News & Notes About The Bulldogs

Lee McCoy and Greyson Sigg

• Hudson Swafford, Bubba Watson, Chris Kirk, Kevin Kisner and Brian Harman will be in action this week in the Memorial Tournament presented by Nationwide in Ohio.

• Keith Mitchell, Sepp Straka and Erik Compton are playing in the Web.com Tour's Rex Hospital Open in North Carolina.

• Greyson Sigg will make his professional debut and will be joined by Lee McCoy in the McKenzie Tour's Freedom 55 Financial Open in Vancouver. Earlier this week, Sigg was named to the All-Southeast Region Team by the GCAA.

• Nine Bulldogs will be involved in U.S. Open sectional tournaments on Monday: Joey Garber, Nicholas Reach and Michael Cromie at Hawks Ridge in Ball Ground, Ga.; Spencer Ralston, Brendon Todd, Harris English and Hudson Swafford in Germantown, Tenn.; McCoy in Tacoma, Wash.; and Compton in Columbus, Ohio. Watson, Kisner, Harman and Russell Henley already have qualified for the U.S. Open, which will be held June 12-18 at Erin Hills in Wisconsin.

• Georgia Golf mourns the loss of Harold Spears, who passed away recently at the age of 87 in Lakeland, Fla. Spears played for the Bulldogs from 1948-50 and captained the team his junior and senior seasons. He claimed medalist honors at the 1949 SEC Championship and helped Georgia win the team title in 1950. A memorial service will be held at First United Methodist Church in Lakeland on Friday at 2 p.m. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to First United Methodist Church or First UMC Children's Clothes Closet.

Kisner Holds On To Win Colonial By Stroke

FORT WORTH, Texas (AP) — Kevin Kisner birdied the first three holes on the back nine to take the lead and held on to win at Colonial despite a Sunday charge by defending champion Jordan Spieth.

Kisner shot a 4-under 66 to finish at 10-under 270, including a clutch par save on the 18th hole after a wayward tee shot and an approach that was off the back side of the green and well below the hole. He finished a stroke ahead of Spieth, Sean O'Hair and Jon Rahm.

Spieth shot a bogey-free 65, and was standing on a chair to see over the crowd at the 18th green when Kisner putted up the mound to 5 feet of the cup and then made the winning putt. That came right after Rahm's 10-foot birdie chance skirted just to the left of the hole.

The 33-year-old Kisner got his second PGA Tour victory in 148 starts since his debut in 2011, and a check for just more than $1.2 million. He was a runner-up twice this year, and six times over past three seasons.

Kisner had a three-stroke lead at the turn on the final day of the Arnold Palmer Invitational in March before finishing a stroke behind Marc Leishman. Kisner made a nearly 95-foot chip-in for eagle to get him and fellow Aiken, South Carolina, resident Scott Brown into playoff at the Zurich Classic's new team format before losing on the fourth playoff hole to duo of Australia's Cameron Smith and Jonas Blixt of Sweden.

After a 14-foot birdie at the 420-yard 15th hole at Hogan's Alley, Kisner had a two-stroke lead. That at the same hole where Spieth, playing two groups ahead of him, punctuated an 11-foot birdie putt with a fist pump.

But about the same time Kisner made a bogey at the par-3 16th, Spieth was hitting his drive way right at the 18th hole and went on to save par after a chip to 5 feet. Kisner hit a similar drive, and also saved par.

Denham Wins Georgia Mid Am Title

David Denham

David Denham began the final round with the lead and never relinquished it as he went on to win the Georgia Mid-Amateur Championship at Cartersville Country Club on Sunday. Denham's 54-hole total of 14-under-par 202 (67-66-69) ended up two strokes better than David Noll Jr's 12-under-par 204 (67-69-68) mark. Denham also won the Georgia Amateur Championship in 2004. Denham was a member of the Bulldogs' 2005 national championship squad.

• Five Bulldogs have advanced from local qualifiers to sectional events for the U.S. Open Championship, which will be held June 12-18 at Erin Hills in Wisconsin. Set to play in sectionals on June 5 are Joey Garber, Michael Cromie, David Mackey, Lee McCoy and Nicholas Reach. (Bryden Macpherson and Spencer Ralston were alternates in their locals.)

• Kevin Kisner, Chris Kirk, Brian Harman and Harris English are in action in the DEAN & DELUCA Invitational.

• Chip Beck and Scott Parel are playing in the KitchenAid Senior PGA Championship.

News And Notes About The Bulldogs

The Georgia men’s golf team’s season came to an end on Wednesday as the Bulldogs finished 10th in the NCAA College Grove Regional at The Grove Club.

