Clemson Golf headed to Bryan, Texas Regional
Clemson, S.C.—Clemson was selected as the No. 3 seed at the Bryan, Texas Regional of the NCAA Men’s Golf Tournament on Wednesday. The Tigers will compete in the tournament May 14-16 at the Tradition Club in Bryan, Texas. The top five schools in the 13-team tournament will advance to the NCAA National Tournament in Stillwater, Oklahoma May 25-30.
Joining Clemson in the Bryan Regional will be No. 1 seed and host school Texas A&M, the third-ranked team in the nation. Baylor is seed No. 2, followed by the Tigers. Kentucky is seeded fourth, UCLA is fifth and Mississippi is sixth. Clemson’s in-state rival South Carolina is seeded seventh. San Francisco is seeded eighth, followed by Georgia, Mississippi State, UNC Wilmington, Northern Colorado and Bradley. The SEC had 12 teams selected for the NCAA tournaments across the nation and six of the 12 will be in Clemson’s regional.
“It is a tough regional and we will have to play well to advance,” said Penley. “There are some teams seeded below us who have played well lately, which makes it tougher to advance. Our young players will have to play well. If they do we have a chance to win the regional and that is our mindset.”
The Tigers will finish taking finals this week, then begin practice next Monday. “I have never been to Texas A&M so I don’t know anything about the course yet. But, we will be ready.”
This is Clemson’s 37th straight year in the NCAA Tournament, the 35th in a row under Penley. Penley has the longest running streak of NCAA appearances among active coaches and Clemson’s 37-year program streak is second behind Oklahoma State. Penley has won seven NCAA Regional tournaments, more than any other coach.
Clemson enters the NCAA Tournament on a streak of five consecutive tournaments with a second-place finish or better. The Tigers won the Puerto Rico Classic and the Irish Creek Invitational and had second-place finishes at the Bandon Dunes Championship in Oregon, the Clemson Invitational and the ACC Championship. Clemson has a 93-22-2 record against the field in its nine tournaments this academic year, 80 percent mark.
The Tigers have a 70.87 team stroke average, on pace to be the best in Clemson history. Three Clemson players have a stroke average of 70.60 or better, also a first in school history. Clemson players have combined for 18 top 10 finishes. The Tigers will take three freshmen, a junior and a sophomore to the NCAA Tournament. Clemson’s top three players are all ranked in the top 50 according to Golfweek.
Turk Pettit has the top stroke average at 70.48 for his 27 rounds. The freshman from Auburn, Ala. has five top 10 finishes, 10 rounds in the 60s and 17 rounds under par. All five of his top 10s have been top three finishes, including a victory at the Irish Creek Invitational. Ranked No. 30 by Golfweek, Pettit finished third at the Carpet Classic and second at the Puerto Rico Classic against national fields.
Bryson Nimmer, ranked 29th nationally by Golfstat, is second on the team in stroke average at 70.52. The junior has just one more stroke than Pettit over the same amount of rounds (27). Nimmer has a team-best six top 10 finishes, including an eighth-place finish at the ACC Championship, his third straight top 10 at the conference tournament. He also has nine rounds in the 60s and 16 under-par rounds this year.
Doc Redman has played just five tournaments this year. The sophomore won the United States Amateur last August, which gave him the opportunity to play in three PGA events, including The Masters. Ranked 47th by Golfweek, Redman made the cut in two PGA Tour events, the first Clemson student to make the cut at a PGA Tour event in 28 years.
When playing for Clemson, Redman has a 70.60 stroke average. He is coming off a second-place finish at the ACC Tournament where he shot a 202, 14-under-par, the best score and score vs. par in Clemson history in the ACC Tournament.
Two more freshmen will be in the Clemson lineup for the NCAA regional. Kyle Cottam has a 72.30 stroke average and has played in all nine events. He has two top 10 finishes and is coming off a two-under-par performance at the ACC Tournament. Colby Patton has a 72.75 stroke average for his eight tournaments. His top performance was a seventh-place finish at the Puerto Rico Classic, which helped the Tigers to the tournament title.