Texas Tech Athletics
NCAA Championship
Tech Finishes Tied at 24th
June 01, 2002 | Men's Golf
June 1, 2002
COLUMBUS, Ohio - No. 44 Texas Tech finished in a tie for 24th with Pacific in the school's first appearance in the NCAA Men's Golf Championships in 26 years. Minnesota won the team title.
Brooks Kelly led the Red Raiders with a 63rd place tie, while David Bolen and Brad Jacobson each finished in a tie for 86th. Mark Hull and Kyle Willmann closed out play tied at 102nd and 135th.
Among those following the Red Raiders in the standings are 23rd-ranked New Mexico and eighth-ranked Auburn. The appearance for the Red Raiders was the first for the program since the 1976 team finished 15th at the NCAA Championships in Albuquerque.
Two months after Minnesota's golf program was targeted for elimination, the Minnesota Golden Gophers won their first national championship.
The Gophers, who received a reprieve when boosters raised enough money to reinstate the program for at least a year, shot a 6-under-par 278 in Saturday's final round for a 1,134 total and a four-stroke victory over top-ranked Georgia Tech.
Georgia Tech's Troy Matteson won the individual title, shooting a 4-under 67 to finish at 8-under 276, one stroke better than Texas Christian's Adam Rubinson. Oklahoma State's Hunter Mahan was third, and third-round leader Graeme McDowell of UAB and Minnesota's Justin Smith tied for fourth at 5-under 279.
Matteson became the first NCAA individual champion for the Yellow Jackets, who count Bobby Jones, David Duval, Stewart Cink, Bryce Molder and Matt Kuchar among their golfing alumni.
Minnesota, ranked no higher than 18th in the national polls, became the first northern school to win the national championship since Ohio State - the host of this year's tournament at its Scarlet Course - won the 1979 title behind current pro John Cook.
Had the field of 30 teams been cut in half through 36 holes, as was discussed because of weather problems, the Golden Gophers would not have even been around the last two days. They were tied for 16th through two rounds.
