Bulldogs Slip To 19th At NCAA Championships



Junior T.J. Mitchell is one of two Bulldogs tied for 25th individually at the NCAA Championship



 After climbing into contention early in the second round, the Georgia men's golf team slipped further back at the NCAA Championships on Wednesday at The Riviera Club.

The 20th-seeded Bulldogs successfully navigated the front nine and vaulted from the middle of the pack into the top 10. That position was a critical one as the top eight teams after Thursday's third round will advance to match play while the other 22 teams will be eliminated.

However, on the back nine, the Bulldogs went 12-over par and wound up at 14-over 298 for the day. After two rounds, Georgia is in 19th place at 25-over 593 --- nine strokes behind current eighth-place teams California, Kent State, Florida, Southern Cal and Illinois (584). Alabama has the overall lead at 572.

"We know exactly what we need to do," Georgia coach Chris Haack said. "We're nine shots back, and it's up to us to get them back. We can't expect or rely on anyone to give them to us. Nine shots is a reachable goal, but we've got to show that we want it. Our goal all season has been to make it to match play at the NCAAs. Thursday is a growing-up kind of day for us. We need to come out blazing and try to get ourselves into that top eight. We had some positives early on today, so we need to build off of those. We also had some negatives, and we need to learn from them. Every walk around this golf course is an opportunity to learn and to perform well."

The Bulldogs will tee off in 10-minute increments on Thursday from 10:30 to 11:10 a.m. EST. Georgia will be paired with Chattanooga and Texas A&M.

Sophomore Keith Mitchell paced the Bulldogs on Wednesday with a 1-over 72. Junior T.J. Mitchell signed for a 3-over 74, while sophomore Joey Garber had a 4-over 75, and sophomore Brian Carter and freshman Nicholas Reach each posted a 6-over 77.

The Mitchells (no relation) are tied for 25th in the individual race at 3-over 145. They are eight strokes behind leader Thomas Pieters of Illinois (137). Reach is at 9-over 151, followed by Garber at 10-over 152 and Carter at 12-over 154. The individual national champion will be crowned following Thursday's round.

"Hopefully, we can keep our noses down all the way through the round Thursday," Keith Mitchell said. "We need to fire on all cylinders. We've got nothing to lose now. We need to shoot at every pin and make every putt because it could be our last competitive round of the year."

"We've got to put it together for a complete round," Haack said. "We've got to play all 18 and keep it going because anything can happen out here. We've played both nines well and both nines bad. We need to remember the good stuff and do it again."

"We need a good round Thursday," T.J. Mitchell said. "We're nine down, but you never know what will happen. The course is tough, so we've just got to hang in there, let it go and see what happens."

Live results and tee times can be found at NCAA.com.

Bulldogs Open NCAAs With 11-Over 295

Led by veteran T.J. Mitchell, the Georgia men's golf team posted an 11-over-par 295 in the first round of the NCAA Championships on Tuesday at The Riviera Club.

All 30 teams in the field will play 54 holes, with the top eight advancing to match play beginning on Friday. The Bulldogs stand 15th in the tightly bunched team race that has Alabama in first place at 1-over 285, two teams at 4-over, two teams at 5-over and five teams at 6-over. The 6-over squads occupy what would be the eighth spot, and the 20th-seeded Bulldogs trail them by just five shots.

Mitchell, the only Bulldog back from last year's NCAA finalist squad, paced Georgia on Tuesday with an even-par 71. The junior is 13th in the individual standings, with UCLA's Anton Arboleda leading at 4-under 67. Sophomore Keith Mitchell added a 2-over 73, while freshman Nicholas Reach signed for a 3-over 74, and sophomores Joey Garber and Brian Carter each had a 6-over 77.

"We had our chances," Georgia coach Chris Haack said. "We played well in spurts, but we gave away a few at the beginning and a few at the end. We need to play better the next two rounds, and we'll see what happens. During the practice round, everybody hit it well. And they're all playing with confidence because I've seen it. We've just got to translate that into better scores This is a golf course that's known worldwide for being a great track, and you'd better respect it. You just can't give away shots. But the guys are learning. They're young and they're getting better."

