May 22, 1999

1999 NCAA Championship Field

BARRINGTON, R.I. - Georgia Techs golf team rolled to its second consecutive NCAA East Regional championship Saturday, finishing with a 54-hole total of 845, nine strokes ahead of South Carolina.

ACC rivals Duke and North Carolina tied for sixth place at 870, while Clemson tied for 10th at 876. The Blue Devils, Tar Heels and Tigers will all advance to the NCAA Championship, as will Wake Forest's Michael Capone, who tied for fifth individually at 212.

Meanwhile, Maryland tied for 17th at 889 and NC State tied for 19th at 890.

The win puts Tech into its second consecutive NCAA Championship on June 2-5 at Hazeltine National Golf Club and 13th national tournament berth overall. Tech has now captured ACC and East Regional titles in the same season for only the second time, with the other coming in 1991.

The Yellow Jackets were led by all-Americas Matt Kuchar (Lake Mary, Fla.) and Bryce Molder (Conway, Ark.), who finished second and third, respectively. Kuchar, last years East Regional medalist, fired a 4-under-par 70-69-70-209, which was his low tournament of the year. He missed medalist honors after South Carolinas Kyle Thompson shot a tournament-low 63 Saturday to finish 72-73-63-208. Molder carded a team-low 67 on the day to end with a 3-under-par 69-74-67-210 and in a third place tie with Georgias Ryuji Imada, who shot a 71-71-68.

A key for Tech was the play of sophomore Wes Latimer (Woodstock, Ga.), who fired a quiet 1-under-par 72-70-70-212 to finish in a tie for fifth with Michael Capone of Wake Forest (71-75-66).

"We played well and did what need to do to keep our momentum rolling after the ACC Championship," said fourth-year head coach Bruce Heppler, who guided Tech to its third postseason victory during his tenure. "Wes Latimer was a key figure for us with a fifth place finish and Matt and Bryce stepped up for us like the No. 1 and 2 players need to do. It was a great boost for Matt to put his best golf forward during championship play. Now its time for this club to focus on the tournament coming up."

Senior Mike Pearson (Snellville, Ga.) finished 18th with a 73-68-75-216, but his second round score helped Tech pull away from the pack on Friday. Junior Carlton Forrester (Gainesville, Ga.) ended 64th after shooting a 72-73-78-223.

Tech next returns to Hazeltine, where it finished ninth among the nations top 15 teams during the Ping/Golfweek Preview Invitational during September. The Jackets finished third in last years national championship and will be searching for the programs first-ever national championship. Play includes 30 teams in a 72-hole, four-day event that will cut the field to 15 teams after the first 36 holes.

The 1999 NCAA East Regional was held at the par 71, 6,734-yard Rhode Island Country Club.

1999 NCAA East Regional

Team Results

1. Georgia Tech 283-280-282-845

2. South Carolina 286-292-276-854

3. Florida 297-288-274-859

4. Georgia 294-284-285-863

5. E. Tennessee St. 297-286-286-869

6. Duke 293-288-289-870

North Carolina 293-293-284-870

8. Richmond 296-290-285-871

9. Mississippi 292-289-294-875

10. Clemson 291-282-303-876*

Augusta St. 300-293-283-876*

Mississippi St. 299-292-285-876

13. Georgia St. 293-299-295-877

14. South Alabama 295-288-295-878

15. North Florida 300-289-294-883

16. Penn State 302-292-297-889

17. Maryland 300-292-297-889

Seton Hall 302-291-296-889

19. N.C. State 304-295-291-890

Rhode Island 299-299-292-890

21. Connecticut 300-304-300-904

22. James Madison 304-305-296-905

23. Yale 305-309-310-924

*Won playoff to advance to NCAA Championship

Top 10 Individuals

1. Kyle Thompson, South Carolina 72-73-63-208

2. Matt Kuchar, Georgia Tech 70-69-70-209

3. Bryce Molder, Georgia Tech 69-74-67-210

Ryuji Imada, Georgia 71-71-68-210

5. Michael Capone, Wake Forest 71-75-66-212*

Wes Latimer, Georgia Tech 72-70-70-212

7. Camilo Benedetti, Florida 73-70-70-213

8. Chris Wisler, E. Tenn. St. 74-70-70-214

Jamie Elson, Augusta St. 75-70-69-214

Chad Moseley, Richmond 73-70-71-214

D.J. Nelson, South Alabama 72-67-75-214*

*Individuals advancing to NCAA Championship