Las Vegas, Nev. – Georgia Tech posted three subpar scores, led by Christo Lamprecht’s 3-under-par 69, for a closing round of 5-under-par 285 and finished in fifth place at the Southern Highlands Collegiate.
The No. 12-ranked Yellow Jackets came up short of their getting their fourth victory this year, but finished strong against a 15-team field that included seven teams that are ranked in the top 25 of the current Golfstat rankings, nine in the top 50. Tech returns to action March 24-26 at The Goodwin in Palo Alto, Calif.
TECH LINEUP – Lamprecht played his final six holes at Southern Highlands Golf Club in 2-under-par and recorded five birdies in his round of 69, securing a tie for second place individually at 11-under-par 205. The sophomore from George, South Africa notched his third top-10 finish in seven events this year.
Junior Connor Howe (Ogden, Utah) played solidly start to finish in the tournament and closed with a 2-under-par 70 Tuesday, while junior Bartley Forrester (Gainesville, Ga.) shot 1-over-par 73 for the Yellow Jackets. Both players tied for 18th place overall with scores of 5-under-par 211.
Freshman Benjamin Reuter (Naarden, The Netherlands) provided Tech’s fourth counting score Tuesday with a 1-under-pat 71, while the Jackets’ tossed out a 78 from junior Ross Steelman (Columbia, Mo.).
TEAM LEADERBOARD – The top three teams after 36 holes shot the best rounds Tuesday and held their positions on the leaderboard. Top-ranked Oklahoma went 12-under-par, counting a 67 and a 68 Tuesday to cruise to the team title at 38-under-par 826.
The Sooners finished seven shots ahead of No. 5 Pepperdine (833, -31). The defending NCAA Champion Waves posted the best round of the day at 15-under-par 273, counting a 65 and a 67. No. 15 Texas shot 10-under-par 278 to take third place at 835 (-29).
No. 24 Florida shot 4-under-par 284 Tuesday and finished in fourth place (844, -20), one shot ahead of the Yellow Jackets (845, -19).
No. 9 Georgia (848, -16), No. 29 New Mexico (849, -15), No. 19 Illinois (854, -10), SMU (856, -8) finished fifth through ninth, with TCU and host UNLV tied for 10th at 858 (-6).
INDIVIDUAL LEADERBOARD – Medalist honors went to the Sooners’ Patrick Welch, who easily held his 36-hole lead with a 5-under-par 67 Tuesday. His 54-hole total of 202 (-14) left him three strokes clear of Georgia Tech’s Lamprecht, Pepperdine’s Joe Highsmith, Texas’ Cole Hammer, Oklahoma’s Drew Goodman and Florida’s Fred Biondi, who tied for second at 11-under-par 205.
The Sooners’ Logan McAllister, the Longhorns’ Travis Vick and the Gators’ Ricky Castillo tied for seventh at 207 (-9).
TOURNAMENT INFORMATION – Georgia Tech competed in the Southern Highlands Collegiate for the 18th time. Tech has won the event twice, in 2001 and 2002, but have finished no higher than solo sixth place (2005, 2019) since then. Four Yellow Jackets, all of whom have competed on the PGA Tour, have captured medalist honors, beginning in 1992 when Stewart Cink and David Duval shared the title. Troy Matteson won a share of the title in 2002 with Florida’s Camilo Villegas, and Cameron Tringale win the tournament outright in 2009.
The tournament was conducted at Southern Highlands Golf Club, which measures 7,510 yards (par 72), the longest layout on the Yellow Jackets’ schedule. For the second time, the individual champion will receive an exemption into the Shriners Hospitals for Children Open, which will take place Oct. 6-9, 2022, at TPC Summerlin in Las Vegas.
The field included (with Golfstat ranking) No. 1 Oklahoma, No. 5 Pepperdine, No. 9 Georgia, No. 12 Georgia Tech, No. 15 Texas, No. 19 Illinois, No. 24 Florida, No. 29 New Mexico, No. 35 Northwestern, San Diego, SMU, Southern California, TCU, UCLA and UNLV.