"We kind of lost a few shots coming in, which is crucial because every shot counts," T.J. Mitchell said. "We've talked about that all year, making every shot count, especially at the Regionals and now at the NCAAs. We're in a good spot. We can get back in it by playing well the next two days. We seemed to settle in around the middle part of the course, and we need to remember that for Wednesday. We can't compound mistakes with other mistakes. We've got to stay in the present and try to have fun."

The Bulldogs will tee off in 10-minute increments between 3:40 and 4:20 EST in the second round on Wednesday. Thursday's third-round tee times will be determined by the 36-hole scores. Live results and pairings can be found at NCAA.com."If we can follow up with two good rounds, I think we'll be fine," Keith Mitchell said. "We need to get off to a great start, and if we're confident on the greens and stay with it, some putts will finally drop. It's a privilege to be out here, to play such a great course against such great competition. If we take it in and appreciate the opportunity we have, it will be a fun time."

Georgia Golfers Ready To Tee It Up At NCAAs

Georgia football coach Mark Richt has to replace three-fifths of his offensive line for the upcoming season. Bulldogs golf coach Chris Haack can relate.

Haack has gotten his Georgia men’s golf team back to the NCAA Championships despite saying goodbye to four members of the NCAA runner-up squad from a year ago (current professionals Harris English, Russell Henley, Bryden Macphersonand Hudson Swafford).

But as Haack noted after the Bulldogs qualified for the NCAAs, “I’d say it’s been a great year. No matter what happens, it’s been a great year.”

With that attitude in place, the Bulldogs will join 29 of the nation’s top teams at the Riviera Country Club (par-71, 7,292 yards) in Pacific Palisades, Calif., for the NCAAs, which will be held Tuesday through Sunday. The 30 teams are slated for 54 holes of stroke play, with the top eight then advancing to match play. The individual national champion also will be crowned after 54 holes.

Georgia is seeded 20th for the tournament and has been paired with Central Florida and Iowa for the first two rounds. Texas,  Alabama and California are the top three seeds for the NCAAs.

“The sky’s the limit for our team,” Haack said. “Our plan is to go out there, be relaxed and look at it as ‘why not us?’ If we play well, we can play with anybody else in the country. For these guys, this will be an invaluable experience to get to compete at this level, to feel that pressure and to see what it’s all about trying to win a championship.”

The Bulldogs will begin pursuit of the national title on Tuesday when they tee off in 10-minute increments from 10:20 to 11 a.m. Eastern. On Wednesday, Georgia will tee off from 3:40 to 4:20 p.m. The third-round tee times and pairings will be based on the 36-hole scores. Live scoring and tee times can be found at ncaa.com.

Georgia will use a lineup of junior T.J. Mitchell, sophomores Brian Carter, Joey Garber and Keith Mitchell, and freshman Nicholas Reach. T.J. Mitchell is the only Bulldog remaining from last year’s NCAA runner-up team; however, Garber played in 2011 for Michigan as it came in 10th. Carter, Keith Mitchell and Reach will be making their NCAA debuts.

Said T.J. Mitchell, the Bulldogs’ elder statesman, “Everything from here on is a plus. We’re looking forward to making it to the top eight, and then we’ll go from there. If you can get to match play, you never know what will happen.”

The Georgia quintet has been assembled for five additional events this season, highlighted by second-place efforts in the USF Invitational and the Linger Longer Invitational. With this lineup, the Bulldogs came in fourth in both the SEC Championship and the NCAA Athens Regional.

The Bulldogs advanced to the NCAAs for the 14th time in 16 seasons under Haack. Georgia won the 1999 and 2005 NCAA titles and came in second in 2007 and 2011.

“Making it to the NCAAs is a feeling that never gets old,” Haack said. “It’s an honor to be in the field, and that’s how we look at it. Without question, this is an elite field and we will have to play our best to be in the hunt. That said, our guys are excited about the opportunity and can’t wait for this challenge.”


