Men's Golf Prepped For Title Chase at Grayhawk

NCAA Men's Golf National Championship

May 26-31 / 72 Holes Stroke Play and 3 Matches / Scottsdale, Ariz. / Grayhawk Golf Club / Live Scoring / OU Notes

SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. — Playing in its 12th straight national championship, the No. 10-seeded Oklahoma men's golf team is at Grayhawk Golf Club in Scottsdale, Ariz., where the title will be contested starting on Friday morning. The Sooners' streak of 12 consecutive NCAA appearances is the second longest in the country.

Oklahoma is set to tee off Friday in round one of the NCAA Championship at the par-70, 7,289-yard course that has played host to the last three championships and is in its last year of hosting duties in 2023. The championship will be contested over 72 holes of stroke play, with the field being cut from 30 to 15 teams after 54 holes. Following 72 cumulative holes, the field will be narrowed down to eight teams who will square off in a quarterfinal, semifinal and final match to determine a national champion.

Despite garnering the No. 10 seed at Grayhawk, Oklahoma sits inside the nation's top three in scoring (278.95, 2nd NCAA), score vs. par (-6.03, 3rd NCAA) and subpar stroke/round (4.13, 3rd NCAA). Oklahoma's four wins this year are the seventh most nationally, and OU's strength of schedule is 17th in Division I. Every member in the OU lineup's single season scoring average in 2022-23 ranks inside OU's all-time top 15.

Head coach Ryan Hybl's lineup remains unchanged from regional action and the Big 12 championship, although the order has changed. Sophomore Drew Goodman gets the No.1 bag after a runner-up finish at the NCAA Norman Regional. Ben Lorenz, ranked 16th in the country after six top-10 finishes over his last seven events, is on the second bag. Freshman Jase Summy is third and is looking to put a cap on the best freshman season in program history. Three-time All-America honoree Patrick Welch makes his third and final appearance at Grayhawk in his last tournament as a Sooner, earning the No. 4 bag this week. Stephen Campbell Jr. rounds out the starting five while Jake Holbrook is available as the alternate.

NOTABLES

HOW WE GOT HERE

Oklahoma won the Big 12 conference championship to secure its 12th straight regional bid, and it played host to 13 other teams in Norman at Jimmie Austin OU Golf Club. The Sooners finished second at the NCAA Norman Regional, safely advancing to the program's 49th overall and 12th consecutive NCAA Championships.

THE HYBL STANDARD

Since Hybl arrived in 2009, Oklahoma has reemerged as a national powerhouse in men's golf. Oklahoma's streak of 12 straight NCAA Finals is the second longest nationally behind only Texas' 16. In that time, OU has won three Big 12 championships (2018, 2022, 2023) and the 2017 national title.

The Sooners are one of two schools (Texas) that have appeared in every NCAA Championship since 2011 and are the only program in the country to advance to match play at the championship every year since 2016, winning the national title in 2017 and finishing as the runner-up in 2021.

The Sooners finished 10th at the Big 12 Championship in Hybl's first year. Since then OU has been dominant: 39 team wins; Six consecutive seasons with 3+ wins; Three Big 12 titles; One national title; 26 All-Americans.

RECAPPING THE REGULAR SEASON

After being one of the nation's oldest teams over the last three seasons, Oklahoma is looking to its youth in 2023. Gone are the days of fifth- and sixth-year seniors Chris Gotterup, Logan McAllister, Quade Cummins, Garett Reband, Jonathan Brightwell and others, as Ryan Hybl's lineup this season showcases a freshman and two sophomores.

The Big 12 champion Sooners won the conference by defeating the field by 18 strokes at Prairie Dunes. In addition to its conference title, OU has three other wins this season – the Ka'anapali Classic, Puerto Rico Classic and The Goodwin. Runner-up finishes at the Frederica Cup, and Boilermaker Invite punctuated another strong regular season. Hybl's team sits inside the nation's top three in scoring (278.95, 2nd NCAA), score vs. par (-6.03, 3rd NCAA) and subpar stroke/round (4.13, 3rd NCAA). Oklahoma's four wins this year are the seventh most nationally, and OU's strength of schedule is 17th in Division I. OU is one of three schools (Arizona State and Vanderbilt) to land its entire lineup inside Golfstat's top 100.

Patrick Welch (3x All-American) and Ben Lorenz anchor the OU lineup as the veterans, but freshman Jase Summy is on pace to break program records for a first-year player, and Drew Goodman and Stephen Campbell Jr. are in the mix for All-Big 12 honors.

THE FIELD

1. Vanderbilt
2. North Carolina
3. Illinois
4. Arizona State
5. Texas Tech
6. Stanford
7. Florida State
8. Pepperdine
9. Florida
10. Oklahoma
11. Georgia Tech
12. Auburn
13. Texas A&M
14. Alabama
15. Virginia
16. Texas
17. Mississippi State
18. Oregon
19. Colorado State
20. Ohio State
21. Georgia
22. Arkansas
23. Baylor
24. Duke
25. East Tennessee State
26. BYU
27. San Francisco
28. Chattanooga
29. New Mexico
30. Colorado

OU LINEUP

Drew Goodman, Sophomore, Norman, Okla. - Second NCAA Appearance (T20, 2022) ... 2022 All-America honoree ... 2022 Freshman All-American ... OU career scoring average leader (70.67, -0.70) ... Last year, set program freshman records in stroke average (71.29), score vs. par (-0.23) and birdies (134) ... Six top-15 finishes in last eight events ... Runner-up at Norman Regional to Aberg ... Career: 6 top 5s, 8 top 10s, 15 top 20s, 21 rds in 60s.

