News & Notes About The Bulldogs

• Bubba Watson, Kevin Kisner and Brian Harman are competing this week in the World Golf Championships-Bridgestone Invitational.

• Brendon Todd, Hudson Swafford and Harris English will be in action in the Barracuda Championship.

• Speaking of Watson, he will be a panelist on the ABC reboot of Match Game. His episode will air on Thursday, Aug. 9, at 9 p.m. The other panelists are Jason Alexander, Sheryl Underwood, Gabriel Iglesias, Constance Zimmer and Anjelah Johnson.

• Tommy Tolles, Scott Parel will tee it up in the Champions Tour's 3M Championship.

• Lee McCoy and Sepp Straka are in the field for the Web.com Tour's KC Golf Classic.

• Greyson Sigg is playing in the Mackenzie Tour's Syncrude Oil Country Championship.

News & Notes About The Bulldogs

• Spencer Ralston (10-under 134) was first and Trevor Phillips (6-under 138) was second in the tournament at Jennings Mill Country Club on Tuesday to qualify for the U.S. Amateur Championship, which will take place Aug. 13-19 at Pebble Beach Golf Links.

• Bubba Watson, Kevin Kisner, Brian Harman and Russell Henley are playing this week in The Open Championship.

• Harris English, Brendon Todd and Chris Kirk will participate in the Barbasol Championship in Kentucky.

• Joey Garber, Erik Compton, Sepp Straka and Lee McCoy are in the field for the Web.com Tour's Pinnacle Bank Championship presented by Heartland Chevy Dealers in Nebraska.

• Tye Waller claimed medalist honors the Golden Isles Invitational at Brunswick Country Club. Said Waller, who missed all of the 2017-18 season due to injury, "I'm feeling much better physically, and it was exciting to put together three good rounds. It was fun to be back competing again."

• Ralston recently was chosen as an Honorable Mention All-American by PING and the Golf Coaches Association of America. Ralston earlier was tabbed as an Honorable Mention All-American by Golfweek Magazine. The All-America recognition is the first of Ralston's career. Ralston also was named Second-Team All-Southeastern Conference this season.

News & Notes About The Bulldogs

Fresh off his first professional victory last week, Joey Garber will highlight the field in the Web.com Tour's Rust-Oleum Championship in Ilinois.

Last week, Garber won the Rex Hospital Open in North Carolina. Garber, who had an All-America career from 2012-14 for the Bulldogs, carded rounds of 66-65-69-66 at TPC Wakefield Plantation. He finished one shot clear of Hank Lebioda and Scott Langley.

“To get a win on this Tour is definitely one of the hardest things I’ve ever done in my life,” Garber said. “To come through today, this early in the season, in my first year out here, and in my first time in the final group, it means everything to me. It just proves what I believed in myself. I’m very excited with my game and where we’re headed for the rest of the year.

“It means everything [to be here after Q-School in December],” he said. “I’d been close in the Web.com Tour Qualifying Tournament a few times and ended up just a couple of shots short twice, so to get through this year was a huge jump for me. I did not want to be doing Monday qualifiers again this year. I’ve done enough of those, so hopefully I’m headed in the right direction. This is huge for me and I’m pumped.”

Joining Garber in the field this week will be Lee McCoy and Erik Compton.

• Harris English, Chris Kirk and Keith Mitchell will be in action this week in the PGA Tour's FedEx St. Jude Classic.

• Scott Parel and Tommy Tolles will play in the Champions Tour's Principal Charity Classic.

• Greyson Sigg is in the field for the Mackenzie Tour's Bayview Place DCBank Open.

• The field is set for next week's 118th U.S. Open Championship at Shinnecock Hills Golf Club in New York. Brian Harman, Russell Henley, Kevin Kisner and Bubba Watson have qualified and are expected to compete.

• Jack Larkin Sr. qualified for the U.S. Senior Open by claiming medalist honors in an 18-hole qualifier at Planterra Ridge Golf Club in Peachtree City. Larkin, a team captain in 1983, shot a 4-under 68. Chances are you've heard of one of the other qualifiers, Hall-of-Fame pitcher John Smoltz. The U.S. Senior Open will be held June 28-July 1 at The Broadmoor-East Course in Colorado Springs, Colo.

News & Notes About The Bulldogs

Sophomore Spencer Ralston has been named to the PING All-Southeast Region Team by the Golf Coaches Association of America. Ralston finished the season with a scoring average of 70.86, trailing only Lee McCoy’s 70.00 in 2016, McCoy’s 70.08 in 2015, Greyson Sigg’s 70.50 in 2017 and Joey Garber’s 70.69 in 2014 in program history. Ralston had seven top-10 finishes in 12 tournaments.

• Russell Henley, Chris Kirk, Kevin Kisner, Keith Mitchell and Bubba Watson will tee it up in the Memorial Tournament presented by Nationwide in Dublin, Ohio.

• Erik Compton, Joey Garber, Lee McCoy, Sepp Straka and Brendon Todd will be playing in the Web.com Tour's Rex Hospital Open in Raleigh, N.C.

• Greyson Sigg will be in action in the Mackenzie Tour's Freedom 55 Financial Open in Vancouver, British Columbia.

