NASHVILLE, Tenn. — The two-time defending Southeastern Conference champion Commodores will be in Birmingham, Alabama, this weekend as they take part in the SEC Match Play Tournament hosted by Jerry Pate.
Taking the place of the Jerry Pate National Intercollegiate, the event features Vanderbilt and the 13 other SEC programs in a preview of sorts for the SEC Championships come April.
“Our guys are really excited about this event and this format,” Vanderbilt head coach Scott Limbaugh said. “I think it gives us great preparation for what we can see later in the year which is a great thing. We are thankful to the SEC and Jerry Pate for supporting the event and we look forward to the opportunity at Old Overton.”
Vandy, ranked No. 1 nationally in the preseason, is coming off a win at the Frederica Cup in which it shot a record-breaking 69-under-par.
The week’s event will consist of 36 holes of stroke play Sunday and 18 holes of stroke play Monday. The top two teams in stroke play will battle Tuesday in a match play format while the other 12 teams will square off in match play for final placement.
Old Overton Club, a par 70, 7,204-yard course in Vestavia Hills, Alabama, will be the site for the tournament.
Vanderbilt will put Gordon Sargent, Cole Sherwood, William Moll, Reid Davenport and Matthew Riedel on the links this week. In the 2021 event, Vandy beat South Carolina 5-0 and Georgia 3-2 before falling to Arkansas 3-2 in the title match.
“College golf is all about how you progress and improve through the season,” Limbaugh said. “This is our next chance and I want us to keep our heads down and continue the pursuit of being the very best team we can be. Our feelings for one another and what we are trying to do have to be greater than our fear of what others might think.
“My challenge to the guys is to lock in mentally and have fun competing. We’ve got to be excited to continue creating the identity for this team.”
The Commodores are scheduled to tee off at 8:30 a.m. Sunday alongside Texas A&M and Florida. Live scoring for the event can be found HERE.