RANKS: Golfstat - 60 | Golfweek/Sagarin - 43

Ben Lorenz, Junior, Peoria, Ariz. - Third NCAA Appearance (T57, 2021; SUB, 2022) ... 2023 All-Big 12 Tournament team (T6) ... 6 top 10s in 7 events ... Won first event of college career at The Goodwin, defeating 17 top-100 players ... Streak of five straight top-10 finishes ... 2023 avg. of 69.68 would be fourth-lowest in Oklahoma history ... Career avg. of 71.70 is seventh lowest in school history ... Career: 1 win, 3 top 5s, 6 top 10s, 8 top 20s, 18 rds in 60s.

RANKS: Golfstat - 16 | Golfweek/Sagarin - 47

Jase Summy, Freshman, Keller, Texas - Ninth-ranked freshman at NCAAs ... Stroke avg. of 70.45 (-0.61) would set a program best for first-year player ... 12 of 31 rounds (39%) this season are in the 60s ... Won Boilermaker Invite to notch first college win ... Three top-five finishes ... Was consensus top-10 prospect in HS ... Two-time Rolex junior All-American ... Career: 1 win, 3 top 5s, 3 top 10s, 5 top 20s, 12 rds in 60s.

RANKS: Golfstat - 93 | Golfweek/Sagarin - 58

Patrick Welch, Redshirt Senior, Aliso Viejo, Calif. - Third NCAA Appearance (T11, 2019; T15, 2022) ... Three-time All-America honoree ... 2023, 2022 and 2019 Big 12 All-Tournament team ... 2022 Ben Hogan Award semifinalist ... 6 top 10s leads Sooners this season, as does 14 rounds in the 60s ... Two PGA TOUR starts (T28 at 2022 Shriners) ... Wins at 2022 Southern Highlands and 2020 East Lake Cup ... Career: 2 wins, 8 top 5s, 16 top 10s, 26 top 20s, 40 rds in 60s.

RANKS: Golfstat - 32 | Golfweek/Sagarin - 35 | PGA Tour U - 7

Stephen Campbell Jr., Redshirt Sophomore, Richmond, Texas: Second NCAA Appearance (SUB, 2022) ... 11 events played for Oklahoma in 2022-23 ... Scoring avg. of 70.80 is the 13th-lowest single-season scoring average ever at OU ... Seven top 20s in nine tournaments ... Hasn't finished over par at a completed tournament this spring ... Three top-10 finishes in last eight events ... Career: 3 top 5s, 5 top 10s, 11 top 20s, 15 rds in 60s.

RANKS: Golfstat - 92 | Golfweek/Sagarin - 65

Jake Holbrook, Redshirt Junior, Granbury, Texas (SUB) - First NCAA Appearance ... Played in 10 events this season, with 28 rounds played ... Subbed in at Big 12 Championship and NCAA Regional ... 71.43 scoring avg. would be top 25 in season at Oklahoma ... Season-best finish was T5 at Ka'anapali Classic ... Qualified for 2022 U.S. Amateur ... 2021 Oklahoma Stroke Play Champion ... Career low is 66 ... Career: 1 top 5, 3 top 10s, 4 top 20s, 8 rds. in 60s.

RANKS: Golfstat - 209 | Golfweek/Sagarin - 181

THE COURSE

The NCAA Championship returns to Grayhawk for the third consecutive and final time. The Raptor Course at Grayhawk Golf Club will be played at 7,289 yards and as a par-70 for the championship. The course, designed by Tom Fazio, opened in 1994 and is listed among the best public golf courses in Arizona by Golfweek and Golf Magazine. Raptor is one of only two Scottsdale golf courses to host a PGA TOUR event – the Frys.com Open 2007-2009. Other tour-sanctioned tournaments include the inaugural Williams World Challenge, Andersen Consulting World Championship of Golf and Waste Management Phoenix Open pro ams.

FORMAT

The NCAA Men's Golf Championship consist of three days of stroke play on Friday thru Sunday (54 holes) with the top 15 teams and nine individuals not on an advancing team moving on. That is followed by a final day of stroke play on Monday to determine the top eight teams that will advance to match play and the 72-hole individual champion. The team national champion will be determined by match play. The Golf Channel will broadcast the individual championship round on Monday, and the match-play rounds on Tuesday and Wednesday.

TEE TIMES AND PAIRINGS

Friday - R1 - 8:32 a.m. CT; Paired with Georgia Tech and Auburn
Saturday - R2 - 1:52 p.m. CT; Paired with Georgia Tech and Auburn

LIVE SCORING

Live scoring will be available on Golfstat.com.

TV SCHEDULE

Golf Channel will provide live coverage at the final three days of the championship, showcasing the best collegiate golf in the country as the NCAA will crown and individual champion on Monday and a team champion on Wednesday.

Monday, May 29 : 4-8 p.m. CT (Individual National Championship)
Tuesday, May 30: 11 a.m.-1:30 p.m. CT (Quarterfinals); 4-8 p.m. CT (Semifinals)
Wednesday, May 31: 4-8 p.m. CT (National Championship)

Men's Golf Prepped For Title Chase at Grayhawk