News & Notes About The Bulldogs

Georgia signee Trent Phillips recently was named one of the recipients of the 2018 Byron Nelson International Junior Golf Award. Phillips is the younger brother of current Bulldog Trevor Phillips.

Trent is an American Junior Golf Association (AJGA) First Team All-American, with an AJGA third-place ranking, and is ranked fifth in Golfweek. He is a two-time South Carolina junior player of the year and also winner of the South Carolina Junior Golf Association Players Championships in 2016. He was the Dustin Johnson World Junior Champion in 2017, and is a three-time high school champion. He is a South Carolina Junior Scholar as well as a member of National Beta Club and National Honor Society.

• Harris English, Brian Harman, Kevin Kisner, Russell Henley and Chris Kirk will be in action this week in the PGA Tour's Fort Worth Invitational. Kisner won at Colonial last year, while Kirk won there in 2015.

• Lee McCoy, Sepp Straka and Joey Garber will tee it up in the Web.com Tour's Nashville Golf Open Benefitting the Snedeker Foundation.

• Scott Parel, Tommy Tolles and Paul Claxton are playing in the KitchenAid Senior PGA Championship.

• Only a few spots remain for the Chris Haack Bulldog Golf Camp! Haack has mentored several successful PGA Tour players and has led UGA to a school-record 60 tourney titles. To reserve your place today, visit the camp website.

News & Notes About The Bulldogs

BRYAN, Texas --- Georgia had its season come to an end on Wednesday as the Bulldogs finished 11th in the NCAA Bryan Regional at Traditions Golf Club.

The Bulldogs had a final-round 4-over 292 on the par-72, 7,121-yard layout to wind up at 33-over 897. The top five teams at the Regional -- Texas A&M (837), Clemson (846), Baylor (857), UCLA (866) and Kentucky (874) -- advance to NCAA Championships May 25-30 at Karsten Creek Golf Club in Stillwater, Okla.

Sophomore Spencer Ralston came in 17th at even-par 216 for his eighth top-20 effort of the season. Texas A&M’s Chandler Phillips claimed medalist honors at 11-under 205. Freshman Davis Thompson finished at 9-over 225, followed by sophomore Trevor Phillips at 12-over 228, junior Jack Larkin Jr. at 15-over 231 and senior Zach Healy at 18-over 234.

Ralston finished the season with a scoring average of 70.86, trailing only Lee McCoy’s 70.00 in 2016, McCoy’s 70.08 in 2015, Greyson Sigg’s 70.50 in 2017 and Joey Garber’s 70.69 in 2014 in program history. Ralston and Phillips were the only Bulldogs to appear in all 12 tournaments, while Thompson saw action in 11.

Healy capped his Bulldog stint with a career average of 72.80. He finished in the top 10 six times, including a win in the 2015 Ka’anapali Classic, and posted another 14 top-20 efforts in 38 events.

“It’s not the way we wanted our season to finish, but I’m still very proud of these guys,” Georgia head coach Chris Haack said. “Zach was a great senior for us and we appreciate all of his contributions to our program the last four years. Everyone else will be back with us next year and I’m confident they will work hard and continue to improve because I know they don’t want to fall short again. It was a season of ups and downs, but we gained valuable experience that will benefit us moving forward.”

• Keith Mitchell, Hudson Swafford, Harris English and Brendon Todd will be in action this week in the AT&T Byron Nelson.

• Erik Compton, Sepp Straka, Lee McCoy and Joey Garber will tee it up in the Web.com Tour's BMW Charity Pro-Am presented by SYNNEX Corporation.

• Tommy Tolles and Scott Parel are playing in the Champions Tour's Regions Tradition.

• Time is almost up to register for one of the two Chris Haack Bulldog Golf Camp sessions! Haack has mentored several successful PGA Tour players and has led UGA to a school-record 60 tourney titles. To reserve your place today, visit the camp website.

News & Notes About The Bulldogs

• The Players Championship at TPC Sawgrass will feature eight Bulldogs: Harris English, Brian Harman, Russell Henley, Chris Kirk, Kevin Kisner, Keith Mitchell, Hudson Swafford and Bubba Watson.

• Erik Compton, Joey Garber, Lee McCoy and Sepp Straka will be in action in the Knoxville Open on the Web.com Tour.

• Slots for the two Chris Haack Bulldog Golf Camp sessions are filling up fast! Haack has mentored several successful PGA Tour players and has led Georgia to a school-record 60 tournament titles. Reserve your place today!

• The Bulldogs will begin play in the NCAA's Bryan (Texas) Regional on Monday. The top five schools advancing from the six Regionals will make up the 30-team field for the NCAA Championships, which will be held May 25-30 at Karsten Creek Golf Club in Stillwater, Okla. Qualifying continues for the fifth and substitute spots.

• Sophomore Spencer Ralston teamed with Augusta University's McCullough Pickens to win the Peach Blossom Invitational at Idle Hour Club in Macon. The Ralston-Pickens team needed extra holes win to edge senior Zach Healy and junior Matthew Beringer (a native of Macon). Freshman Davis Thompson and his father and Bulldog alum Todd came in fourth. Junior Jack Larkin Jr. teamed with Mike Brown to win the second flight.