Live scoring can be followed at www.golfstat.com

English Cards Course Record, Qualifies for British Open

Former Bulldog Harris English shot a course best and International Finals America qualifying record 60 to easily qualify for the British Open on Monday.

English shot a 63 in the afternoon in the par 70 Queens Course at Gleneagles Country Club, just outside of Dallas, for a 123 total, to snag one of the eight available spots for the Open from July 19-22 at Royal Lytham & St. Annes in England.

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Darren Carroll/R&A/Getty ImagesHarris English plays a tee shot on the 18th hole during The Open Championship International Final Qualifying America.

The 60 was the lowest 18-hole qualifying score since the R&A began holding qualifying in the United States in 2004. Records were incomplete if it was the lowest 18-hole score ever shot in British Open qualifying.
"It was a very relaxing round. I just lost track on what I was doing," said English, whose best PGA Tour finish was a tie for 8th at the RBC Heritage in Hilton Head, earlier in the year. "It's pretty amazing."

He had eight birdies and one eagle on the par-5 10th hole in his record morning round, plus seven birdies in the afternoon.

Fred Couples' 62 in 2005 was the previous course record.

English, 22, said he was unaware of his record score until his caddy told him after making another birdie, his seventh, on his closing hole with a 20-foot birdie putt.

"It certainly was a nice surprise," English said.

Dawgs Advance to NCAA Championship

Needing a top-5 finish, the 24th-ranked Georgia men's golf team secured a berth in the NCAA Championships with a fourth-place effort on Saturday in the Athens Regional at the UGA Golf Course.

The Bulldogs finished at 12-over 864 with a 12-over 296 in the final round and next will play in the NCAAs May 30-June 3 at the Rivera Club in Pacific Palisades, Calif. Also advancing from the Athens Regional were Alabama (828), East Carolina (853), North Florida (858) and Iowa (866). Long Beach State's Philip Chian (210) claimed the regional's individual berth.

"At the beginning of the year, knowing all the new faces we were going to put in the lineup, I didn't even know if we'd have a chance to make it to the regionals," Georgia coach Chris Haack said. "To be able to not only make it but finish fourth and move on, I'd say it's been a great year. No matter what happens, it's been a great year."

"Luckily we had enough clutch pars to get it done," sophomore Joey Garber said. "Whether you're first or fifth you're going, so we're happy about that."

The Bulldogs, sporting a lineup of one junior, three sophomores and a freshman, advanced to the NCAAs for the 14th time in 16 seasons under Haack. Georgia won the 1999 and 2005 NCAA titles and came in second in 2007 and 2011.

On Saturday, the Bulldogs got a 2-over 73 from junior T.J. Mitchell, 3-over 74s from Garber and freshman Nicholas Reach, and a 4-over 75 from sophomore Brian Carter. Sophomore Keith Mitchell had the Bulldogs' non-counting score of 7-over 78.

T.J. Mitchell came in seventh individually at 2-under 211, seven shots behind medalist Justin Thomas of Alabama (204). Carter placed 18th at 3-over 216, Garber finished 29th at 6-over 219, Reach came in 45th at 8-over 221 and Keith Mitchell placed 51st at 9-over 222.

"My heart lost a few years again and I'll probably have a few more gray hairs," said Haack, whose 2010 Bulldogs lost in a regional playoff and whose 2011 squad advanced by one stroke. "It is such a stressful week. To be able to get through it and make it, that's all we needed to do. We probably made it a little tighter than we needed to make it, but the guys came through. We're all excited, we'll have some fun and get ready for nationals. ... This is a great learning experience for these guys and it will pay dividends down the road."

Bulldogs Remain Fourth In NCAA Athens Regional

The 24th-ranked Georgia men's golf team remained fourth on Friday in the second round of the NCAA Athens Regional being held at the UGA Golf Course.
The Bulldogs shot a 4-over 288 on the par-71 layout on Friday to move to even-par 568 for the tournament.
 
