April 21, 2002
UWHARRIE POINT, N.C. – Led by the play of senior Matt Weibring and freshman Nick Thompson, both of whom finished tied for second place at 9-under-par, the Georgia Tech golf team won its second-straight Atlantic Coast Conference men’s golf championship and its eighth in school history overall. Tech won the 54-hole event at the par-72, 7,102-yard Old North State Club in Uwharrie Point, N.C.
“NC State played a great round and I really feel this is the neatest conference in the world to compete in and to win in because you’ve got teams ranked 1-2-3 (in the nation) here and they’re all well-coached teams and they all have good players,” said Tech head coach Bruce Heppler. “It’s an honor to win this tournament and it’s one of the two goals we have every year. I’m real happy for our guys and the way they hung in there. We just didn’t get anything going and then it all came here at the end (1 birdie and 2 eagles on hole #18). It’s a tribute to their hanging in there and just thinking if you stay in there long enough, something good will happen to you and it did.”
The top-ranked Yellow Jackets carded the second-lowest team round of the final day of play, finishing with a team score of 6-under-par 282 to complete play in the tournament at 27-under-par, 271-284-282-837. That score, ranks as the second-lowest team score in the ACC Tournament since the event changed to a 54-hole format in 1972, ranking one shot off of the 836 total by Clemson in 1998. Tech’s total put it four shots ahead of runner-up NC State, which made a late charge with a final round of 14-under-par, 274 to finish at 23-under-par, 288-279-274-841 and pass second-ranked Clemson (280-280-285-845) for second place. The win was Tech’s sixth team victory of the year, setting a new school and ACC record for wins since the NCAA limited playing dates in the early 1990s.
Weibring and Thompson were Tech’s most steady players in the tournament, each carding a trio of sub-par rounds, en route to tying for second place. Weibring finished the tourney with a 3-under-par score of 69, for a 54-hole total of 68-70-69-207. The second-place finish was the top finish of Weibring’s career, while the 207 was a career-best as well. Thompson was solid all weekend, closing out the event with a 1-under-par 71 to finish at 67-69-71-207. Both the 54-hole score and the finish were career bests for Thompson as well. The pair finished just two shots off the pace of individual champion Dustin Bray of North Carolina, who carded an even-par round of 72 on Sunday to finish at 11-under-par, 66-67-72-205.
The third Yellow Jacket in the top 10 was senior Kris Mikkelsen, who finished tied for ninth place at 5-under-par, after a closing-round score of 70. Mikkelsen finished with his career-best score at the ACC Tournament, a 54-hole total of 67-74-70-211. Freshman Chan Wongluekiet was the next Tech individual in the field, finishing tied for 20th place at even-par, 71-71-74-216. Junior Troy Matteson was the final member of the Yellow Jacket contingent, rebounding from the second round with an even-par, 72 on Sunday, to finish among six players tied for 23rd place at 69-77-72-218.
Tech will receive the ACC’s automatic bid into the NCAA East Regional, which it will host on May 16-18 at Ansley Golf Club’s Settindown Creek in Roswell, Ga. The remaining teams and individuals in the field will be announced on May 6. Full ACC Championships results are available at www.theacc.com
FINAL TEAM SCORESFin. School Scores 1 Georgia Tech 271 284 282 837 -27 2 North Carolina State 288 279 274 841 -23 3 Clemson University 280 280 285 845 -19 4 Wake Forest Univ. 290 279 282 851 -13 5 North Carolina, U of 283 285 294 862 -2 6 Florida State Univ. 292 282 294 868 +4 7 Virginia, U. of 291 295 288 874 +10 8 Maryland, U. of 294 296 285 875 +11 9 Duke University 291 298 289 878 +14
TOP-10 INDIVIDUALS AND TECH PLAYERS Fin. Name School Scores 1 Dustin Bray N Carolina 66 67 72 205 -11
2 Matt Weibring Ga. Tech 68 70 69 207 -9 NicK Thompson Ga. Tech 67 69 71 207 -9
4 Garth Mulroy NC State 73 68 67 208 -8 Bill Haas Wk. Forest 70 69 69 208 -8
6 D.J. Trahan Clemson 71 68 70 209 -7 Rodney Thomas NC State 70 71 68 209 -7
8 Steve Marino Virginia 72 70 68 210 -6
9 Kris Mikkelsen Ga. Tech 67 74 70 211 -5 Peter Mitchell Florida St 70 70 71 211 -5
GEORGIA TECH INDIVIDUAL T20 Chan Wongluekiet Ga. Tech 71 71 74 216 E T23 Troy Matteson Ga. Tech 69 77 72 218 +2
