Unbeknownst to most, the state of Georgia’s college athletics collectively celebrated one of its annual high points Monday.
Six men’s golf teams from inside the state borders received NCAA regional tournament invitations: Georgia, Georgia Regents (formerly Augusta State), Georgia Southern, Georgia State, Georgia Tech and Kennesaw State. It matched the six bids extended last year, believed to be a record for the state.
While the state has long been recognized as a recruiting hotbed in multiple sports, the six NCAA bids is by far the most given to Georgia teams in any sport for a NCAA national team championship in the past 12 months.
“It says a lot about our state,” Georgia coach Chris Haack said. “Of course, we’ve been seeing this now for quite some time.”
Tech and Georgia have long been heavyweights nationally. The Bulldogs have received regional invitations 26 times in the 27 years since the format was instituted in 1989 and have qualified for the national finals 19 times. The Yellow Jackets are in the regionals for the 25th time in 27 years and have made the finals 23 times.
The Jackets, led by All-American seniors Ollie Schniederjans and Anders Albertson, are the state’s strongest contingent. They received the No. 2 seed at the regional held at the Farms Golf Club in Rancho Santa Fe, Calif., where the Bulldogs will join them as a No. 6 seed. The top five teams at each of the six regionals (comprised of either 13 or 14 teams), held May 14-16, will move on to the national tournament in Bradenton, Fla., on May 29-June 3.
Texas, Florida State and Arizona State are among favorites to win the national title.
The difference in Georgia’s upward mobility lies in the strength of programs at Georgia Southern (23rd consecutive NCAA appearance), Kennesaw State (making its fourth consecutive NCAA appearance) and Georgia State (in its 12th NCAA championship since 1999).
Georgia Regents is one of college sport’s anomalies. It won national championships in 2010 and 2011 while the school competed at the Division II level for every sport but golf. Mercer missed out this year after qualifying for the first time last year, but will send Trey Rule as an individual to the Chapel Hill, N.C., regional.
“It’s pretty tough just to beat the best in your state, no doubt about that,” Haack said.
GRU is making its 19th regional appearance but first since 2012 and received the No. 8 seed in Chapel Hill as the champion of the MEAC, of which it’s an associate member. Kennesaw State will also be there as the No. 4 seed, its highest-ever seed.
“That’s very encouraging for our program,” Owls coach Jay Moseley said.
Georgia Southern will go to Noblesville, Ind., as the No. 8 seed, having won the Sun Belt. Georgia State drew the No. 11 seed in Lubbock, Texas.
While Tech coach Bruce Heppler and Haack have largely thrived recruiting within the state, its in-state competitors have gone far afield. KSU sophomore Teremoana Beacousin, the Atlantic Sun Conference player of the year, is from Tahiti. Golfers from Finland, England, Germany, Sweden and Australia are among other top players in state programs.
Tech, ranked No. 10 in the country by Golfstat, will initiate pursuit of both its first NCAA championship and its second-ever individual championship. Schniederjans is the No. 5-ranked amateur in the world and No. 8 in the NCAA (according to Golfstat). Albertson is No. 40 nationally.
“It’s something we’ve never done,” Heppler said of an individual national champion, despite a history of players that includes Matt Kuchar, David Duval, Stewart Cink and others. “For one of those two guys, it’d be a great deal for them to figure out how to do.”
Georgia’s Lee McCoy is rated No. 4 in the country, having won four tournaments this season. He’s No. 3 in the world rankings.
“I definitely think that he’s got the game to do it,” Haack said. “I think his mentality going into it, that’s one of his biggest goals. Because he knows if he does that, he’s helping his team.”
