Texas Tech golf coach Greg Sands recaps Urbana Regional, previews NCAA
Texas Tech men’s golf team finished 5th at the Urbana Regional, Calum Scott tied for 5th and Red Raiders advance to NCAA final for 5th straight year.
The Texas Tech men’s golf team is back at the NCAA championships for the fifth year in a row, and the Red Raiders won’t have much time to sit and wait.
Texas Tech players, along with those from Georgia Tech and South Florida, will be first off from the No. 1 tee on Friday, May 23, at the Omni La Costa North Course in Carlsbad, California. Tech players’ tee times range from 8:52 a.m. to 9:36 a.m. CDT.
The NCAA championships feature 30 teams and six individuals not on those teams, all of whom advanced out of six regionals. The entire field will play 54 holes in three days.
The field will be cut to the top 15 teams and nine individuals not on those teams to play on Monday, May 26, at which point the 72-hole individual champion will be determined and the field reduced to eight teams. The remaining teams will participate in match-play quarterfinals and semifinals on Tuesday, May 27, with the championship match on Wednesday, May 28.
Two years ago, Texas Tech lost a playoff with Ohio State to make the cut to 15 teams. Last year, the Red Raiders finished 17th, fighting their way up from being 29th of 30 after the first day.
“It’ll be important for us to be ready for the first round,” Tech coach Greg Sands said. “We’re playing first off on No. 1. That should be a big advantage to have good greens, probably low wind and an opportunity to play fast.
“And so I think that’ll be a big round for us, but they’re all big. You’ve got to put together four rounds to make the eight (for match play). … That really has probably been the nemesis the last couple of years is having that one head-scratching round that takes you out of it.”
Tech made match play in 2010, 2018 and 2022, losing in the quarterfinals each year.
Tech’s lineup has senior Calum Scott from Nairn, Scotland; sophomore Tim Wiedemeyer from Olching, Germany; sophomore Ben Gregg from Richardson Pearce; senior Charlie DeLong from DeWitt, Michigan; and freshman Connor Graham from Blairgowrie, Scotland.
In the most recent PGA Tour University rankings released May 14, Scott is No. 17 and DeLong No. 35. Graham has Tech’s best scoring average (70.8), followed by Wiedemeyer (71.7), Scott (71.7), DeLong (72.1) and Gregg (72.7).
The Red Raiders advanced out of the NCAA Urbana Regional hosted by Illinois, finishing fifth as a team with Scott tying for fifth individually.
Last year, Scott tied for second at the Baton Rouge Regional, tied for 11th at the NCAA championships and was low amateur at the British Open. Coming off that hot stretch, he’s not had the season he expected with only two top-20 finishes before the Urbana Regional.
“He would admit he hasn’t been playing his best since he made low amateur at the British Open,” Sands said. “His resurgence was something that we’ve been waiting on. We feel like there’s been a few things holding him back, and I think he found a few things that have been helpful for him. He’s putting the ball really good. Driving it well and putting it well, I think it’ll really translate out to Carlsbad.”
The top seven teams, by national ranking and seeding, are reigning champion Auburn, Oklahoma State, Ole Miss, Texas, Arizona State, Oklahoma and Florida. Sixth-ranked LSU was ranked No. 6 and the No. 1 seed at the Amherst (Va.) Regional, but didn’t make it out.
After Florida, the next highest seeds, in order from eight through 15, are Florida State, Virginia, Texas A&M, Illinois, UCLA, Vanderbilt, BYU and South Carolina.
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