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PINEHURST, N.C. (theACC.com) – Wake Forest junior Michael Brennan nailed down a hard-fought individual ACC Men’s Golf Championship first-place medal on Sunday, and the field was set for the match play competition that will decide the team title.
 
Brennan birdied the third playoff hole, slipping past Georgia Tech’s Hiroshi Tai after the players battled to a tie at the conclusion of 54 holes of stroke play competition at the Country Club of North Carolina.
 
Georgia Tech, which entered the day holding a two-shot lead in the team competition through 36 holes, pulled away during Sunday’s closing stroke-play round with a blistering 13-under score to finish 16 shots ahead of second-place Wake Forest. Virginia and Duke tied for third place at 4-under, with Virginia earning the tie-breaker.
 
The team semifinals Sunday afternoon began shortly after 3:30 p.m. following the completion of stroke play, using a split-tee format. The top-seed Georgia Tech versus Duke match began on the first hole, while No. 2 Wake Forest and No. 3 Virginia opened on hole No. 10.
 
The championship match play final featuring Sunday’s winners is slated to begin Monday at 9 a.m.
 
After building a three-shot lead through two rounds, Brennan shot even par 72 on Sunday. Tai rallied in dramatic fashion, capping a 4-under 68 with an eagle on No. 18 (while Brennan made birdie) to leave both players at 9-under and force a sudden-death playoff.

Brennan and Tai returned to par-5 No. 18 for the two-man playoff. Both golfers opened with birdies (after each just missed what would have been a decisive eagle) on their first tries. Each also came away with a birdie on his second attempt before Brennan finally prevailed.
 
Brennan added his name to an elite group of Wake Forest alumni by posting the sixth individual win of his career. Only three other Demon Deacons have more than five titles as collegians: Bill Haas (10), Gary Hallberg (9) and Curtis Strange (8).
 
A junior from Leesville, Virginia, Brennan finished tied for third in last year’s ACC Men’s Golf Championship at Panama City, Florida.
 
Brennan is the 23rd Wake Forest individual champion and the first since Webb Simpson in 2008. The Deacons’ 23 individual champions are the most in ACC history, as are Wake Forest’s 19 total conference titles as a team. Georgia Tech, which placed second the Deacons in last year’s event, owns 18 all-time ACC titles.
 
Tai, a freshman from Singapore, was a two-time medalist during fall competition and placed ninth at the Watersound Invitational for his highest finish of the spring. He proved steady throughout this weekend’s stroke play, building a 5-under par score of 139 through 36 holes, and then registered three birdies (with just one bogey) in addition to the closing eagle on No. 18.
  
Duke’s Luke Sample, Virginia’s Ben James and Duke’s Luke Sample all finished at 7-under par to share third place.
 
Wake Forest, the defending ACC champion, entered the match play semifinals seeking a league-leading 20th team title. Georgia Tech’s 18 ACC Men’s Golf Championships rank second on the list. Duke has won the tournament eight times, while Virginia is going after its first title.
 
The semifinals and finals of the ACC Men’s Golf Championship are being carried live on ACC Network Extra. A championship recap show will air Monday, May 1 at 9 p.m. on ACCN.
 
Sunday ACCNX Watch Link

Monday ACCNX Watch Link
 
The Dogwood Course at the Country Club of North Carolina opened in 1963 surrounding Watson Lake and Lake Dornoch, the two biggest water features in the club. The 1999 renovation was overseen by Arthur Hills and included a rebuilding of the greens, tees and bunkers. In 2016, the course was switched over to Zeon Zoysia grass during the renovation by Kris Spence. The course is currently ranked second in the Top Courses of the Sandhills Region and third in the Top 100 Courses of North Carolina.
 
2023 ACC Men’s Golf Championship Individual Leaderboard
t-1. Michael Brennan Wake Forest (-9)*
t-1. Hiroshi Tai, Georgia Tech (-9)
t-3. Connor Howe, Georgia Tech (-7)
t-3. Ben James, Virginia (-7)
t-3. Luke Sample, Duke (-7)
6.  Jiri Zuska, Louisville (-6)

* - Won playoff on third hole for ACC medalist