at c ( )
High Hopes
By CHRIS LANG
The Virginia teams and VSGA members to watch on this spring ’ s college circuit
Bryan Lee
The 2022-23 season was a thrilling one for the University of Virginia ’ s men ’ s golf program . The Cavaliers ascended to No . 1 in the GolfStat team rankings in the fall and rode that momentum into the spring . They advanced to the NCAA championship and took it a step further by becoming one of eight teams to reach the match-play rounds in Arizona . However , an agonizing 3-2 loss to eventual champion Florida left Virginia with some satisfaction , but also a sense of wanting much more .
As the calendar turns to 2024 , Virginia is eager to repeat last season ’ s success . The Cavaliers ended the fall season ranked ninth in the Bushnell / Golfweek DI Coaches Poll . Led by head coach Bowen Sargent and assistant Dustin Groves — both VSGA members — the Cavaliers are one of many storylines in Virginia college golf as the spring season approaches .
Cavaliers Surging How impressive was UVA ’ s fall ? The Cavaliers had five players with scoring averages of 71.78 or better , including top scorer Ben James , who posted a 70.44 average — just a touch better than past VSGA Junior Match Play Champion Bryan Lee ’ s 70.50 average . Third on the team ? Former UVA club team player Paul Chang . Read more about him in Jim Ducibella ’ s column on page 72 of this issue of Virginia Golfer .
Lee posted Virginia ’ s top individual finish of the fall , a second place showing at the Highlands Invitational , where UVA finished third behind co-champs Wake Forest and Missouri . Lee stands 54th nationally in Spikemark ’ s NCAA Division I rankings .
Michael Brennan
Brennan ’ s Quest Past VSGA Amateur champion Michael Brennan ’ s career at Wake Forest concludes this spring , and he has plenty of motivation to finish strong , namely , his standing in the PGA Tour University rankings .
PGA Tour University bridges the gap between college golf and professional golf . Top college players can earn a membership to the PGA Tour immediately after their college careers are complete . It ’ s how rising star Ludvig Aberg earned his Tour card in 2023 . He finished atop the final 2023 rankings , allowing him to go straight from Texas Tech to the PGA Tour , where he ’ s already found success .
USGA ( 2 )
12 V IRGINIA G OLFER | J ANUARY / F EBRUARY 2024 vsga . org