• Our friends from Channel 2's Bulldogs Game Day were in town earlier this week to interview Coach Chris Haack, Zach Healy and Jack Larkin Jr. about the newly renovated Boyd Center and about the NCAA Regional. Tune in Saturday at 10 a.m.

Bulldogs Invited To Bryan Regional

The Georgia men's golf team will begin its quest for another national championship May 14-16 at the NCAA Regional hosted by Texas A&M, according to an announcement made on Wednesday.

The Bulldogs are seeded ninth in the Bryan Regional, which will be played at Traditions Club. The top five schools advancing from each Regional will make up the 30-team field for the NCAA Championships, which will be held May 25-30 at Karsten Creek Golf Club in Stillwater, Okla. Eighty-one teams and 45 individuals were chosen for the six Regionals.

Joining the Bulldogs and host/top-seeded Texas A&M will be No. 2 seed Baylor, No. 3 seed Clemson, No. 4 seed Kentucky, No. 5 seed UCLA, No. 6 seed Ole Miss, No. 7 seed South Carolina, No. 8 seed San Francisco, No. 10 seed Mississippi State, No. 11 seed UNC-Wilmington, No. 12 seed Northern Colorado and No. 13 seed Bradley. UNC-Wilmington, Northern Colorado and Bradley were automatic qualifiers as conference champions.

“We are definitely looking forward to playing in this Regional,” Georgia coach Chris Haack said. “The field is a strong one, and we will have to be at our best to be one of the teams to advance. As usual, there is no margin for error at this time of the season. We will have to work with energy and intensity in the coming days and arrive at this event extremely focused.”

The Bulldogs were invited to an NCAA Regional for the 23rd straight year and for the 29th time in 30 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 22 of Haack's seasons and have moved onto the NCAAs in 18 of the previous 21 campaigns. Haack led the Bulldogs to the 1999 and 2005 national titles, to runner-up finishes in 2007 and 2011, and to the national semifinals in 2015.

The five other Regional sites are Lonnie Poole Golf Course in Raleigh, N.C.; Scarlet Course/OSU Golf Course in Columbus, Ohio; Reunion Resort in Kissimmee, Fla.; Jimmie Austin OU Golf Club in Norman, Okla.; and The Reserve at Spanos Park, Stockton, Calif.

• Keith Mitchell, Russell Henley, Brian Harman, Kevin Kisner and Hudson Swafford will be playing this week in the Wells Fargo Championship.

• Scott Parel is slated to tee it up in the Champions Tour's Insperity Invitational.

Bulldogs Ready To Compete For SEC Championship

Tournament Central

ST. SIMONS ISLAND, Ga. --- The Georgia men's golf team will join its fellow league members this week in the Southeastern Conference Championship at Sea Island Golf Club.

The SEC Championship will run Wednesday through Sunday on the par-70, 6,898-yard layout on the Seaside Course.

The tournament will feature 54 holes of stroke play Wednesday through Friday, followed by match play quarterfinals and semifinals on Saturday, and match play finals on Sunday. SEC Network + coverage will begin at 4 p.m. Saturday, while the SEC Network will air Sunday’s match starting at 7:30 a.m.

Georgia will use a lineup of senior Zach Healy, junior Jack Larkin Jr., sophomores Trevor Phillips and Spencer Ralston, and freshman Davis Thompson. Healy played in the 2015 and 2016 SECs, finishing 11th and 18th, respectively, and helping the 2016 squad claim the league crown. Larkin, Phillips and Ralston made their conference debuts a year ago.

“This team isn’t as veteran as others we’ve taken to the SECs,” Georgia head coach Chris Haack said. “That’s a little different for us, but our goals remain the same. We want to go down there and play as steady and as consistent as we can in stroke play and then take our shot in match play. The biggest thing about college golf is learning to play without fear. When you’re playing for a school like Georgia and you’re young, you immediately have more nerves than you should and you’re more uptight than you should be. That’s all part of the learning curve. These guys have had a baptism by fire, which can be tough at the beginning but ultimately will be a good thing. They’ve made huge strides in a short amount of time, so there’s no doubt in my mind that we will be in contention to win the SEC title.”

Ralston leads the Bulldogs with a scoring average of 70.69 and he has finished in the top 10 in four straight tournaments, six out of seven, and seven out of 10 overall. Thompson is next at 72.26, followed by Phillips at 72.54, Healy at 72.80 and Larkin at 76.00. 

The Bulldogs will start play on Wednesday at 12:35 p.m. and will be paired with Mississippi State. The Thursday and Friday tee times will be based on standings, with each day’s first players off at 7:30 a.m. and the last off at 9:50 a.m. The match play quarters will begin at 7:30 a.m. Saturday, followed by the semis at 1 p.m. The match play final will take place Sunday at 7:30 a.m.

The SEC has been played at Sea Island since 2001 (Seaside Course 2001-07, 2010-present; Frederica Golf Club 2008-09). Georgia has won six of the previous 17 championships. Alabama has won four times, Florida has won twice, while Auburn, Kentucky, LSU, Tennessee and Vanderbilt each have won once during that span.

Georgia has been a dominant force at the SECs, winning a league-best 29 conference titles. Under Haack, the Bulldogs have secured eight SEC titles, including the six at Sea Island. Georgia boasts 16 SEC medalists, including Haack protégés Bryant Odom (2001), Brendon Todd (2004), Russell Henley (2010) and Lee McCoy (2016).

