South Gwinnett News

The Georgia Tech men’s golf team is off to a great start thanks in large part to their sophomore star who helped them win a tournament.

Golfer Christo Lamprecht's individual runner-up finish helped Georgia Tech win the Maui Jim Intercollegiate in Arizona to open the fall season two weeks ago. The win has propelled the team to No. 8 in the most recent coaches poll, according to a Georgia Tech press release.

In a Tech Talks interview, Lamprecht said that the hard work the golf team had put in during the off season was paying dividends.

"It is awesome to get off to a great start," Lamprecht said. "We practiced hard in the off season to get going, so yeah, I am pleased. Very pleased."

Lamprecht came in 16-under-par with a total of 194 and broke Georgia Tech's 54-hold individual scoring record that was previously held by All-American Bryce Molder, the college said.

Lamprecht also holds the distinction of being the tallest player ever in the school's program at 6-foot-8 and finished last spring as Tech’s highest ranked player at No. 78 (Golfstat), the college said in its release.

According to the release, the sophomore leads the team in stroke average (71.67) and posted four top-10 finishes last spring, including a T-5 at the NCAA Tallahassee regional and T-3 at Calusa Cup.  Lamprecht is No. 108 in the World Amateur Golf Ranking and No. 105 in the Scratch Players Amateur Ranking.

Bruce Heppler is in his 27th year as the head coach of Georgia Tech’s golf team, the college said. Under Heppler’s guidance, the golf team has won 66 tournaments,18 Atlantic Coast Conference Championships and gone to 29 NCAA Championship appearances.