Deacs Open NCAA Championship on Friday

CARLSBAD, Calif.- After punching their ticket to the 2024 Men's Golf NCAA Championship at the Austin Regional last week, the Wake Forest men's golf team is looking to add their fourth national championship to the trophy case this week in Carlsbad, Calif.

The Deacs forced a playoff at the Austin Regional, fighting for the advancing final spot in the regional. The Demon Deacons won in dramatic fashion, defeating BYU in a playoff with the Deacs finishing 1-under-par to defeat the Cougars who finished even par.

This will be Wake Forest's 48 NCAA Championship appearance, which marks the most appearances in ACC history and are tied for the 10th most in NCAA history.

This marks the 13th NCAA Championship appearance under the direction of head coach Jerry Haas including the fourth in the last five years. The Deacs have finished inside of the top 10 four times under Haas' direction including making match play during the 2019 NCAA Championship and finishing tied for third in 2006.

22 of the nation's top 30 ranked teams according to the latest national rankings made the NCAA Championships.

Friday's first round is scheduled for a 7:02 a.m. PT start, with the Demon Deacons teeing off hole No. 1 and the Deacs will be paired No. 27 Stanford and No. 28 Purdue.

The Deacs Lineup for the Austin Regional

Michael Brennan

Brennan is ranked tenth in the PGA Tour University and 29th in the World Amateur Golf Rankings. Michael Brennan is currently ranked as the 59th best player in National Collegiate Golf Rankings. Most recently at the Austin Regional, Michael Brennan finished tied for 5th. At the ACC Championship after a 5-hole playoff, Wake Forest men's golf senior Michael Brennan captured his second ACC Individual Championship. Brennan also claimed the individual champion title at the 2023 ACC Tournament, becoming the 23rd player in program history to win the conference individual crown, making this a back to back title. This is the first time someone has gone back-to-back since Louisville's Robin Sciot-Siegrist in 2015 and 2016, and only the fifth time in ACC history that someone has gone back to back with Wake Forest golfers accomplishing the feat three of those times. In his outing at the Calusa Cup, Michael Brennan finished the tournament tied for 12th at 4-over-par. Brennan had some key moments during round one, including a pair of birdies on the back nine and carding 12 pars through his opening round, ending the round with a 71 (-1). At the Valspar Collegiate, Brennan shot under par in the opening rounds including a low opening round score of 68 (-3), and ended the Valspar Collegiate Invitational tied for eighth and 3-under-par for the tournament. This is Brennan's second top ten finish of the 2024 spring season. After a slow start in round one of the Louisiana Classics, senior Michael Brennan had a key stretch in round two. Brennan tallied ten birdies in the second round, five of them being consecutive on the back nine, and carded the lowest score of the day, 65 (-7). In his outing at the Wake Forest Invitational, Brennan shot two-under par during the second round, scoring his lowest round of the tournament 68 (-2). Brennan ended the Wake Forest Invitational tied for thirteenth. At the Invitational at the Ford, Michael Brennan recorded his lowest score in round one, 67 (-5), and ended tied for third.

Scotty Kennon

Most recently at the Austin Regional, Scotty Kennon finished tied for 30th. Scotty Kennon recently captured his first collegiate title at the Calusa Cup, and set a new tournament record, shooting six-under par. Kennon tallied 14 birdies on the tournament, and he was one of just six players to finish under par in the 42-player field. Additionally, he topped the Demon Deacons on the leaderboard after every round at the Calusa Cup. The Florida native shot his best in the first round, carding a low 67 (-5). He started the Deacs off hot with a strong effort on the front-nine going bogey free, and tallied back-to-back birdies on holes 14 and 15. The junior ended round one sitting atop the individual leaderboard by two strokes before eventually taking home the individual title. At the ACC Championship, Kennon def. Peter Fountain (2&1) in the semi final round of match play. Scotty Kennon had his second top ten finish of the 2024 spring season at the Wake Forest Invitational, tying for sixth and carding 54-hole scores of 213 (+3). Kennon shot his lowest in round two, posting two-under (68). Scotty Kennon finished round three even, and led the Deacs' in birdies (11) for the week, helping the team to a third place finish. In his last outing at the Valspar Collegiate Invitational, junior Scotty Kennon turned in a key 1-under-par opening round to help move the Deacs up the leaderboard ahead of multiple nationally ranked teams in the field. As a consistent presence in the lineup at The Southwestern Invitational earlier this year, Kennon carded three rounds of 70 (-1) and finished the week tied for 13th at 3-under-par. The junior made a total of sixteen birdies over three rounds during the Invitational at the Ford. In round three, Kennon hit back to back birdies on the front and back nine, and ended tied for eighth.