The Bulldogs finished the 54-hole event at 23-over 887, including a final-round 13-over 301. Georgia needed a top-5 finish to advance to the NCAA Championships May 26-31 in Sugar Grove, Ill.

“We knew if we played really well and got it under par early we might be able to gain some momentum,” Georgia head coach Chris Haack said. “We got off to a decent start and got it under par for awhile. But we knew when we made the turn, looking at the scores, we had to try to do something and make some things happen so we took a few gambles we didn’t need to take. But at the same time, we were trying to get to the top 5. We weren’t worried about finishing sixth or seventh.  We wanted to make it all the way. I’m still proud of these guys. They went out and gave it their best.”

Freshman Trevor Phillips paced the Bulldogs on Wednesday as he shot a 1-over 73. Sophomore Tye Waller added a 2-over 74, followed by freshman Spencer Ralston at 3-over 75. Seniors Jaime Lopez Rivarola and Greyson Sigg each signed for a 7-over 79.

Sigg finished 17th at 4-over 220 for the tournament, followed by Ralston at 6-over 222, Lopez Rivarola at 9-over 225, and Waller and Phillips each at 11-over 227.

Sigg, a First-Team All-SEC pick, wound up second in tournament total (16-under), third in single-season scoring average (70.50), sixth in career wins (four) and average (71.93), and ninth in career top-10 finishes (17) and low round (7-under) in the Georgia record book.

Said Haack, “Greyson had such a stellar career. He’s been a good leader and a great player and it’s going to be hard to replace him in the lineup. Jaime is one of the nicest, finest kids you could ever have in a program. They’ll both be sorely missed.”

• Brendon Todd, Russell Henley, Harris English and Hudson Swafford will compete this week in the AT&T Byron Nelson at TPC Four Seasons in Dallas, Texas.

• The Web.com Tour's BMW Charity Pro-Am presented by SYNNEX Corporation in Greer, S.C., will feature Bryden Macpherson, Keith Mitchell, Sepp Straka and Erik Compton.

• Scott Parel will be in action in the Champions Tour's Regions Tradition in Birmingham, Ala. Georgia football coach Kirby Smart is slated to participate in Wednesday's Pro-Am.

• We stumbled across this interesting article on Bubba Watson and his foray into fashion.

Bulldogs Ready For College Grove Regional

The No. 23-ranked Georgia men’s golf team will compete Monday through Wednesday in the NCAA College Grove (Tenn.) Regional.

The lone way to advance to the NCAA Championships May 26-31 in Sugar Grove, Ill., is to finish fifth or higher in the 13-team Regional at The Grove Club. The Bulldogs are seeded fourth.

“The field is a tough one, but that’s the way it is in all the Regionals,” Georgia head coach Chris Haack said. “We’ve played against just about everyone in the field this year and we know how good they are. But our focus is on Georgia. We know we’ve got to play well in order to survive and advance. That’s our goal. We’ll be aggressive and play as well as we can and do what it takes to move on.”

Joining the Bulldogs and host Middle Tennessee State in the Regional will be Vanderbilt, Texas Tech, Clemson, Missouri, Lipscomb, Kennesaw State, UCF, TCU, Troy, ETSU and Harvard.

The Bulldogs will be paired with Missouri and Lipscomb in the first round on Monday. Tee times are slated for 11-minute increments beginning at 9:20 a.m. and ending at 10:04 a.m. Live scores can be found at Golfstat.com.

Haack will use a lineup of seniors Jaime Lopez Rivarola and Greyson Sigg, sophomore Tye Waller, and freshmen Trevor Phillips and Spencer Ralston in the Regional. Lopez Rivarola, Sigg, Waller and Ralston were in the lineup when the Bulldogs placed fifth in the Franklin American Mortgage Intercollegiate at The Grove in September. Ralston led the Bulldogs as he came in seventh, followed by Sigg in ninth and Waller in 13th.

“It’s a hard golf course,” Haack said, “so we’re fortunate that we got to play it in the fall.”

The Bulldogs were invited to an NCAA Regional for the 22nd straight year and for the 28th time in 29 seasons since the format was introduced in 1988-89. The Bulldogs have advanced from the Regional to the NCAAs 21 times. The Bulldogs have been invited to an NCAA Regional in all 21 of Haack’s seasons and have moved onto the NCAAs in 18 of the previous 20 campaigns. Haack led the Bulldogs to the 1999 and 2005 national titles, to runner-up finishes in 2007 and 2011, and to the “Final Fore” in 2015.

The five other Regional sites are Aldarra Golf Club in Sammamish, Wash.; the University of Texas Club in Austin, Texas; Stanford Golf Course in Stanford, Calif.; the Kampen Course in West Lafayette, Ind.; and the University Club in Baton Rouge, La.

