June 25, 2010
ATLANTA – The Atlanta Athletic Club, which has been the site of a U.S. Open Championship and a PGA Championship, will host the 2013 NCAA Men’s Division I Golf Championship with Georgia Tech as the host institution, the NCAA announced Friday.
The championship will be in Atlanta for the first time, and Tech will be the host of the event for the first time. Georgia Tech has previously hosted three NCAA regional tournaments, in 2002 at Ansley Golf Club at Settindown Creek, in 2007 at the Golf Club of Georgia and this past spring at the Capital City Club Crabapple.
The Atlanta Athletic Club, the site of the 1976 U.S. Open won by Jerry Pate and the 2001 PGA Championship won by David Toms, is also set to host the PGA Championship again in 2011.
“As a coach, I’ve always wanted to host one of these,” said Tech head coach Bruce Heppler, whose team has played in the NCAA Championship Finals 24 times since 1985 and reached the match play championship this spring. “I always felt that if every coach could do one of these and do it the right way, our student-athletes would always have a first-class experience.
“Over the last several years, the sites have improved, and they’re going to places that have hosted majors and have a lot of history. That’s a big deal for the players. Now we have an opportunity to do that. It’s a great club that has hosted a U.S. Open and a PGA Championship, and is set to host another PGA next year. It has a lot of history, and it’s a place where the best players in the world play.”
The NCAA also awarded the 2012 championship to Riviera Country Club in Los Angeles, with Southern California as the host. Next year’s championship will be in Stillwater, Okla., at Karsten Creek Golf Club, hosted by Oklahoma State.
The announcement means Georgia Tech will host NCAA championships in two events in 2013. The Yellow Jackets also are the host for the 2013 NCAA Men’s Basketball Final Four at the Georgia Dome.
