgia Tech countered with wins by Christo Lamprecht and Hiroshi Tai to go up 2-1, and Ross Steelman’s 2&1 victory over Ian Siebers on the 18th hole sealed the match for the Yellow Jackets. Bartley Forrester and Ethan Evans played to a tie, having hit their tee shots on their first extra hole when Steelman’s win clinched the match for the Jackets.
Lamprecht took control of his match with birdies at 12 and 14 and closed out the match with a par at 17. Tai never trailed against Luke Sample, winning at 2, 7, 10 and 14 before eliminating the Blue Devil with a birdie at 15. Steelman built a three-hole lead with three to play, lost with a bogey at 16 but finished the win over Siebers with a par at 17.
The Demon Deacons, who finished second behind Georgia Tech at the conclusion of 54-hole stroke play, were the first team to reach Monday’s match, parlaying wins by Mark Power, Scotty Kennon and ACC individual medalist Michael Brennan into a 3-0-2 match play win over No. 3 seed Virginia.
Ross Steelman delivered the clinching point for Tech with a 2&1 victory over Ian Siebers of Duke. (photo by Andy Mead)
Monday’s final will be a rematch of last year’s title round, which saw Wake Forest win 3-2 with a birdie on the third playoff hole. The Demon Deacons’ win in last year’s championship match delivered the program’s first ACC men’s golf title since 1989 but was the conference-leading 19th in Wake Forest history.
Georgia Tech’s 18 titles rank second on the list. The Yellow Jackets captured their first championship in 1985 and have won 10 of the last 16.
Monday’s match play finals begin at 9 a.m. and are scheduled to be streamed live on ACC Network Extra.
Semifinal Match vs. Duke
Photos by Andy Mead
TOURNAMENT INFORMATION – The ACC Championship is being contested in the state of North Carolina for the first time since 2019, when Georgia Tech won its most recent title at the Old North State Club in New London, N.C., which has hosted the championship 22 times. This is the eighth time that Pinehurst has played host to the ACC Men’s Golf Championship and the second time at the Country Club of North Carolina, which first hosted in 1966. Last year’s event was held at Shark’s Tooth Golf Course at Watersound Club in Panama City, Fla., preceded by the 2021 championship at the Capital City Club’s Crabapple Course in Milton, Ga. Next year’s championship will be held at the Charlotte (N.C.) Country Club.
The course plays to a par of 72 and measures 7,301 yards for the ACC Championship, which is being conducted for the third time under a combination stroke play/match play format Friday through Monday. The championship used the traditional 54-hole, stroke-play format from 1980 to 2019 (the championship was not held in 2020 due to COVID-19). All 12 competing teams (Miami, Pittsburgh and Syracuse do not sponsor men’s golf) will play 54 holes of stroke play, 36 holes Friday and 18 holes Saturday, with the standard low four individual rounds counting toward the team’s daily score each round. The top four teams after 54 holes are seeded in a match play bracket, with the semi-final matches to take place Sunday, and the championship match Monday. Each match will be 18 holes and involve all five players from each team. The format is similar to the way the NCAA Championship has been conducted every year since 2009.
Freshman Hiroshi Tai talks about his final round and semifinal match.
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.