Marshall Meisel

Finished T18 in ACC Championship stroke play. In his outing at the Calusa Cup, Marshall Meisel shot his best round in the final round, scoring a low 67 (-5). The junior went bogey free and tallied four birdies on the back nine. Meisel ended the Calusa Cup tied for ninth place, his second top-10 finish of the spring. At the Valspar Collegiate Invitational, Meisel led Wake Forest in the opening rounds, carding the lowest score for the Deacs with a 66 (-5) in round two. Meisel ended the tournament tied for fifteenth, and tallied two eagles and twelve birdies on the tournament. Meisel led the Deacs in the Louisiana Classics, tying for seventh overall and scoring 4-under (212). In rounds one and two, Meisel ended tied for tenth on the individual leaderboard at 3-under-par through 36 holes. Marshall Meisel ended the Wake Forest Invitational T30, and posted his lowest score in round one 70 (E) tallying five birdies. Earlier this fall, Meisel posted a strong performance at the Highlands Invitational. The Maryland native put together his first top-10 finish of the season. The junior finished in top-five for most birdies and tallied one eagle at Chicago Highlands.

Tom Haberer

In the ACC Championship semi final, freshman Tom Haberer fought hard in his match all day against the No. 47 amateur in the world. After a near hole-in-one on hole No. 17, Haberer made birdie and had the opportunity to tie the match on the final hole of the competition. Maxwell Ford of North Carolina won the match by one stroke, ultimately advancing the Tar Heels to the championship. In his third collegiate start, Tom Haberer claimed his first finish in the top-25 (T16) at the J.T. Poston Invitational. The freshman shot a 68 (-3) and tallied four birdies and an eagle on hole No. 14 during the first round. Haberer helped push Wake Forest to the team title at the Highlands Invitational, tallying back-to-back birdies on holes 17 and 18. Haberer secured the highest finish of his career (T5) at the Bank of Tennessee Intercollegiate and his second-straight top-25 finish. Haberer's last two outings were at the Wake Forest Invitational and the Louisiana Classics. At the Wake Forest Invitational Haberer ended T38 and at the Louisiana Classics he ended T45.

Collin Adams

Most recently at the Austin Regional, Collin Adams finished tied for 25th. Junior Collin Adams had his best career finish at the Wake Forest Invitational, tying for sixth. Adams carded 54-hole scores of 213 (+3). Adams got hot in round two, finishing three-under (67) and tallying the Deacs only eagle of the tournament on hole No. 10. In his first appearance of the 2024 season, Collin Adams made six birdies on the back nine of round one at the Invitational at the Ford, and finished T33. The junior from Charlotte went on a tear during the second round last year at the Highlands Invitational. During round two, the Charlotte native notched six birdies en route to shooting five under-par. Last season, Adams competed in five events. Adams secured two top-20 finishes and shot a career-low 66 (-6). In his last outing at the Valspar Collegiate Invitational, Adams ended T70 in a field of 11 of the top 25 teams in the country.

Wake Forest Alternate
Kyle Haas

Freshman Kyle Haas had his best showing of his career at the Invitational at the Ford, ending tied for third. Haas shot his best in round one, 68 (-4), and had some key moments including the Deacs' lone eagle of the tournament on the par-5 11th. Playing as an individual in the Southwestern Invitational, Kyle Haas ended round one with two birdies on the back nine. After his second birdie to get back to even par, Haas parred the next eleven holes, and ended his first tournament of the 2024 season T42.

The Field

No. 1 Auburn
No. 2 Vanderbilt
No. 4 North Carolina
No. 5 Tennessee
No. 6 Florida State
No. 7 Texas (Host)
No. 9 Virginia
No. 11 Texas Tech
No. 13 Oklahoma
No. 15 Arizona
No. 16 Illinois
No. 17 Florida
No. 18 Georgia Tech
No. 19 East Tennessee State
No. 20 California
No. 21 Texas A&M
No. 23 New Mexico
No. 24 Oklahoma State
No. 27 Purdue
No. 28 Stanford
No. 29 Wake Forest
No. 30 Notre Dame
No. 31 Baylor
No. 32 Ohio State
No. 33 North Florida
No. 37 LSU
No. 41 SMU
No. 48 Clemson
No. 51 West Virginia
No. 53 Utah

Tee Times

For the first round of the 2024 Men's Golf NCAA Championship, the Demon Deacons will tee off Friday with No. 27 Purdue and No. 28 Stanford, with the first tee time set for 7:02 a.m PT. off hole No. 1.