The SEC is as strong as ever with five schools ranked in the top 10 and three others in the top 20. All 14 SEC teams currently are projected to advance to the NCAA Regionals next month, which would mark the first time that has happened.

“If you can’t get excited this time of year, there’s something wrong,” Haack said. “There’s a great deal of pride any time you get to compete for your conference championship.”

News & Notes About The Bulldogs

• Four Bulldogs are playing this week in the Valero Texas Open: Hudson Swafford, Keith Mitchell, Harris English and Chris Kirk.

• Erik Compton, Sepp Straka, Lee McCoy and Joey Garber will be in action this week in the Web.com Tour's North Mississippi Classic.

• Speaking of Compton, our friends at The Golf Channel recently posted this piece on him.

• Scott Parel will be paired with Larry Mize in the Champions Tour's Bass Pro Shops Legends of Golf at Big Cedar Lodge.

Bulldogs To Close Regular Season In Mason Rudolph Championship

UPDATED (2:20 pm Thursday): ​With inclement weather in the forecast for Saturday, adjustments have been made to the format for the Mason Rudolph Championship on the Vanderbilt Legends Club South Course in Franklin, Tenn. Georgia and the other teams will have a 9 a.m. shotgun start on Friday to begin a 36-hole day. The Bulldogs will be paired with Liberty and Louisville. Weather permitting, the teams will attempt to play 18 holes on Saturday. Sunday's forecast is clear, so its 18-hole format will stay the same, meaning the MRC could be a standard 54-hole event or a rare regular-season 72-hole tournament.​​

The Georgia men’s golf team will play in the 17th annual Mason Rudolph Championship -- its final regular-season tournament -- this weekend in Franklin, Tenn.

The tournament will take place Friday through Sunday on the Vanderbilt Legends Club South Course (par 71, 7,100 yards). The Bulldogs and host Vanderbilt will be joined by Alabama, Ball State, Charlotte, East Tennessee State, Florida, High Point, Liberty, Louisville, Middle Tennessee State, South Dakota, Tennessee Tech and Troy.

The Bulldogs will use a lineup of senior Zach Healy; sophomores Will Chandler, Trevor Phillips and Spencer Ralston; and freshman Davis Thompson. Ralston leads the Bulldogs with a scoring average of 70.69, including 69.75 in his last three outings. Thompson is next at 72.26, followed by Phillips at 72.54, Healy at 72.80 and Chandler at 75.24.

Georgia enters this week’s competition having finished second in each of its last three tournaments.

Following the Mason Rudolph Championship, the Bulldogs will play April 25-29 in the SEC Championship on St. Simons Island. The NCAA Regionals are slated for May 14-16 and the NCAA Championships will be May 25-30.

“We’re getting down to it,” Georgia head coach Chris Haack said. “It’s important that we are playing some of our best golf right now. Every shot matters from this point forward, so we need to be dialed in more than ever. Our guys are playing with a lot of confidence right now and we’re excited about the chance to close the regular season on a high note.”

• The RBC Heritage will feature Keith Mitchell, Harris English, Brian Harman, Hudson Swafford, Kevin Kisner and Chris Kirk.

• Scott Parel will be playing in the Champions Tour's Mitsubishi Electric Classic.

Four Bulldogs Seeking Green Jacket

Bubba Watson hits his tee shot on the 18th hole
during practice for the 2018 Masters Tournament
on Monday. (AP Photo/Charlie Riedel)

Four Bulldogs will be in action this week at the 2018 Masters Tournament -- two-time champion Bubba Watson, Russell Henley, Brian Harman and Kevin Kisner.

As a past winner (2012 and 2014), Watson has lifetime status at Augusta National. He has won twice on Tour this season and is considered one of the 2018 favorites for the green jacket.

Henley finished 11th at the 2017 Masters to receive a 2018 invitation. He also met the criteria as a qualifier for the 2017 Tour Championship and for landing in the top 50 in the 2017 Official World Golf Ranking.

Harman's runner-up finish at the 2017 U.S. Open netted him another invite. Like Henley, Harman was a 2017 Tour Championship qualifier and a top 50 player in the OWGR. Harman also won the 2017 Wells Fargo Championship and is in the OWGR's top 50 heading into this year's Masters.

Kisner won the 2017 2017 DEAN & DELUCA Invitational to earn a spot in Augusta. He also was a 2017 Tour Championship qualifier, was in the top 50 in the 2017 OWGR, and is in the OWGR top 50 heading into this year's Masters.

There will be coverage aplenty this week and here are some of the ones we found from our fiends in the media:

Best Masters Memories From the Past 20 Years: No. 4 - Bubba's Rope Hook in the Playoff

Bubba Watson's G/FORE Masters shoes will be outrageous (in a great way)

Kisner hoping to create some weekend magic at Masters

Savannah’s Brian Harman ready for his second shot at Augusta

News & Notes About The Bulldogs

• Keith Mitchell, Russell Henley, Chris Kirk and Harris English are in action this week in the Houston Open.

• This week's Web.com Tour event is the Savannah Championship and features Erik Compton, Sepp Straka, Lee McCoy and Joey Garber.

