Men's Golf Beats Arizona State To Advance to NCAA Semifinals

Tuesday, May 30

Scottsdale, Ariz. (Grayhawk G.C.)

10:10 a.m.

North Carolina

NCAA Championship Match Play Quarterfinal vs. Arizona State

May 30, 2023 | Men's Golf

Ford Wins Three Straight Holes Late To Secure Winning Point

By: Steve Kirschner

ACC Player of the Year David Ford rallied from two holes down with four to play but won three straight holes to deliver the winning point to send No. 1 seed North Carolina to the semifinals of the 2023 NCAA Men's Golf Championship Tuesday with a 3-1 win over Arizona State at Grayhawk Golf Club in Scottsdale, Ariz.

Ford went 1 down on the eighth hole, a deficit that remained through the next five holes and was extended to two when Michael Mjaaseth won the 14^th. Ford then won the 15^th, 16^th and 17^th holes to go ahead by one and clinched the match with a par on 18.

Dylan Menante never trailed and won 5&3 and Ryan Burnett won the first four holes then held off a late charge for a 1 up win to provide the two other points for the Tar Heels.

Peter Fountain's match officially goes down as "unfinished" but the 2021 first-team All-America gave Carolina an emotional lift as he came back from two holes down on the back side against Preston Summerhays, the Sun Devils' top player and the fifth-ranked player in the country. Summerhays led by two after the 13^th hole, but Fountain won the 14^th, 16^th and 17^th holes to go 1 up. Their match was declared over with Fountain and Summerhays in the 18^th fairway when Ford parred 18 for the decisive point.

Menante, who won an NCAA title with Pepperdine in 2021, went out first for Carolina and never trailed in his match against Luke Potter. Menante finished tied for fourth in stroke play on Monday and won the fifth, seventh, 10^th, 13^th and 15^th holes today for his third career match play win at the NCAA Championships.

Burnett won the first four holes, three of them with birdies, but Ryggs Johnston cut the lead to one with wins on 12 and 13. Burnett made an 8-footer for birdie on 16 to go 2 up, but Johnston made birdie on 17 to pull within one again. Both players made par on 18 as Burnett secured his first match play win in an NCAA Championship. Two seasons ago, Johnston defeated Burnett, 4&3, in the quarterfinal as ASU beat Carolina, 3.5-1.5.

The Sun Devils won their point today when Jose Luis Ballester defeated Austin Greaser 2 up.

Carolina plays No. 5 Georgia Tech this afternoon at 4:35 p.m. Eastern. The Yellow Jackets, who won the ACC Championship last month, defeated fourth-seed Pepperdine, 3-2, to advance.

UNC 3, Arizona State 1

Dylan Menante def. Luke Potter (ASU), 5&3

Ryan Burnett def. Ryggs Johnston (ASU), 1 up

Jose Luis Ballester (ASU) def. Austin Greaser, 2 up

David Ford def. Michael Mjaaseth (ASU), 1 up

Peter Fountain vs. Preston Summerhays (ASU), unfinished (Fountain led 1 up through 17)

UNC head coach Andrew DiBitetto after defeating Arizona State, 3-1, in NCAA Quarterfinals

"We've got amazing players. They are really good kids. They fight. They have huge hearts. They have huge courage. I'm just proud of them and fortunate to be their coach.

(do you think you are the favorite now without Vanderbilt and the host team?)
No, not at all. Every team here is absolutely amazing. College golf is in the best place that it's ever been. It's so deep. It's so talented with amazing players, amazing coaches on every single team that's left. I just know whoever we play is going to be a very difficult match.

We're going to keep doing our thing. We are in a great spot with our thought process. Our attention is on the golf course.

(any feeling of getting the monkey off your back by advancing past the quarterfinal?)
Just happy for our guys. They always battle, they always play crazy hard and it's nice to get rewarded.

Our first two guys (Dylan Menante and Ryan Burnett) were amazing. Ryan has two incredible golf shots on 18 to get it done. And then all of a sudden you look back and we're down in all three matches. Two of them we were down two (David Ford and Peter Fountain). And they just keep going. They put their head down. They keep going. They keep fighting. They have tons of courage.

(how would you describe David Ford?)
He's just he's so composed. He plays the game with so much passion and joy. And he just like 'be-bops' along. He never, ever, ever gets rattled. He just keeps taking steps forward."