7:02 a.m. - Collin Adams
7:13 a.m. - Tom Haberer
7:24 a.m. - Marshall Meisel
7:35 a.m. - Scotty Kennon
7:46 a.m. - Michael Brennan

All-Time NCAA Championship Appearances

Wake Forest is 10th in the country and has the highest total in the ACC with 48 NCAA Championship appearances in program history.

School	NCAA Championship Appearances
1. Oklahoma State*	75 appearances
2. Texas*	69 appearances
T3. USC	58 appearances
T3. Arizona State	58 appearances
5. Florida*	57 appearances
6. Stanford*	56 appearances
7. Georgia	51 appearances
T8. Ohio State*	50 appearances
T8. Oklahoma*	50 appearances
T10. Houston	48 appearances
T10. Wake Forest*	48 appearances

* Indicates 2024 qualifier for NCAA Championships

Elite Golf School

With the Demon Deacon women's golf team qualifying for the NCAA Championships and advancing to the top 15 in NCAA Championships, Wake Forest is one of just three schools in the nation to have both their men's and women's programs qualify for the NCAA Championships during four of the last five years (Arizona State and Texas).

This year Wake Forest is one of 15 schools to have both its men's and women's golf program advance to the NCAA Championship.

In the 2019 NCAA Championship, the men and women's programs advanced to match play. Wake Forest was one of just three schools to have both programs move on to the match play portion of the Championship.

How the Men's Golf NCAA Championship Works

Six 54-hole regional tournaments will be conducted to determine the 30 qualifying teams and six individuals (not on those qualifying teams) who will compete in the finals. Thirteen teams and 10 individuals (not on those teams) will compete at each of three regionals while the other three regionals will have 14 teams and five individuals (not on those teams). The low five teams and the low individual not on those teams will advance to the finals.

All 30 teams and six individuals will complete 54 holes of stroke play. Following 54 holes of competition, the top 15 teams along with the top nine individuals not on an advancing team will advance for one additional day of stroke play to determine the top eight teams for match-play competition and the 72-hole stroke-play individual champion. The top eight teams after 72 holes of play will be placed into a bracket thereafter.

The 2024 national championships will be hosted by the University of Texas at Austin and held at Omni La Costa Resort & Spa.

In team match-play competition, a total of five points will be available with one point being awarded for each individual match. Winning teams will advance to the semifinals and subsequently, the finals. The first team to win three points within the team match will advance, or in the case of the final match, be declared the national champion.

Live Stats

Scoring for the 2024 NCAA Men's Golf Championships will be available via GolfStat

Live scoring

GOLF Channel Coverage (All Times ET)

Beginning with the fourth round of stroke play, live coverage of the NCAA Championships from Omni La Costa in Carlsbad, Calif. can be seen live on Golf Channel.

A full coverage schedule for the week is below with all times listed in Eastern Time:

Monday, May 27

Golf Today – 4-6 p.m.

Live coverage - 6-10 p.m.

Encore coverage – 12–4 a.m. (May 28)

Encore coverage – 4–8 a.m. (May 28)

Tuesday, May 28

Live coverage - Team Match Play Quarterfinals, 1-3:30 p.m.

Golf Today – 4-6 p.m.

Live coverage – Team Match Play Semifinals, 6-10 p.m.

Encore coverage - 11:30 p.m. – 3 a.m. (May 28-29)

Encore coverage – 9 a.m.–12:30 p.m. (May 29)

Wednesday, May 29

Golf Today – 4-5:30 p.m.

Golf Central Pregame - 5:30-6 p.m.

Live coverage – Team Match Play National Championship - 6-10 p.m.

Encore coverage – 11 p.m.– 3 a.m. (May 29-30)

Encore coverage – 3–7 a.m. ET (May 30)

About the Course

Omni La Costa, North Course – Carlsbad, California
- Par 72 –7,538 yards
There was an extensive renovation by the architectural team of Gil Hanse and Jim Wagner, and the NCAA Championship is the first event on the layout before it opens for public play. Hanse and Wagner implemented significant changes to the North layout. Among the renovations: A new drivable par-4 11th was built, the green of the par-3 16th was repositioned in a fashion reminiscent of Augusta National Golf Club's No. 12, and the par-5 18th was stretched to more than 600 yards with water on both sides of the fairway.

The revised layout features six sets of tees that play from 4,500 to 7,500 yards. Other changes include transitioning irrigation lines that will continue to use reclaimed water, the removal of several man-made ponds and the reintroduction of natural barrancas that feature drought-tolerant and native species of plants.

Next Event

Players Mentioned

Collin Adams

Michael Brennan

Kyle Haas

Tom Haberer

Scotty Kennon

Marshall Meisel

Wake Forest Athletics