Watson Tops Kisner In All-UGA Match Play Final

AUSTIN, Texas -- A championship showdown between Georgia Bulldogs alums finished one-sided, as Bubba Watson won his second World Golf Championships title by defeating Kevin Kisner, 7 and 6, in the finals of the WGC-Dell Technologies Match Play on Sunday afternoon at Austin Country Club.

It's the largest margin of victory in the championship final since 2008, when Tiger Woods beat Stewart Cink, 8 and 7, in the then-36 hole final.

Watson becomes just the fifth player to win multiple WGCs and multiple majors.

"It's crazy to think about it," Watson said. "I've got two World Golf Championships, counting this one, and two majors. I'm done, you know?

"It's unbelievable to think about that, giving my mom a hug, six years old, having one golf club for a year, no lessons. I mean I can sit here and make up stories all day, but it's absolutely remarkable that I'm able to lift a trophy like this."

Watson won the first five holes with one birdie, three pars and a conceded hole, as Kisner was unable to duplicate the form that had taken him to the championship match. Kisner suffered three early bogeys and lost the seventh hole with another bogey after an errant tee shot, as every mistake was magnified against the steady Watson.

"That grueling match that he had this morning, extra holes, you could just tell, the energy wasn't there," Watson said. "The drive and the competition was there, but he was just exhausted. And obviously for me it works out great for me, but for him, he had a great week, but obviously buried the first hole. I buried that hole a couple of times this week. Getting off to a quick start like that just puts pressure on anybody."

Even when Kisner showed some life -- such as draining a 20-foot par putt on the 10th hole -- Watson had an answer, as he birdied the 10th from 11 feet to go 7-up.

"I don't know what was going on," Kisner said. "It was just pitiful. I couldn't hit anywhere close to where I was trying. Long week. A little tired, probably. Lose some legs, and just didn't have it. And finally made a few good swings coming in, but those were too little, too late."

Watson's previous WGC win was the 2015 HSBC Champions. He now has 11 PGA TOUR victories, including two in his last four starts, as he won the Genesis Open in mid-February. His next start will the Masters, which he has won twice.

Watson, who earlier in the day beat Justin Thomas 3 and 2 to deny the current FedExCup leader a chance to move to world No. 1, opened the match by winning the first hole with a 12-foot putt, and then Kisner began to self-destruct. He missed a 9-foot par putt at the second, then found trouble again off the tee at the par-4 third, setting up another bogey. His tee shot at the par-3 fourth landed in the greenside bunker, and he failed to get up-and down. Another greenside bunker at the fifth resulted in a conceded hole after Watson's approach finished inside seven feet.

Kisner, who beat the red-hot Alex Noren in 19 holes in the semifinals, didn't win his first hole until the par-3 11th when he rolled in a putt from 34.5 feet.

But the match ended on the 12th when Watson rolled in his winning putt from seven feet. Earlier in the day, Kisner had won the 12th hole with an eagle putt and again in sudden-death with a birdie putt in his semifinal win over Alex Noren.

Dogs, Ralston Finish 2nd In LLI

GREENSBORO, Ga. --- The Georgia men’s golf team finished second for the third consecutive tournament on Tuesday as play concluded in the 13th annual Linger Longer Invitational.

The Bulldogs landed at 22-under 842 at Reynolds Lake Oconee on the Great Waters course (par-72, 7,073 yards), just two shots behind Alabama’s 844. Georgia closed with a 4-under 284 on Tuesday.

The Bulldogs also placed second in the Wexford Plantation Intercollegiate in February and the Southern Intercollegiates earlier this month.

“Make no mistake, our goal everytime we tee it up is to win,” Georgia coach Chris Haack said. “But it’s hard to be disappointed when your team shoots 22-under and has two of the top three individuals. That would be hard to beat most weeks. This tournament was good for us, being in a back-and-forth situation with Alabama trying to win. This will certainly help us moving forward. We have plenty of positives to build on, but since we were so close and did not win, that will shine a light on the things we need to do better. As this tournament showed, every shot matters.”

Spencer Ralston finished second individually at 12-under 204, two strokes shy of Alabama’s Lee Hodges (202). The 12-under figure set a new tournament low for Ralston and he matched his career-best individual finish. Davis Thompson, the 36-hole leader, wound up third at 10-under 206, also setting his career-best tournament total. Trevor Phillips took 13th at 2-under 214, Zach Healy came in at 2-over 218 and Jon Hilliard Catanzaro finished at 20-over 236.

Tuesday's round pushed individuals Will Chandler to 2-over 218, David Mackey to 3-over 219 and Jack Larkin Jr. to 12-over 228.

The Bulldogs will return to action April 13-15 in the Mason Rudolph Championship in Franklin, Tenn.

• Kevin Kisner, Bubba Watson, Brian Harman and Russell Henley will be in action this week in the World Golf Championships-Dell Technologies Match Play

• Harris English, Keith Mitchell and Brendon Todd are set to compete in the Corales Puntacana Resort & Club Championship in the Dominican Republic.

• Tommy Tolles, Scott Parel and Paul Claxton are playing in the Champions Tour's Rapiscan Systems Classic in Mississippi.

• The Web.com Tour event, the Chitimacha Louisiana Open, will feature Joey Garber, Lee McCoy, Sepp Straka and Erik Compton.

