The University of Georgia men will be shooting for their first SEC golf title since 2016 when the conference holds its tournament next week at the Sea Island Golf Club.
The tournament starts Wednesday with three rounds of stroke play, with the format shifting to match play for the final two days. The final match April 25 will be televised live on the SEC Network.
Since the SEC moved its championship to Sea Island in 2001, Georgia has won six times. Arkansas won the tournament in 2019. There was no championship in 2020.
The Bulldogs, ranked 10th by Golfstat, is the top-ranked team in a loaded conference. Eight SEC teams are ranked in the top 25: No. 11 Texas A&M, No. 14 Auburn, No. 15 Vanderbilt, No. 17 Florida, No. 19 Tennessee, No. 22 Arkansas and No. 23 LSU.
Georgia fields a deep, veteran team – experience that will be needed to navigate the difficult conference tournament. Much of the focus is rightfully directed on Davis Thompson, who is the No. 3-ranked amateur in the world and will compete on the U.S. Davis Cup team in May.
But the Bulldogs are loaded with depth. Trent Phillips has been selected to play for the U.S. team in the Arnold Palmer Cup, and Eli Scott has emerged to play as high as No. 3 in the rotation. Connor Creasy, four-time U.S. Amateur qualifier Spencer Ralston and Will Chandler round out the usual top five.
Georgia State back in the winner’s circle
The Georgia State men are trending in the right direction after winning the Wofford Invitational at the Country Club of Spartanburg, their first title since 2017 and the first victory under coach Chad Wilson.
Georgia State finished 17 under and won by 12 shots over Western Carolina and Wofford. It was their first regular-season win since the 2016 Furman Intercollegiate and first overall since winning the 2017 Sun Belt Conference title in match play.
The Panthers had four players finish within the top 15, with freshman Maxence Mugnier finishing second by one stroke. Mugnier was under par each round and finished with a 6-under 210. Ashton Poole, who closed with a 69, tied for ninth at 1 under, Egill Gunnarsson shot even par and tied for 12th, and Josh Edgar was 1 over and tied for 15th.
Georgia State plays next at the Sun Belt championship tournament at Mystic Creek in El Dorado, Ark., April 25-28.
Credit: Clyde Click
Credit: Clyde Click
Georgia Tech second at Calusa Cup
Christo Lamprecht tied for third place, the best finish of his career, to lead Georgia Tech to second place in the Calusa Cup in Naples, Fla. The South African freshman eagled the final hole to shoot a third-round 70 and finish at 3-under 213. Ben Smith tied for ninth at even par, and Will Dickson tied for 15th at 3 over. The Yellow Jackets play again at the ACC championship tournament, which they will host at the Capital City Club’s Crabapple Course in Milton.
Els to play in Mitsubishi Electric Classic
Four-time major winner Ernie Els is the latest to commit to play in the Mitsubishi Electric Classic at TPC Sugarloaf on May 10-16. The tournament has designated the Friday round as Autism Awareness Day or “Blue Out Day,” in honor of Els, who is a champion of autism research. Els, whose son, Ben, is autistic, established the Els Center of Excellence in Jupiter, Fla., to serve the autism community. Els has won twice on the PGA Tour Seniors since joining it last year.
Two-time U.S. Open winner Retief Goosen also committed. He won the PGA Tour’s BellSouth Classic at TPC Sugarloaf in 2002 and had two other top-five finishes there.
GSGA begins One-Day Series
The Georgia State Golf Association has made it easier for golfers of all skill levels to compete with its new One-Day Series, a season-long series with a points list and championship at the end of the year.
Players will compete in their appropriate skill and age level in events that will include gross and net competitions. There’s even an optional skins game and a variety of formats will be used, including traditional stroke lay, four-ball and Stableford. The divisions are: Men’s A (handicap 9.9 and lower), Men’s B (handicap 10 or higher), senior men (55 and older) and senior women (50 and older). Cost is $85 per event.
The first of nine events will be May 10 at Crystal Falls in Dawsonville. There will be two events for women only. More information is available at www.GSGA.org.
Miscellaneous: Abraham Baldwin Agricultural College of Tifton won the National Junior College Athletic Association’s Division II Southeastern Championship. Brock Barber was medalist, and teammate Brady Kotkiewicz tied for second, two shots behind. … The GSGA’s Senior Match Play Championship will begin Monday at Houston Lake Country Club in Perry. Atlanta’s Billy Mitchell is the defending champion. … A limited number of daily grounds and upgraded hospitality tickets are on sale for the Tour Championship, Sept. 1-5, at East Lake Golf Club. Tickets start at $60 and are limited to four for each day. Information is available at www.TourChampionship.com/tickets.