The top five teams after Saturday's final round will advance to the NCAA Championships May 30-June 3 in Pacific Palisades, Calif. Georgia is seven shots ahead of fifth-place New Mexico and nine shots better than sixth-place North Carolina-Wilmington.
"We're still in good shape," Georgia coach Chris Haack said. "We've got to go out and play solid tomorrow and not worry about what else is going on. That's what we'll preach to the guys: Don't worry about the leaderboard. It's a game; just go out and play."
 
Alabama has the overall team lead at 23-under 545, including an 8-under 276 on Friday. East Carolina is second at 11-under 557 and North Florida is third at 6-under 562.
Junior T.J. Mitchell paced the Bulldogs on Friday with a 1-under 70. Mitchell began the day with a double bogey and two bogeys on his first three holes, but responded with six birdies over 13 holes. Even with a bogey on No. 18, Mitchell was pleased with his round.
 
"I tried to stay mentally tough," Mitchell said. "I knew there were birdies to be made, so I just hung in there and tried to stay as mentally tough as I could and fight it out. I didn't get off to the start I wanted to, but I knew I could come around. I stayed confident even though the scores weren't as good at the beginning."
"To start off the way he did and to get under par is outstanding," Haack said. "It was probably the key to our round, having him make a comeback like that."
Sophomore Brian Carter added a 1-over 72, while sophomores Joey Garber and Keith Mitchell and freshman Nicholas Reach all signed for 2-over 73s.
 
T.J. Mitchell is sixth in the individual race at 4-under 138, five shots behind Alabama's Bobby Wyatt (133). Carter is 12th at 1-under 141, followed by Keith Mitchell in 26th at 2-over 144, Garber in 30th at 3-over 145 and Reach in 51st at 5-over 147.
The Bulldogs will tee on Saturday in 10-minute increments from 7:50 to 8:30 a.m. Georgia will be paired with New Mexico and UNC-Wilmington.
 
Live results and tee times for the Athens Regional can be found at golfstat.com. There is no charge for admission or parking for the event.

Georgia Golfers Hope There's No Place Like Home

Athens Regional Notes

The 24th-ranked Georgia men's golf team will be the host of the NCAA Athens Regional that will be held today through Saturday here in Athens at the UGA Golf Course (par-71, 7,253 yards). The top five teams and the low individual not on one of those squads will advance to the NCAA Championships May 30-June 3 in Pacific Palisades, Calif.

Georgia will be making its 23rd appearance since the NCAA went to the regionals format for the 1989 season and the Bulldogs have advanced to the NCAAs 16 times in that span. Under Coach Chris Haack, the Bulldogs have been invited to 16 straight regionals, moving on to the NCAAs 13 of the previous 15 seasons. Haack led the Bulldogs to NCAA titles in 1999 and 2005 and runner-up finishes in 2007 and 2011.

And despite a lack of postseason experience on the roster, Haack is confident the Bulldogs can make another push in the NCAAs.

"Why not? We've got as good a chance as anybody," Haack said. "It's a young team, but it's a talented team. The main thing this team needed was experience. When you have (Hudson) Swafford, (Harris) English, (Russell) Henley and (Bryden) Macpherson taking up the bulk of the spots, not a lot of guys had a chance to get in there to get experience. You have to get up on that tee box and feel the butterflies in a tournament to really understand how to handle things and handle them well.  We've got some of that experience now. The talent is there, and I believe we can contend."

Junior T.J. Mitchell has appeared in two NCAA Regionals for the Bulldogs, while sophomore transfer Joey Garber helped Michigan win an NCAA Regional last season. Sophomores Brian Carter and Keith Mitchell and freshman Nicholas Reach will be making their NCAA debuts.

And while the Bulldogs acknowledge their youth, they also point to experience the other teams in the Athens Regional don't have -- their knowledge of the UGA Golf Course.

"Playing at home in this golf tournament, our mindset needs to be to go out and have fun," Reach said. "We've all played this course so many times, and we need to use our knowledge of the course to our advantage. There are a lot of nerves associated with this tournament because of what's at stake, but we should be able to settle down because of what we know about this course."