Thompson Paces Bulldogs To Top Of LLI Leaderboard

Linger Longer Invitational Scoreboard

Davis Thompson

GREENSBORO, Ga. --- Behind a record-setting performance by Davis Thompson, the Georgia men’s golf team grabbed the first-round lead on Sunday in the 13th annual Linger Longer Invitational.

The Bulldogs fired a 16-under 272 on the Great Waters course (par-72, 7,073 yards) at Reynolds Lake Oconee. Georgia is five shots clear of Alabama’s 277 and six ahead of Penn State’s 278.

Thompson, a freshman from Auburn, Ala., signed for a 9-under-par 63 to secure the top spot individually. With nine birdies and no bogeys, Thompson tied the single-round school record set by Peter Persons in the 1984 Rafael Alarcon Intercollegiate. Persons, who actually was in attendance on Sunday, was a Georgia teammate of Thompson’s father, Todd, in 1985 and 1986. 

The Bulldogs got an additional boost from sophomore Spencer Ralston, who signed for a 7-under 65. That is the third-lowest figure in school history and had been recorded 22 additional times, including once by Todd Thompson in 1988. Ralston, who recorded eight birdies of his own, stands second in the individual race.

The Bulldogs also counted a 2-under 70 from sophomore Trevor Phillips, who is 12th, and a 2-over 74 by senior Zach Healy. Freshman John Hilliard Catanzaro had the Bulldogs’ non-counting score of 5-over 77.

Playing as individuals, junior David Mackey landed in 12th at 1-under 71, followed by junior Jack Larkin Jr. and sophomore Will Chandler both at even-par 72.

“We really believed a day like this was coming,” Georgia head coach Chris Haack said. “We’ve been striking the ball well and we’ve picked up some momentum and confidence. Davis was just tremendous today. Nine birdies with no bogeys is pretty amazing. He’s been solid all year, especially in the spring. It was great the way he and Spencer led us today.”

The Linger Longer Invitational will continue on Monday and will conclude on Tuesday.

News & Notes About The Bulldogs

Georgia's men's golf team fielded two lineups that placed second and sixth on Monday in the Southern Intercollegiates at Athens Country Club.

The Bulldogs' A team of senior Zach Healy, junior Jack Larkin, sophomores Trevor Phillips and Spencer Ralston, and freshman Davis Thompson posted a score of 8-over-584, while the B team of juniors Matthew Beringer and David Mackey, sophomore Will Chandler, and freshmen John Hilliard Catanzaro and Bo Sikes accounted for a 19-over 595.

Team honors went to Arkansas at 9-under 567, 17 shots clear of the Bulldogs and Kennesaw State.

"We got off to a slow start early because of the cold and the wind and the rain, all of the conditions in the morning, but we stayed patient and knew we had another good round in front of us in the afternoon," Georgia head coach Chris Haack said, "We had it going pretty good in the second round. We just stayed patient and kept playing hard, and that's all you can ask for. One of the things we want to do when we tee it up is try to win, at least get ourselves in the hunt. Today, we got rolling pretty good and thought, 'If we can get on a streak here and make some putts, we have a chance to win.' Our mindset is to always go out there and win. We never looked at the scoreboard, so we had no idea how anyone else was doing, but I really liked our attitude up there today. And I like the fact they just never gave up. That'll give us good momentum and confidence going into the next tournament."

Ralston paced the Bulldogs as he finished sixth at even-par 144, three behind Arkansas co-medalists Alvaro Ortiz and Luis Garza. Healy and Catanzaro came in 10th at 1-over 145, followed by Thompson in 13th at 2-over 146, Mackey in 16th at 3-over 147, Phillips at 5-over 149, Chandler at 6-over 150, Beringer and Larkin at 10-over 154, and Sikes at 14-over 158.

The Bulldogs will return to action Sunday through Tuesday in the Linger Longer Invitational at Great Waters Golf Club in Greensboro.

• Bubba Watson, Kevin Kisner, Harris English, Chris Kirk, Hudson Swafford and Brian Harman will be in action this week in the Arnold Palmer Invitational presented by Mastercard.

Bulldogs To Host Southern Intercollegiates Monday

The Georgia men’s golf team will return to action on Monday as it hosts the 36-hole Southern Intercollegiate Championships at Athens Country Club.

Play will begin with shotgun starts at 9 a.m. and 2 p.m. There is no cost for admission. Live scoring will be available on Golfstat.com.

Georgia will field two five-man lineups that will begin on Nos. 7 and 8. Georgia’s first lineup will consist of senior Zach Healy, junior Jack Larkin Jr., sophomores Trevor Phillips and Spencer Ralston, and freshman Davis Thompson. The Bulldogs’ second lineup will be manned by juniors Matthew Beringer and David Mackey, sophomore Will Chandler, and freshmen John Hilliard Catanzaro and Bo Sikes. Junior Tye Waller, who is recovering from an injury, will serve as the second squad’s honorary captain.

Ralston and Phillips have appeared in every event this year and lead the Bulldogs with scoring averages of 70.95 and 72.52, respectively. Thompson, who has missed only one tournament this season, is third at 72.78. Sikes will be making his collegiate debut.

