Wake Forest University
NCAA Regional
Deacs Finish Seventh at NCAA Regionals
5/17/2023 5:19:00 PM | Men's Golf
The Wake Forest men’s golf team placed seventh at the NCAA Norman Regional, posting a three-day score of 854 (-10).
NORMAN, Okla. -- Despite a great run over the last two rounds, the Wake Forest men's golf team saw their season come to an end Wednesday at the NCAA Norman Regional.
Overall, the Demon Deacons were 16-under-par over the final two rounds and were paced each day by the first player out. After senior Mark Power shot the low round on Tuesday with a 68 (-4), sophomore Scotty Kennon was one better out of the first spot in the final round. His final round helped Wake Forest post a three-day total of 854 (-10) to finish seventh at the NCAA Regional.
Combined over the three rounds, the players who started first for the Deacs were 10-under-par and had the lowest round each day.
Kennon, who was bogey free through the first 14 holes Wednesday, finished with an incredible second shot on the 18th that left him a near tap-in for an eagle. He made the putt to finish with a 67 (-5), the best round by a Wake Forest player all week.
The round helped Kennon skyrocket on the individual leaderboard, moving up 22 spots to tie as the top Demon Deacon on the leaderboard along with junior Michael Brennan and freshman Boyd Owens in 28th.
The round by the Ponte Vedra Beach, Fla. native helped the team shoot their best round of the week. Wake Forest posted a final round score of 9-under-par, which was the fourth lowest round to par this season.
All four of the Deacs counting scores finished under with Power posting a 70 (-2), Brennan carding a 71 (-1) and Owens ending the week with a 71 (-1).
From Coach Haas
"We were better today, but it wasn't enough in the end. We just got behind the eight ball too early this week. We have a young team and we will learn from this. This experience will make us better going into next season." - Head Coach Jerry Haas
Final Scores:
Team
|
Rank |
Team |
Round One |
Round Two |
Round Three |
Total |
|
1 |
No. 17 Alabama |
281 |
280 |
275 |
836 (-28) |
|
2 |
No. 9 Oklahoma |
279 |
284 |
276 |
839 (-25) |
|
3 |
Colorado |
284 |
281 |
276 |
841 (-23) |
|
4 |
No. 5 Texas Tech |
278 |
287 |
277 |
842 (-22) |
|
5 |
No. 32 Duke |
283 |
285 |
275 |
843 (-21) |
|
6 |
No. 44 North Florida |
285 |
281 |
278 |
844 (-20) |
|
7 |
No. 29 Wake Forest |
294 |
281 |
279 |
854 (-10) |
|
8 |
No. 41 LSU |
292 |
280 |
283 |
855 (-9) |
|
9 |
Kansas |
288 |
289 |
281 |
858 (-6) |
|
10 |
No. 20 Ole Miss |
293 |
280 |
286 |
859 (-5) |
|
11 |
UNCW |
296 |
282 |
285 |
863 (-1) |
|
13 |
Princeton |
293 |
296 |
280 |
869 (+5) |
|
12 |
Louisiana |
297 |
290 |
287 |
874 (+10) |
|
14 |
Arkansas-Pine Bluff |
313 |
307 |
306 |
926 (+62) |
Wake Forest Team
|
Player |
Rank |
Round One |
Round Two |
Round Three |
Total |
|
T28 |
71 |
72 |
71 |
214 (-2) |
|
|
T28 |
71 |
72 |
71 |
214 (-2) |
|
|
T28 |
76 |
71 |
67 |
214 (-2) |
|
|
T35 |
77 |
68 |
70 |
215 (-1) |
|
|
T53 |
76 |
70 |
73 |
219 (+3) |
Season Highlights
The Deacs had yet another strong finish at the ACC Championship finishing as the runner-up in Pinehurst, N.C.
The Demon Deacons are one of two teams to reach the final twice in the three years of the match play format at ACC Championships. The Deacs were led by their underclassmen as they put the team in position to win a title. En route to the title match, Wake Forest finished second in the stroke play portion and then went on to defeat No. 16 Virginia in the semifinal match.
The Deacs were led all season by ACC Individual Champion in junior Michael Brennan. He became the 23rd Demon Deacon to win the title, taking home medalist honors after winning on the third playoff hole over Hiroshi Tai of Georgia Tech.
The Leesburg, Va. native captured his fifth career individual victory in the Southwestern Invitational in January over a loaded field.
With a pair of wins in each of his three seasons in Winston-Salem, only three Demon Deacons have more than six titles in their collegiate career: Bill Haas (10), Gary Hallberg (9) and Curtis Strange (8).
Brennan Michael joined quite the company to win the Southwestern title in its 40-plus year history as it has been the start to illustrious pro careers for many.
- Brennan (2022)
- Sahith Theegala (2017, 2020)
- Patrick Cantlay (2011)
- Paul Casey (1998)
- Tiger Woods (1996)
- Corey Pavin (1978, 1981)
Going into the postseason, the Deacs were coming off one of the best tournaments of the season at the Calusa Cup, claiming a runner-up finish. In route to the runner-up finish, the Demon Deacons, who posted a 54-holes score of 870 (+6), placed ahead of No. 1 Vanderbilt, No. 2 Texas Tech and No. 5 Arizona State in addition to beating three other top 40 ranked teams. This elite field helped prepare the Deacs for their postseason run last season as a third place finish in 2022 propelled the Demon Deacons to victories at the 2022 ACC Championship and the NCAA Regionals.
Earlier this spring, Wake Forest claimed a nine-stroke team win in their last outing and were paced by the second individual title of senior Mark Power's career as he took home medalist honors at the Battle of Briar's Creek by four strokes.
Power led nearly the entire way. He was 2-under or better in every round, the only player to do so in the field. Additionally, he saved his best round for the final round, posting a bogey-free 68 (-4) to claim the title. During his path to his second collegiate title, Power only had five bogies over the three rounds.
Players Mentioned