Joining the fourth-seeded Bulldogs in the Athens Regional will be No. 1 seed Alabama, No. 2 seed North Florida, No. 3 seed New Mexico, No. 5 seed Iowa, No. 6 seed East Carolina, No. 7 seed Long Beach State, No. 8 seed Augusta State, No. 9 seed Wake Forest, No. 10 seed Houston, No. 11 seed Texas-Arlington, No. 12 seed UNC-Wilmington and No. 13 seed Loyola (Md.). There also will be 10 individuals representing teams that did not make the NCAA field.

Alabama is fourth in the current rankings, followed by North Florida in 10th, New Mexico in 16th and the Bulldogs in 24th. Alabama (SEC), North Florida (Atlantic Sun), UNC-Wilmington (Colonial) and Loyola (Metro Atlantic) won conference titles earlier this season.

This will be the first tournament in Athens for the Bulldogs since the SEC Championship in 1998. However, the UGA Golf Course is no stranger to tournaments, hosting, among other events, the Nationwide Tour's Stadion Classic, the Liz Murphey Collegiate Classic, the Women's NCAA Championships and the PGA Junior Championship.

The Athens Regional will have tee times starting at 8 a.m. today and Friday and starting at 7:30 a.m. on Saturday. The Bulldogs will go off in 10-minute increments today for the first round starting at 8:20 a.m. on number 10. Live scoring and pairings can be found at golfstat.com.

The other NCAA Regionals will take place in Greensboro, N.C.; Bowling Green, Ky.; Ann Arbor, Mich.; Norman, Okla.; and Stanford, Calif. Eighty-one teams and 45 individuals are in the field.

There is no charge for admission or parking for the Athens Regional, so please come out and cheer on the Dawgs!

Round One at Players Championship



Brian Harman was a last minute to the field at The Players Championship


When the day began, there were three Bulldogs in the field at the Players Championship.  When the day ended there were four Bulldogs who had completed their first round in the tournament that has the biggest purse in golf.  Ryuji Imada, Chris Kirk, and Harris English were the three Bulldogs who had tee times for the first two rounds in Ponta Vedra at the PGA Tour's home course, TPC Sawgrass.  Brian Harman was on site as the first alternate with his fingers crossed and ready to tee it up if there was a last minute withdrawal of a player in the field.

Harman did get into the field thanks to a last minute withdraw of D.A. Points.  Points actually withdrew as his name was being called for his 8:39 tee time with Carl Pettersson and Robert Garrigus.  By the time tour officials could locate Harman who was playing ping pong with his caddie, Pettersson and Garrigus were already on the second hole.   Even though Harman was in, there still wasn't a spot for him in one of the upcoming threesomes. After discussing the issue for three hours, PGA Tour VP of Rules and Competition, Mark Russell, decided to let Harman go off as a single at 12:05 p.m. ET, right before the afternoon wave.

Harman carded a 1 over 73 on his round after being 2 over through 3 holes.  His 73 has him tied for 78th.  The best round of the day for the Bulldogs belonged to Harris English who carded a 2 under 70 that puts him in a tie for 28th place.  Chris Kirk is a shot behind English at 1 under and tied for 37th.  Ryuji Imada fired a 3 over 75 that left him tied for 114th.

The second round will be televised on The Golf Channel from 1:00 - 7:00 and live scoring can be followed at www.pgatour.com

Swafford holes out on 18th to shoot 62 and win Stadion Classic

Former Bulldog Hudson Swafford fired a blistering 9-under 62 to come charging from the back of the pack Sunday and win the Stadion Classic at UGA in dramatic fashion. Swafford capped off a brilliant final round by holing out from a greenside bunker for birdie and sending the hometown fans into a concussion of roars.

Swafford, a rookie on Tour, put a 17-under 267 total on the board but then had to wait another 90 minutes for the rest of the field to finish.  "I did what I could," said Swafford after he signed his card. "We'll see if it's good enough."  Several players had chances down the stretch but nobody could match the magic of the red and black, ultimately turning Stafford's good into spectacular. And legendary.

