CONCORD, NC – Rocky River Golf Club at Concord will be one of five sites across the nation holding an NCAA Division II men’s golf Super Regional on May 1-3. Super Regionals consist of two regional competitions held simultaneously at the same location.
Rocky River has teamed with Pfeiffer University to co-host the Atlantic and Southeast regionals on the club’s 6,970-yard championship course designed by noted architect Dan Maples.
The winners of each regional at Rocky River – along with three at-large teams – advance to the Division II National Championship, May 16-19 at Glade Springs Resort in West Virginia.
The last three Division II national champions have emerged from this Super Regional as Francis Marion won it all in 2003, followed by USC-Aiken in 2004 and 2005.
USC-Aiken is gunning for its third-straight national title and brings a No. 1 national ranking to Rocky River. The Pacers will compete in the Southeast Regional with other top-ranked teams: Armstrong Atlantic (No. 12), Columbus State (No. 13) and Georgia College (No. 34).
Pfeiffer, ranked 10th nationally, is part of the Atlantic Regional, which includes Coker (No. 24) and Belmont Abbey (No. 33).
"We’re truly honored to be partnering with Rocky River to showcase the quality of Division II golf we have in this region," said Pfeiffer athletics director Bobby Stewart. "The quality is second-to-none and to be able to bring that product to Concord is tremendous."
The staff at Rocky River has put extensive effort into preparation for the tournament.
"It is an honor to play for a chance to go to the national championship. Our goal is to provide a championship-caliber test for that," said Rocky River superintendent Mason Ivy. "Hopefully they’ll come away from here feeling seriously challenged and ready to contend for a national title."
Ivy and his staff have spent the last month prepping the course for the Super Regional.
"We’ve tried to ensure conditions will be as good as they possibly can," said Ivy.
The City of Concord, which owns the municipal course, has also contributed to the effort, along with the Cabarrus County Conventions & Visitors Bureau, which helped secure the bid.
"This is the first NCAA event we’ve hosted in the county and we’re excited about hosting more in the future," said Scott Aldrich of the Cabarrus CVB. "We’ve built a positive relationship with Pfeiffer, Rocky River and the NCAA, and hope this will showcase the Cabarrus community to all the golfers, coaches and fans in town for the Super Regional."
Rocky River head golf professional Floyd Gragg has worked to assemble a staff of employees, rules officials and volunteers to handle the operations side of the event.
"This is a tournament of magnitude. We didn’t just request to host it, we bid for the event and were chosen by the NCAA," Gragg said. "We’ve been working diligently with the Cabarrus CVB to make it a first-class event."
Tournament play begins at 8 a.m. each day and the public is encouraged to come out and watch. There’s no charge for admission and food is available for purchase in the clubhouse.
"Looking at the list of schools, we’re encompassing four states. Bringing the best golfers in those states to Concord should make for an exciting three days of golf," said Pfeiffer’s Stewart. "I encourage everybody to come out and get a little golf appetizer before the Wachovia Championship."
Rocky River Golf Club, which opened in 1997, is owned by the City of Concord and managed by Signet Golf Associates of Pinehurst. For course information or directions, call (704) 455-1200 or visit www.rockyrivergolf.com.
PARTICIPANTS
Atlantic Regional Southeast Regional
Team National Rank Team National Rank
1. Pfeiffer 10 1. USC Aiken 1
2. Coker 24 2. Armstrong Atlantic 12
3. Belmont Abbey 33 3. Columbus State 13
4. Barton 63 4. Georgia College 34
5. Mount Olive 71 5. UNC Pembroke 36
6. St. Andrews 82 6. Lenoir-Rhyne 46
7. Limestone 93 7. USC Upstate 47
8. Fayetteville State 122 8. Newberry 52
Individuals Individuals
1. Dion Sirrianni (Lees-McRae) 1. Dane Fairfield (C-Newman)
2. Adam Sheriff (Anderson) 2. Richard Lowe (Catawba)
3. Iain Hall (Queens) 3. Nick Kinzer (Tusculum)
4. Matt Short (Lees-McRae) 4. Chris Wynne (Tusculum)
5. Kalani Britos (Virginia State) 5. Ben Karns (Presbyterian)
Contact:
Craig Distl
(704) 377-8622
