June 29, 2015
The Commodores’ men’s golf team’s record-breaking season was honored once again with a trio of team members being honored by the Golf Coaches Association of America on All-American teams. Senior Hunter Stewart was named to the first team, sophomore Matthias Schwab was selected to the third team, and junior Zack Jaworski was named a member of the honorable mention team.
Stewart, Schwab, and Jaworski are the eighth, ninth, and 10th All-American selections in the history of the program, and the first since 2007. The three All-Americans are also the most for a Vanderbilt team in a single season. Stewart is Vanderbilt’s first first-team All-American since Brandt Snedeker in 2003.
“We are very pleased and proud to have three All-Americans,” said Vanderbilt head coach Scott Limbaugh. “Hunter is only the second first-team selection in the history of our program. He had such a phenomenal year and is such a fine representative of our university and our program. Matthias was so solid for us all spring and for him to earn a third-team selection after having to sit out the fall season really says a lot about just how consistent he was for us. We are really excited about the progress he is making with his game. Zack provided a much needed spark for our team late in the season. His performances at the SEC Championship and the NCAA’s really propelled our team to great finishes. This is really a compliment to the players and the hard work they put in.”
Stewart, who recently graduated with an undergraduate degree in Economics in May, was rewarded for one of the better years in the history of collegiate golf. He posted the school’s lowest-ever stroke average, registered 18 rounds in the 60’s and won three individual tournaments (Carmel Cup, Tavistock Collegiate, Mason Rudolph Championship). He finished in a tie for second at the NCAA Championship, and posted a 19-round streak in the spring of par rounds or better. Stewart was named to the U.S. Palmer Cup team in 2015, where he went 4-0, and was also named as a semifinalist for the Ben Hogan Award.
Schwab was named to the All-SEC First Team and to the 2015 Palmer Cup European team this season, and tallied four top fives and shared the Mason Rudolph Championship individual title with teammate Hunter Stewart. He finished in a tie for second at the NCAA New Haven Regional and tied for 11th at the NCAA Championship. He posted eight rounds in the 60’s this season, with a low of 66 coming in the first round of the Talis Park Challenge.
Jaworski came on late in the season, finishing in a tie for 19th at the Mason Rudolph and a career-best T-9th at the SEC Championship. The junior also carded a four-round score of 288 (71-74-71-72) at the NCAA Championship to finish in a tie for 11th.
Stewart Wins Northeast Amateur
The Hunter Stewart steam train rolls on, with the Northeast Amateur the latest tournament the Lexington, Ky., native has displayed his considerable game. Stewart fired a four-under 65 in the final round at the 54th Northeast Amateur at Wannamoisett Country Club in East Providence, R.I., to win the tournament by four shots with a final total of 10-under, 266 (69-66-66-65).
“I won the Players (Amateur) a couple years ago. I’ve won a couple big college events, but this is right there at the top with them,” Stewart told Paul Kenyon of NortheastAmateur.com. “It’s definitely one of the majors of amateur golf. It’s a privilege to win this event. It’s a great honor.”
The win should clinch a Walker Cup bid for Stewart, who is currently ranked as the seventh-best amateur in the world and the fifth-best in the United States according to the World Amateur Golf Rankings. The Walker Cup is set for September 12-13 at the Royal Lytham and St. Annes Golf Club in Lancashire, England.
Two other Commodores also enjoyed success over the weekend in Rhode Island, with Carson Jacobs finishing the tournament in a tie for 11th with a total of 276 (70-68-68-70) and Theo Humphrey ending the event in a tie for 18th with a 277 (66-74-68-69).
Schwab Wins Swiss Amateur
Rising junior Matthias Schwab captured the Swiss Amateur over the weekend at the Golfclub Breitenloo in Nurensdorf, Switzerland, after shooting an 11-under par, 277 (71-69-66-71). He won medalist honors by three shots over Marco Iten of Switzerland and earned an automatic exemption into the European Tour’s Omega European Masters July 23-26 in Crans Montana, Switzerland.
Gordon Wins Greystone Invitational
Incoming freshman Will Gordon won the Greystone Invitational at the Greystone Golf and Country Club in Birmingham, Ala., by seven shots over runner-ups Anthony Quayle and Robby Prater with a four-round score of 275 (64-70-71-70).
Incoming freshman Patrick Martin finished in a tie for 20th with a 294 total (77-73-72-72), and rising senior Zack Jaworski carded a 298 (75-75-73-75) and finished in a tie for 53rd.
Incoming freshman Andrew Jacobe and rising sophomore Michael Decker each missed the cut at the event.
Snedeker, Curran Excelling on PGA Tour
Last, and certainly not least, is the play of former Commodore stars Brandt Snedeker and Jon Curran on the PGA Tour. Both recently tied for 10th at the Travelers Championship this past weekend in Cromwell, Connecticut, after each carded a 10-under par, 270.
Snedeker’s performance came off of an eighth-place standing at the U.S. Open at Chambers Bay the week before, where he also posted the third-best finish by an American player.