"I couldn't see it. I heard it hit the pin and then I heard everybody just go nuts. When I went up there and saw it had disappeared I blacked out to be honest," said Swafford. "To hole out a bunker shot to win a golf tournament is amazing."

Swafford waited out the field and wound up one better than Luke List, last week's winner of the South Georgia Classic, and two-time U.S. Open champion Lee Janzen, who birdied seven of his last eight holes, including the final five.  A birdie at No. 17 had given List a share of the lead but the former Vanderbilt star pushed his tee shot at No. 18 into the trees. His second shot, an uphill 6-iron from the right rough, caught the pines and dropped 40 yards in front of him. His third wound up left of the green, and he ultimately holed a 12-footer for bogey.

"This is unbelievable. My first win is huge and to be in Athens, words don't describe it," said Swafford, who follows in the footsteps of former teammate Russell Henley, who won here last year as an amateur. "I couldn't have drawn it up any better. The way it happened is a dream come true."

Swafford collected a check for $99,000 which jumped him from No 61 to No. 7 on the money list.
"This is just a starting point. This is no time to get comfortable," he said. "I'm still a long way from where I need to be. I'm another win away from getting anything done."

Swafford started the final day five shots off the pace set by Van Aswegen but figured he was still close enough. The round started on the wrong foot when Swafford three-putted the first hole for bogey.
"On any given day I know you can get after it," he said. "I just stuck to my game plan. I gave myself a lot of chances after that."  With the field chalking up plenty of red numbers, Swafford slowly climbed his way into contention with a trio of birdies at Nos. 5, 6 and 7. When he made the turn at 11-under, he was only three off the lead.  "Winning wasn't crossing my mind at that point. The back nine can be penal with all the water but you can score on it," he said. "You never know what can happen. This is the craziest game ever."
It got absolutely nuts among the rolling hills and pine trees.

Swafford rolled in three straight birdies starting at No. 11 and put the locals on alert that something incredible might be on the horizon. Birdie putts of 10 and 8 feet at 16 and 17 got Swafford to 16-under and set up the dramatics.  "When I was standing on 18 tee I told my caddie we needed to get at least one more," he said. "I knew Luke had some holes left."  Swafford's tee shot found the right rough, and he pulled his 7-iron into the bunker.  "It wasn't that hard of a shot to be honest but it just didn't cut," he said. "I was actually relieved when I saw it in a flat area and not up against the lip. I thought I could get it up and down but my caddie said, 'shoot, you've got to hole it."

Ryan Baucom, a former walk-on football player at North Carolina, turned out to be prophetic when Swafford clanked in the winner.
"Talking about it and doing it are two different things," he said. "The feeling, that roar. It was surreal."

Swafford becomes the second Bulldog to win this tournament on the UGA Golf Course. Swafford’s Georgia teammate Russell Henley won it as an amateur one year ago. Fellow Bulldogs Justin Bolli and Paul Claxton tied for seventh at 12-under.

Swafford, Bolli, Claxton Advance In Stadion Classic

ATHENS, Ga. --- Three former members of the Georgia men's golf team made the cut on Friday following the second round of the Nationwide Tour's Stadion Classic at the UGA Golf Course.

Hudson Swafford, Justin Bolli and Paul Claxton each advanced to the third and fourth rounds. Swafford fired a 1-under 70 on Friday to move to 6-under 136. Swafford is the top Bulldog in the field as he stands 13th, four strokes behind co-leaders Jim Herman and Billy Horschel. Bolli (2-under 69 Friday) and Claxton (even-par 71) are in the group tied for 36th at 3-under 139.

Missing the cut were former UGA student Scott Parel, former Bulldog Matt McQuillan, ex-Bulldog and 2011 champion Russell Henley, sophomore Brian Carter, former Bulldog Richard Scott and freshman Nicholas Reach. Parel shot a 2-under 69 Friday and McQuillan had an even-par 71 as each wound up at even-par 142. Henley carded a 3-over 74 to finish at 1-over 143. Carter signed for his second straight 1-over 72 to finish at 2-over 144. Scott had a final-round 1-under 70 for a 3-over 145. Reach's 1-over 72 gave him a two-day total of 5-over 147.

