CHAPEL HILL, N.C. — Senior Calahan Keever sank an 18-foot birdie putt and East Tennessee State’s Mats Ege missed a 14-foot par putt on the final hole to give Clemson a one-stroke victory at the NCAA Chapel Hill Regional on Wednesday. It gave Clemson its first NCAA regional championship in 20 years and eighth in history.
It was a remarkable victory for Clemson and Head Coach Jordan Byrd. The Tigers were ranked No. 59 in the nation overall and entered the tournament as the No. 10 seed in the 13-team regional tournament. The Tigers are the first team to win any regional tournament as a double-digit seed since the NCAA adopted the current regional format in 2009.
Clemson finished the tournament with a score of 25-under-par 815, the lowest 54-hole NCAA Tournament score in school history and the fourth lowest for any tournament. Clemson had scores of 275-266 and 274 over the three-round tournament, and it was the first time all year Clemson shot under par in all three rounds of a tournament.
“It is amazing how quickly things can change in this game,” said Byrd, whose team finished 10th at the ACC Tournament in its most recent tournament. “When you see a few putts go in it can give a team momentum.
“I have felt all year we were better than our ranking and we played to our potential this week.”
The Tigers now advance to the NCAA National Tournament at Carlsbad, California May 24-29 along with East Tennessee State, North Carolina, Georgia Tech and Baylor. It will be Clemson’s 34th appearance in the national tournament, its first since 2021. Clemson won the national championship in 2003.