“We’re really looking forward to Monday,” Georgia head coach Chris Haack said. “It’s a great team experience having all 11 of our players basically out there at the same time, kind of like one of our practices or qualifying rounds. The added benefit is that they’ll be under tournament conditions, so we’ll see how they respond. This is a chance to compete with each other and other teams on a course we’ve seen a lot. We’re getting close to crunch time with this team, so it’s another chance to see what we’ve got.”

Joining the Bulldogs will be Arkansas, Charleston Southern, Chattanooga, Florida State, Francis Marion, Gardner-Webb, High Point, Iowa, Kennesaw State, Lipscomb, Nicholls State, Savannah State, USC Upstate, Western Carolina, Wofford and Youngstown State.

The SICs were the brainchild of Georgia athletic director Herman Stegeman and Athens Country Club founder Lon Dudley in 1934. The first tournament was held in 1935 and ran annually through 1942. It resumed in 1946 and was held through 1965, then was relaunched in 1975 and ran through 1990. The current reboot took place in 2015. Past individual medalists include Wake Forest’s Arnold Palmer in 1950, Oklahoma State’s Bob Tway in 1979 and Centenary’s Hal Sutton in 1980. The medalist’s name is engraved on the Stegeman Memorial Golf Trophy and is on display at Athens Country Club.

• Chris Kirk, Harris English and Hudson Swafford will be in the Valspar Championship this weekend.

• Joey Garber, Lee McCoy and Sepp Straka are slated to play in the Web.com Tour's El Bosque Mexico Championship. • Scott Parel is in the field for the Toshiba Classic on the Champions Tour.

Bulldogs Finish Second In Wexford Intercollegiate

HILTON HEAD ISLAND, S.C. --- The Georgia men’s golf team finished in second place by just one stroke on Tuesday in the 13th annual Wexford Plantation Intercollegiate.

In the final round on Tuesday, the Bulldogs recorded a 1-under 287 on the par-72, 6,913-yard Wexford Plantation layout. Georgia wound up at 10-under 854, one shot shy of TCU’s 853. Georgia and TCU were the only teams under par in the tournament.

Freshman Davis Thompson and sophomore Spencer Ralston finished second and third, respectively, individually for the Bulldogs. Thompson paced Georgia with a 3-under 69 and Ralston signed for a 1-under 71 in the third round. Thompson set his career standards with an 8-under 208 and the runner-up finish. He also notched his personal-best loop of 5-under 67 on Monday. Ralston landed at 6-under 210 for his fourth top-10 this season and the seventh of his career. Medalist honors went to TCU’s Stefano Mazzoli at 10-under 206.

Senior Zach Healy finished 13th at 2-over 218, including a 4-over 76 on Tuesday. Junior David Mackey wound up a personal-best 14th at 3-over 219 after signing for an even-par 72 in the second round. Sophomore Trevor Phillips closed with a 3-over 75 to end up at 9-over 225.

“Our expectation in each tournament is to win, so we’re disappointed that did not happen, but we played well and we can leave here satisfied with the effort,” Georgia head coach Chris Haack said. “I’m pleased with the way the guys performed the last couple of days and, for that matter, this spring. We’re gaining some momentum and picking up some confidence as we head into the most critical part of our schedule.”

The Bulldogs will return to action Monday, March 12, in the Southern Intercollegiates at Athens Country Club. The 36-hole event will be the Bulldogs’ only appearance in Athens this season.

• Kevin Kisner, Russell Henley, Bubba Watson and Brian Harman will be in action this week in the WGC Mexico Championship.

Bulldogs To Play In Wexford Plantation Inercollegiate

The Bulldogs will return to action Monday and Tuesday in the 13th annual Wexford Plantation Intercollegiate on Hilton Head Island, S.C. Georgia will be joined by Akron, Charleston Southern, Cleveland State, Davidson, Dartmouth, Dayton, Francis Marion, Furman, Gardner-Webb, High Point, Memphis, Mercer, Presbyterian, Radford, TCU, USC-Aiken and Wofford. The Bulldogs' lineup will be determined following qualifying on Friday.

• A reminder that Haack will be inducted into the Georgia Sports Hall of Fame in Macon on Saturday. Georgia women's golf standout Terri Moody Hancock also will be inducted. She is the daughter of Griffin Moody and sister of Griff Moody, each of whom played for and captained the Bulldogs. The other members of the Class of 2018 are Champ Bailey, Arthur Blank, Tom Cousins, Tracy Rocker, Angelo Taylor and Kenny "Sky" Walker.

• The Honda Classic this week features Russell Henley, Chris Kirk, Harris English, Keith Mitchell, Hudson Swafford, Brian Harman and Kevin Kisner.

Bulldogs To Open Spring In Puerto Rico

The Georgia men's golf team will open the spring portion of its schedule next week at the 26th Puerto Rico Classic.

The Puerto Rico Classic will take place Sunday through Tuesday at the Rio Mar Beach and Spa Resort's River Course, a par-72 track covering 6,945 yards. The 54-hole event begins Sunday with a shotgun start at 8 a.m.

Joining the Bulldogs for the tournament will be Alabama, Georgia Tech, Oklahoma, Clemson, Kentucky, Marquette, North Carolina State, Northwestern, Purdue, Middle Tennessee, Virginia Tech, Maryland, East Carolina, and UNC Greensboro.

