Hiroshi Tai of Georgia Tech leads the NCAA Division I men's championships by one shot
Hiroshi Tai (Georgia Tech Athletics Photo)
Hiroshi Tai of Georgia Tech shot an impressive 5-under 67 and recorded seven birdies to take the lead after the opening round of the 2024 NCAA Division I Men's Golf Championship at Omni La Costa Resort and Spa in Carlsbad, Calif.
Tai started his round on hole No. 10 and birdied the par-5 No. 10. He turned to the front nine at 2-under and birdied holes No. 1, 2, 4, and 9 with a bogey on No. 5 to get into the clubhouse at 5-under.
Adam Wallin of Ohio State was out early and set the tone, shooting a 4-under 68. He started 2-under through his first two holes and finished with six birdies and two bogeys.
Karl Vilips, who won the Pac-12 individual conference championship, is T3 with John Dubois of Florida at 3-under. Johnny Keefer of Baylor, Tiger Christensen of Arizona, and Christo Lamprecht of Georgia Tech are T5 at 2-under.
Lamprecht is currently ranked No. 5 in the Golfweek/AmateurGolf.com World Rankings.
Five golfers are T8 at 1-under, and 12 golfers are T13 at even par on the crowded leaderboard.
Some notable golfers after the opening 18 holes are Gordon Sargent of Vanderbilt, who is T63 at 3-over, Michael Thorbjornsen of Stanford, who is T41 at 2-over, and Neal Shipley of Ohio State, who is T97 at 5-over.
Sargent and Thorbjornsen are the top two ranked golfers in the Golfweek/AmateurGolf.com World Rankings and Shipley was the low amateur at the 2024 Masters Tournament.
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In the team competition, Arizona and Virginia are tied for the lead at 2-over, while North Carolina is just one shot back and in solo third place at 3-over.
Georgia Tech is in solo fourth place at 4-over, and Illinois and Auburn are T5 at 5-over. Ohio State is in solo seventh place at 6-over, and the defending champions, Florida, is in solo eighth place at 7-over.
Texas, Notre Dame, and East Tennessee State are T9 at 8-over, rounding out the top ten.
ABOUT THE
NCAA Division I Championship
The NCAA Division I Men’s Golf Championship is the pinnacle of collegiate golf in the United States, held annually in late May or early June. The event brings together the nation's top 30 teams and six individual qualifiers, all of whom have advanced through a grueling regional qualifying process. Conference champions earn automatic regional berths, while a selection committee fills the remaining spots.
The championship begins with 72 holes of stroke play to determine the individual national champion. Following this, the top 8 teams advance to a match play bracket to compete for the team title — a format introduced in 2009 that added a dramatic head-to-head element to the final days of competition.
Some of the most decorated names in professional golf have competed in this event, including Jack Nicklaus, Hale Irwin, Tiger Woods, and Phil Mickelson. Winning the individual title now includes an added bonus: the champion receives an invitation to the following year’s Masters Tournament, provided they maintain amateur status.
The tournament dates back to 1897, originally run by the National Intercollegiate Golf Association. The NCAA began officially sponsoring the event in 1939. Over time, the championship has become not just a collegiate milestone, but also a launching pad for future PGA Tour stars.
After 72 holes of stroke play, the individual champion is crowned, and the low 8 teams advance to match play to determine the team champion.
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