BRADENTON, Fla. – The Commodore men’s golf team continues its assault on the program’s annals after carding a final-round, 285, and finishing in second at the 2015 NCAA Championship at the Concession Golf Club in Bradenton, Fla. The second-place finish advances Vanderbilt to their first ever match play appearance.
The second place finish far surpasses Vanderbilt’s other four NCAA Championship finishes – Vanderbilt finished in a tie for 16th in 2014, and missed the cut in 2007, 2004, and 2003.
“I think our guys were ready for this step, and I told them that they deserve to take it,” said Vanderbilt head coach Scott Limbaugh. “I told them, `They put in the work, so now let your talent go take over. We got better and better each day and it just says a lot about the character of the team. I thought going in, it was important for Hunter and Matthias to play well, and to have those guys go out there and neither one of them have a bogey is pretty special.”
On a day that many in the golf community dub the Race for Eight, the Commodores’ Tuesday match play tee time was never in peril. In fact, Vanderbilt was at or near the team lead for most of the day before finishing two shots back of stroke-play champion Illinois, who played with the Commodores in three of four rounds at Concession.
Senior Hunter Stewart, like he has been all season, was spectacular in his round on Monday, making four birdies and no bogeys in route to a total of 68 for the day. Stewart finished in a tie for third with Illinois’ Thomas Detry, two strokes behind individual champion Bryan Dechambeau of SMU and a shot behind Cheng-Tsung Pan of Washington.
The senior from Lexington, Ky., carded his seventh top five of the season and his 11th top 10, all Vanderbilt records, and finished with a final total of six-under par, 282 (74-69-71-68). Stewart also is now the Commodores’ all-time leader at the NCAA Championship with his third-place individual finish. Commodore legend and current PGA Tour player Jon Curran finished eighth at the 2007 NCAA Championship.
“I can’t say enough about how special he has been,” said Limbaugh. “He has played so many big rounds, so going into today, you just felt like he would play well. I really thought Matthias was going to play well, and those two guys just went out there and did their jobs. But, Hunter is special. I’m lucky for having coached him and he’s made me a better coach. He’s such a fine young man, and you love to see good things happen to good people.”
Vanderbilt also had two other players finish in a tie for 11th – junior Zack Jaworski and sophomore Matthias Schwab. Jaworski posted an even-par, 72, on Monday, his third round of par or better at Concession, with two birdies and two bogeys. His NCAA championship finish was his second-best of the season, behind a ninth-place standing at the SEC Championship, and he ended the tournament with a final total of 288 (75-81-873-69).
“I hit the ball very good today. I had a lot of birdie putts, and couldn’t get any of them to fall,” said Jaworski. “I really didn’t read a lot of putts well today in general, but I hit them at good speed and they were right around the hole. At 18, I got one to fall to save par, and that was a good way to end the round. This course sets up well for my game – as long as when I miss, I miss in the right spots.”
“For Zack Jaworski to come in here and play like he’s played is really something,” said Limbaugh. “He’s played great at home, but to come in here and play like he did in a tournament of this caliber is big time.”
Schwab posted three birdies and no bogeys in his Monday round in route to a 69 and a final total of 288 (75-71-73-69).
“I putted well today and hit them well today. I had some good chances I didn’t make, but made some good par putts down the stretch,” said Schwab. “I just kind of kept my round together and played alright. I hit them good and my score was fine, too.”
#2 Vanderbilt will play #7 LSU on Tuesday morning at 7 a.m. ET off of the number one tee in a quarterfinal match. The following are the matchups for that match:
Theo Humphrey (VU) vs. Brandon Pierce (LSU), 7 a.m.
Matthias Schwab (VU) vs. Benjamin Taylor (LSU), 7:10 a.m.
Carson Jacobs (VU) vs. Zach Wright (LSU), 7:20 a.m.
Zack Jaworski (VU) vs. Eric Ricard (LSU), 7:30 a.m.
Hunter Stewart (VU) vs. Stewart Jolly (LSU), 7:40 a.m.
“We’ve got guys who have played match play,” said Limbaugh. “Obviously, Matthias has some match play experience. Hunter has some match play experience. Our focus just needs to be on playing our game. It’s just man on man – just go out there and do your job. It’s what our program is built on. Just trusting each other to do their job. Each individual just needs to focus on the right things, which is the things they can control – their attitude, their mindset, their care level, and all of those things.”
“Obviously, we are really excited about match play and thrilled to be in the top eight,” said Schwab. “I think we have good chances and suggest to the guys to not get excited and to keep doing our thing. Everybody just needs to stick to their plan and not get too overwhelmed by TV and all of that stuff. If we do our thing, we’ll be fine.”
2. Vanderbilt – 301-284-287-285=1157
T3. Hunter Stewart – 74-69-71-68=282
T11. Matthias Schwab – 75-71-73-69=288
T11. Zack Jaworski – 71-74-71-72=288
T61. Theo Humphrey – 81-72-72-76=301
79. Carson Jacobs – 81-72-81-76=310
