Four ACC Teams Advance to NCAA Men’s Golf Match Play, Tai Wins Individual Title

CARLSBAD, Calif. (theACC.com) – Headlined by Georgia Tech’s Hiroshi Tai medalist honors, a nation-best four Atlantic Coast Conference men’s golf teams advanced to Tuesday’s match-play quarterfinals of the 2024 NCAA Men’s Golf Championship at the Omni La Costa North Course in Carlsbad, California.

Tai becomes the 11th ACC men’s golfer to win the individual title in conference history and the first since Clemson’s Turk Pettit took home the crown in 2021. Edging fellow ACC competitors Luke Clanton of Florida State and Ben James of Virginia by a stroke, the native of Singapore also becomes the first Georgia Tech player to earn medalist honors at the NCAA Championship since Troy Matteson in 2002. Also finishing in the top 10 was Notre Dame’s Palmer Jackson, who tied for eighth at 1-under, marking the highest finish by a Notre Dame golfer in program history.

After leading the field with a first-round 67 (-5) on Friday, Tai carded a second-round 77 to slide him down the leaderboard into a tie for seventh. The sophomore bounced back with a third-round 2-under (70) on Sunday and closed Monday’s final round with a 1-under 71 to earn the individual title. Tai’s 3-under for the tournament also secured Georgia Tech the eighth and final spot in the match-play quarterfinals, as the Yellow Jackets finished ahead of ninth place Oklahoma by a stroke.

Joining Georgia Tech in Tuesday’s match-play quarterfinals are Virginia, North Carolina and Florida State, as ACC teams will form half of the eight-team bracket. The Cavaliers and Tar Heels tied for third in the final standings of stroke play, as both squads finished at 11-over. Using the cumulative dropped score during the four-round tournament, UVA will be the No. 3 seed, while UNC will be the No. 4 seed. Florida State, which finished a shot behind Virginia and North Carolina, will be the No. 5 seed, sealing a rematch of the ACC Championship match between the Tar Heels and Seminoles.

The ACC has sent eight teams to the match-play quarterfinals over the last two seasons, the most among all conferences. The next closest league has sent just three teams in the span.

The Golf Channel coverage of the event begins at…