Seven Bulldogs In THE PLAYERS

Seven Bulldogs are playing this week in THE PLAYERS Championship at TPC Sawgrass in Ponte Vedra Beach, Fla.: Brian Harman, Hudson Swafford, Harris English, Chris Kirk, Bubba Watson, Russell Henley and Kevin Kisner.

• Just a reminder that the Bulldogs will be back in action Monday through Wednesday in the NCAA Regional in College Grove, Tenn. The top five teams after three rounds will advance to the NCAA Championship.  The Bulldogs will use a lineup of seniors Jaime Lopez Rivarola and Greyson Sigg, sophomore Tye Waller, and freshmen Trevor Phillips and Spencer Ralston.

• Following Harman's win in the Wells Fargo Championship, Coach Chris Haack was interviewed by our friends at the Atlanta Journal Constitution and 960 The Ref.

Harman Wins Wells Fargo Championship

Brian Harman

WILMINGTON, N.C. (AP) — Dustin Johnson was in the clubhouse, tied for the lead and poised for a chance to join an elite class with a fourth straight PGA Tour victory. Brian Harman was on the last tee, knowing a birdie on the par-5 18th would be enough to win the Wells Fargo Championship.

Harman could have drawn it up differently, but not any better.

Switching from a 5-wood to a 3-wood for his 271-yard shot in the 18th, he went so long that he needed relief from a corporate chalet. His chip became harder because of tree limbs that made him go low, and his chip came out soft and barely got onto the green.

And then he rolled in a 30-foot birdie putt for a 4-under 68 and a one-shot victory Sunday over Johnson and Pat Perez.

"I didn't hit a great chip. It didn't turn out very good," Harman said. "But I guess it went where it was supposed to."

The greens at Eagle Point were so pure that Harman knew it was good when the ball was 5 feet from the cup. He turned and pumped his arms in a wild celebration that ended in a hug with his caddie, Scott Tway, for a victory that was a long time coming.

Harman won for the first time in nearly three years.

For Johnson, playing for the first time since a freak accident knocked him out of the Masters, it was the first time in nearly three months that he left a PGA Tour event without the trophy. It wasn't from a lack of trying. Johnson made the cut on the number, and then went 67-67 on the weekend, including a 15-foot birdie putt on the final hole, to nearly pull out another victory.

"I didn't have a lot of time off, so I didn't really know what to expect this week because I didn't really get to practice leading into this tournament, either," Johnson said. "Not much has changed. The first couple days I didn't play that great, but really played nicely on Saturday and Sunday and so I'm happy with where the game is going into next week."

Perez did his part, bouncing back from a double bogey on the 14th hole that took him out of the lead by making birdies on the 16th and 18th holes for a 68 that he thought might be good enough for a playoff with Johnson, the world's No. 1 player, and Harman.

"Hell of an up-and-down from back there," Perez said. "He deserves it. He played great."

Perez moves to No. 42 in the world ranking, which makes him a lock to be exempt from U.S. Open qualifying. Harman gets back to the Masters, and he doesn't mind having to wait 11 months for a return to Augusta National.

Jon Rahm of Spain was in the mix, too. Rahm, one of five players who had at least a share of the lead on the back nine, watched from the 18th fairway as the crowd that surrounded the hole and filled all three levels of a hospitality chalet erupted in cheers. He knew he needed an eagle — just like the one he made at Torrey Pines for his first PGA Tour victory — to force a playoff. He was posing. And it sailed over the green, leading to par and a 71 to finish alone in fourth.

Lost in Harman's long birdie putt for the victory were two shots that led to that moment — an 8-iron from 176 yards to 3 feet on the 14th for a tap-in birdie, and the pitching wedge from 137 yards on the 17th hole to 4 feet that put him in position for the victory.

In between was a three-putt from the par-3 15th that he thought would cost him.

"Knew it was going to be tough to birdie those last couple," Harman said. "But I stuck to my game plan and just did it. Did the best I could."

And it was just enough.

Johnson was playing for the first time in six weeks because of his slip down the stairs the day before the Masters that led to him pulling out. A quick start allowed him to lurk behind the leaders all day, and he holed a 15-foot birdie putt on the 18th that gave him a share of the lead.

Then, he was alone in the lead when others started to stumble — Perez with a double bogey on No. 14, Harman with the three-putt bogey on the 15th and Patrick Reed, the 54-hole leader who made four bogeys in a six-hole stretch on the back nine.

Reed shot 40 on the back nine for a 75 and fell out of the top 10. He played in the final group with Alex Noren of Sweden, who closed with a 77.

