The Long Beach State men’s golf team will be taking part in postseason play as the 49ers received an at-large bid into the NCAA Tournament.
“The team is very excited about making regionals,” first-year head coach Mickey Yokoi said. “They played hard this season and deserve the chance to qualify for the NCAA Championship.” The No. 7-seeded 49ers will be among 13 teams in the Athens Regional at the University of Georgia Golf Course hosted by Georgia. The three-day, 54-hole tournament begins on Thursday, May 17 with opening round action, followed by second round play on Friday, May 18 and the final 18 holes concluding on Saturday, May 19.
The top five teams and individual from each regional will advance to the NCAA Championship at the Riveria Country Club in Pacific Palisades, May 29-June 3. The regional that the 49ers will tackle include 1. Alabama (Southeastern Conference); 2. North Florida (Atlantic Sun Conference); 3. New Mexico; 4. Georgia ;5. Iowa; 6. East Carolina; 7. LONG BEACH STATE; 8. Augusta State; 9. Wake Forest ; 10. Houston; 11. Texas-Arlington; 12. North Carolina-Wilmington (Colonial) and 13. Loyola (Maryland) (Metro Atlantic).
LBSU will be making its third appearance in the NCAA Tournament and first since 2004 when the 49ers won the Big West Conference Championship and received the automatic berth. LBSU finished in 24th place in the 27-team west regional at the Crosswater Golf Course in Sunriver, Oregon. The 49ers made their first appearance in 2000, when they received an at-large bid into the west regional at the River Bend Golf Course in Fresno. LBSU placed 22nd at 35-over 899.
This season, the 49ers have captured a school record five tournament championships (Bill Cullum Invitational, Folino Invitational, Bandon Dunes Championship, OGIO-UCSB Invitational, Anteater Invitational) and two individual titles. LBSU finished the regular season ranked 40th in the Golfweek/Sagarin ratings and 42nd in Golfstat.