The third and fourth rounds will take place on Saturday and Sunday. Live scoring and additional information can be found at stadionclassic.uga.edu.

Past And Present Bulldogs Begin Play In Stadion Classic

Former Bulldog, Hudson Swafford fired a first round 66

 
ATHENS, Ga. --- Former Georgia golfer Hudson Swafford had the top showing among the nine-man Bulldog contingent on Thursday in the first round of the Nationwide Tour’s Stadion Classic at the UGA Golf Course.

Swafford fired a 5-under 66 on Thursday to stand fifth individually. Kent Jones fired a course-record 8-under 63 to snare the first-round lead.

Former Bulldog Paul Claxton shot a 3-under 68 and is 18th. Ex-Bulldog Russell Henley, the defending champion in the event, shot a 2-under 69 and is 32nd.

Also Thursday, ex-Bulldog Justin Bolli fired a 1-under 70, former Bulldog Matt McQuillan signed for an even-par 71, sophomore Brian Carter shot a 1-over 72, former UGA student Scott Parel fired a 2-over 73, and freshman Nicholas Reach and ex-Bulldog Richard Scott each carded a 4-over 75.





The tournament will continue on Friday. Live scoring and tee times can be found at PGATour.com.

Stadion Classic Begins Today

The UGA Tee-Off Village

The Stadion Classic at UGA gets started today with nine Bulldogs in the field.  All Tee-Off Club members are invited out to the UGA Tee-Off Village located on hole #17.

Steve Eubanks wrote a great article about the success of the Georgia Golf program under coach Chris Haack.  It is a great read not only for Georgia Golf fans but all UGA fans and supporters and a fitting topic with all of the recent success of his former and current players.

Even in New Orleans, LSU country, Bubba Watson couldn't escape the occasional “Go Dawgs!” a cry more ubiquitous than “You da man!” in his gallery. But, unlike the latter, Bubba doesn't ignore the former. The Masters champ is quite proud of the University of Georgia diploma that hangs on the wall of his home. And he is quick to acknowledge those who shout “How ‘bout them Dawgs,” whether it's in Augusta, New Orleans or Los Angeles.

to read the complete article, click here:

http://digital.globalgolfpost.com/globalgolfpost/20120430#article_id=161676

Nine Bulldogs to Play in Stadion Classic at UGA

The Tee-Off Club Village located on hole #17

There will be a total of nine Bulldogs in the field this week at the Stadion Classic at UGA.  Seven of those nine are returning to what was their home course while they were in school here in Athens, while the other two will be taking a study break from finals and competing against the professionals as amateurs.

Freshman Nick Reach and Sophomore Brian Carter are the two current members of the UGA Golf Team who received sponsors exemptions to compete in the tournament.

The Augusta Chronicle featured Brian Carter in an article about earning a spot in the Stadion Classic.  Read the article here:
http://chronicle.augusta.com/sports/golf/2012-04-28/brian-carter-earns-spot-nationwide-tour-event

The Athens Banner Herald featured freshman Nick Reach in an article about earning a spot in the Stadion Classic.  Read the article here:
http://onlineathens.com/sports/college-sports/2012-04-29/uga-freshman-reach-hopes-previous-nationwide-experience-benefits

Former Bulldogs who are returning to Athens this week include Paul Claxton, Scott Parel, Richard Scott, Justin Bolli, Matt McQuillan, Hudson Swafford, and defending champion Russell Henley.

Tee times for the tournament can be found on the tournament website here:
http://www.pgatour.com/tournaments/h090/

Round 1 Tee Times for Bulldogs are:

8:25  tee #10  Justin Bolli
8:35  tee #10  Matt McQuillan
9:15  tee#1   Nick Reach
12:25 tee#10  Russell Henley
12:45 tee #1  Paul Claxton and Scott Parel
1:05  tee #10  Hudson Swafford
1:55  tee #10  Richard Scott
2:15  tee #10  Brian Carter

Live scoring for the event can be found at :
http://www.pgatour.com/tournaments/h090/