Johnson was trying to join Byron Nelson, Tiger Woods, Ben Hogan and Jack Burke Jr. as the only players with at least four straight PGA Tour victories. He was hurt slightly by his mishap at the Masters, when he suffered a deep bruise on his lower back from the tumble down the stairs while still wearing only socks. This was his first time playing in six weeks, and while there were signs of rust, he looked like the same old Johnson over the weekend as he tried to make up ground and almost did. 

Bulldogs Assigned To College Grove Regional

The 23rd-ranked Georgia men’s golf team will begin its quest for another national championship May 15-17 at the NCAA Regional hosted by Middle Tennessee State, according to an announcement Thursday by the NCAA Division I Men's Golf Committee.

The Bulldogs are seeded fourth in the College Grove Regional, which will be played at The Grove Club. Georgia placed fifth in the Franklin American Mortgage Intercollegiate at The Grove in September. Thirteen teams will compete in the College Grove Regional, with the top five teams advancing to the NCAA Championships May 26-31 at Rich Harvest Farms in Sugar Grove, Ill.

Joining the Bulldogs and host Middle Tennessee State in the College Grove Regional will be Vanderbilt, Texas Tech, Clemson, Missouri, Lipscomb, Kennesaw State, UCF, TCU, Troy, ETSU and Harvard.

“We’re excited to be back in a Regional and for the chance to play again at The Grove,” Georgia coach Chris Haack said. “Our Regional is a talented one, top to bottom. We know it’s going to be extremely competitive, but that’s what you expect this time of year. We’ll have to be at our best to be one of the teams to advance. As always, there’s no margin for error at this time of the season.”

Haack is expected to use a lineup of seniors Jaime Lopez Rivarola and Greyson Sigg, sophomore Tye Waller, and freshmen Trevor Phillips and Spencer Ralston in the Regional. Lopez Rivarola, Sigg, Waller and Ralston were in the lineup when the Bulldogs placed fifth in the FAMC at The Grove. Ralston led the Bulldogs as he came in seventh, followed by Sigg in ninth and Waller in 13th. Said Haack, “Four of our five guys got in four rounds at The Grove in the fall. That should be extremely helpful to us.”

The Bulldogs were invited to an NCAA Regional for the 22nd straight year and for the 28th time in 29 seasons since the format was introduced in 1988-89. The Bulldogs have advanced from the Regional to the NCAAs 21 times. The Bulldogs have been invited to an NCAA Regional in all 21 of Haack’s seasons and have moved onto the NCAAs in 18 of the previous 20 campaigns. Haack led the Bulldogs to the 1999 and 2005 national titles, to runner-up finishes in 2007 and 2011, and to the “Final Fore” in 2015.

The five other Regional sites are Aldarra Golf Club in Sammamish, Wash.; the University of Texas Club in Austin, Texas; Stanford Golf Course in Stanford, Calif.; the Kampen Course in West Lafayette, Ind.; and the University Club in Baton Rouge, La.

• Wright Waddell has been chosen for induction into the Georgia Golf Hall of Fame, according to an announcement Monday by the Georgia State Golf Association.

Wright Waddell

The Georgia Golf Hall of Fame Induction Banquet and Ceremony will take place on Saturday, Jan. 20, 2018, at the Atlanta Athletic Club in Johns Creek.

A native of Columbus, Waddell was a member of Southeastern Conference Championship teams in 1982 and 1983 and competed in four NCAA Championships. Waddell was an All-American in 1983 and a three-time All-SEC selection. He served as the Bulldogs' team captain in 1984.

Waddell is a four-time winner of the Southeastern Amateur Championship and earned runner-up honors four additional times. Waddell won the Georgia Mid-Amateur Championship twice and was a two-time runner-up in the Georgia Amateur Championship. Four times, he won the Georgia Four-Ball Championship with partner Carter Mize.

Waddell has qualified for and competed in 15 USGA championships — seven U.S. Amateurs, seven U.S. Mid-Amateurs and one U.S. Junior Amateur. He has won the club championship eight times at Green Island Country Club in Columbus and once at the Country Club of Columbus.

Waddell has given back to the game by serving on the Board of Directors of the First Tee of Columbus, American Cancer Society and the Columbus YMCA.

• Please join Coach Chris Haack in support of courses nationwide by bidding on rounds of golf at Rounds4Research.com. Watch Coach Haack's video here.

• The Wells Fargo Championship field this week includes Brendon Todd, Harris English, Kevin Kisner, Chris Kirk, Hudson Swafford and Brian Harman.

• Erik Compton and Sepp Straka are teeing it up in the Web.com Tour's Corales Puntacana Resort and Club Championship.

• Scott Parel is playing in the Champions Tour's Insperity Inspirational.