"Every year it's a great field, it's a great tournament, and you have to play well to win," said Coach Chris Haack. "This year will be no different. There are a lot of good teams down there. We just have to go down there and see if we can make it happen."

The Bulldogs will travel senior Zach Healy, junior David Mackey, sophomores Trevor Phillips and Spencer Ralston, and freshman Davis Thompson. Junior Jack Larkin Jr. will compete in the individual tournament.

"I think we have a really good five going down there," said Mackey. "We're all starting to get our games back. I think our chemistry is the best right now that it's ever been this year. Everyone's excited and I think we're going to play well. I'm looking forward to it."

• A reminder that Haack will be inducted into the Georgia Sports Hall of Fame in Macon on Saturday, Feb. 24. Tickets and sponsorships for the ceremony are available by calling (478) 752-1585. Georgia women's golf standout Terri Moody Hancock also will be inducted. She is the daughter of Griffin Moody and sister of Griff Moody, each of whom played for and captained the Bulldogs. The other members of the Class of 2018 are Champ Bailey, Arthur Blank, Tom Cousins, Tracy Rocker, Angelo Taylor and Kenny "Sky" Walker.

• Bubba Watson and Harris English are in the field for the Genesis Open in California.

• Scott Parel is playing in the Champions Tour's Chubb Classic.

5 Bulldogs To Play At Pebble Beach

• Five Bulldogs will be in action this week in the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am -- Kevin Kisner, Chris Kirk, Russell Henley, Bubba Watson and Keith Mitchell.

• The Web.com Tour's stop is the Club Colombia Championship and will feature Erik Compton, Sepp Straka, Mookie DeMoss, Lee McCoy and Joey Garber. Our friends at PGATour.com caught up with Garber recently for a Q&A.

• Scott Parel is in the field for the Champions Tour's Boca Raton Championship.

• A reminder that Coach Chris Haack will be inducted into the Georgia Sports Hall of Fame in Macon on Saturday, Feb. 24. Tickets and sponsorships for the ceremony are available by calling (478) 752-1585. Georgia women's golf standout Terri Moody Hancock also will be inducted. She is the daughter of Griffin Moody and sister of Griff Moody, each of whom played for and captained the Bulldogs. The other members of the Class of 2018 are Champ Bailey, Arthur Blank, Tom Cousins, Tracy Rocker, Angelo Taylor and Kenny "Sky" Walker.

• Haack's Bulldogs will kick off the 2018 portion of their schedule Feb. 18-20 in the Puerto Rico Classic.

• Based on 150,000 ratings and reviews from 92,000 golfers, GolfAdvisor.com has released its top 50 United States golf courses list, with the UGA Golf Course coming in at No. 12. That rating is a testament to the dedication and hard work put in by Matt Peterson, Scott Griffith, John Crumbley, Clint Udell, Micky Wilson, John Inglett and all of their staffers.

5 Bulldogs Not Wasting Their Time

• Five Bulldogs will be in action this week in the Waste Management Phoenix Open -- Russell Henley, Hudson Swafford, Harris English, Bubba Watson and Chris Kirk.

• Joey Garber, Lee McCoy, Sepp Straka and Erik Compton will tee it up in the Web.com Tour's Panama Championship.

• A reminder that Coach Chris Haack will be inducted into the Georgia Sports Hall of Fame in Macon on Saturday, Feb. 24. Tickets and sponsorships for the ceremony are available by calling (478) 752-1585. Georgia women's golf standout Terri Moody Hancock also will be inducted. She is the daughter of Griffin Moody and sister of Griff Moody, each of whom played for and captained the Bulldogs. The other members of the Class of 2018 are Champ Bailey, Arthur Blank, Tom Cousins, Tracy Rocker, Angelo Taylor and Kenny "Sky" Walker.

• Haack's Bulldogs will kick off the 2018 portion of their schedule Feb. 18-20 in the Puerto Rico Classic.

4 Bulldogs In Farmers Insurance Open

There will be four Bulldogs in the Farmers Insurance Open at Torrey Pines this week -- Harris English, Chirs Kirk, Brian Harman and Keith Mitchell.

7 Bulldogs In CareerBuilder Challenge Field

• Seven Bulldogs will be in action this week in the CareerBuilder Challenge in California -- Brian Harman, Hudson Swafford, Harris English, Kevin Kisner, Keith Mitchell, Bubba Watson and Chris Kirk. Swafford is the tournament's defending champion.

• Erik Compton, Joey Garber, Sepp Straka and Lee McCoy are scheduled to play in the Web.com Tour's The Bahamas Great Abaco Classic at The Abaco Club Sunday through Wednesday.

• The Bulldogs are a month away from resuming their 2017-18 schedule in the Puerto Rico Classic. Georgia has made a schedule adjustment, however, as the Bulldogs have withdrawn from the Querencia Cabo Collegiate in Mexico and instead will play in the Wexford Plantation Invitational Feb. 26-27.

• Jaime Lopez Rivarola will be competing this week in the Latin America Amateur Championship in Chile.

Seven Bulldogs In Action In Hawaii

Seven Bulldogs will be in action this week in the Sony Open in Hawaii -- Chris Kirk, Russell Henley, Harris English, Brian Harman, Hudson Swafford, Kevin Kisner and Keith Mitchell.