Ben Griffin is the first repeat Tar Heel golf All-American in 10 years.

Chapel Hill’s Griffin shot an even-par 72 for the third straight day to finish in a tie for 11th place at the 2017 NCAA Men’s Golf Championships Monday in Sugar Grove, Illinois.

Griffin missed Tuesday’s stroke play final by the top eight qualifiers through Monday but still earned the coveted All-American honors for the second straight year, Carolina’s first men’s golfer since Kevin O’Connell in 2008. He tied Virginia’s Jimmy Stanger as the low finisher at the NCAA Championship among ACC players. Griffin’s 11th place was the best by a Tar Heel at the NCAAs since Max Harris was sixth and Don Hill was 10th in 1999.

The junior bogeyed the first hole Monday, birdied the second, then made par the next nine holes. He birdied No. 12 to go to 1-under on the day, before dropping shots at 16 and 17. He then birdied the 525-yard, par-5 18th hole for the fourth time in as many days to finish at even par for the round.

Griffin was the two-time North Carolina High School champion while competing for coach Bobby Neville at East Chapel Hill, winning the state as a freshman and junior. He learned the game at the Chapel Hill Country Club, where the son of Cowan and Erika Griffin grew to his current height of 6-foot-1.

UNC freshman Austin Hitt shot 3-under-par Sunday, but the Tar Heels finished 18th and did not advance to Monday’s fourth round of stroke play. Juniors Jose Montaño and William Register shot 77s on Sunday to finish at 6-over-222 and 10-over-226, respectively, and senior Zach Martin shot a 79 to close at 23 over.

Griffin was one of nine individuals on teams outside the top 15 who advanced to Monday’s fourth round. He opened the tourney on Friday with a 2-under-par 70 then shot 72-72-72 over the final three days to finish at 2-under-286, nine shots behind medalist Braden Thornberry of Ole Miss.

Hitt, who also shot 3-under-par in the third round of the NCAA Stanford Regional, had 4 birdies and eagled the 18th hole to shoot 69. Carolina finished 54 holes at 11-over-par 875, four shots out of 15th place.

The top 15 teams advanced to Monday’s final round of stroke play, and the top eight teams after 72 holes advanced to match play beginning today to decide the national champion.

 

(Photo by UNC)

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Subscribe: RSS

Related Stories
‹
31st Annual Carolina Kids Classic Raises Nearly $80,000 For Ronald McDonald House of Chapel Hill
Earlier this month, Carolina Kids Classic held its annual golf tournament at Finley Golf Course to benefit the Ronald McDonald House of Chapel Hill and its programs. With the goal of raising money and awareness for the Ronald McDonald House of Chapel Hill, this year’s event marked the thirty-first year of the charity golf tournament […]
Stroman On Sports: A New "Day"
We look ahead to a new season of UNC athletics - and a new era in golf.
Chansky's Notebook: Building Depth
These days, college football recruiting is more about the money the athletes can now make in what has become a semi-pro system.
UNC Men's Basketball at Stanford (2026): How to Watch, Cord-Cutting Options and Tip-Off Time
UNC begins a west coast swing late Wednesday night when it visits Stanford in Palo Alto, CA. It’s just the third time ever the Tar Heels have visited the Cardinal’s Maples Pavilion, and their first time doing so as an ACC foe. If you aren’t making the cross-country trek with the team, here’s how you […]
UNC Baseball Ranked No. 11 in 2026 D1Baseball Preseason Poll
The Diamond Heels are ranked No. 11 in D1Baseball.com’s 2026 preseason poll, which was released Monday morning. UNC joins a loaded list of teams in the Top 25, including reigning national champions LSU at No. 2 and national runners-up Coastal Carolina at No. 6. 2026 D1Baseball Preseason Top 25 📈 Who’s too high? Who's too […]
Chansky's Notebook: A Star is Born
In his second NFL season, Drake Maye has already established himself as the best quarterback that UNC football has ever produced.
UNC Women's Basketball Falters in 2nd Half in Blowout Loss at Notre Dame
Notre Dame outscored UNC 40-23 in the second half to blow open a close game in South Bend Sunday afternoon and beat the Tar Heels 73-50. It’s Carolina’s second straight loss and its largest margin of defeat since the end of the 2023-24 season. UNC had hung tough for much of the first half, trailing […]
Several UNC Football Stars Will Return to Chapel Hill in 2026. Here's the Full List.
In an era of unrestricted player movement in college football, teams are undergoing radical changes every offseason. Take UNC before the 2025 season, when the Tar Heels upended their roster and brought in 70 new players. This offseason, there is only one transfer portal window, between Jan. 2 and Jan. 16. More than two dozen […]
'It's More Than Just Wins': Tar Heels Speak on Dean Smith Center After Arena's 500th Victory
While UNC fans may not care to remember all of the Tar Heels’ 87-84 win against Wake Forest Saturday night – particularly the part where the Demon Deacons nearly erased a 15-point deficit in the second half – the game was historic for one reason: it was the 500th Carolina victory at the Dean Smith […]
UNC Men's Basketball Survives Late Rally, Beats Wake Forest for 500th Smith Center Win
UNC nearly let a 15-point second-half lead slip away but held on by the skin of its teeth to defeat Wake Forest 87-84 at the Smith Center Saturday night. It’s the 500th win for the program at the Smith Center. HEELS WIN.#CarolinaFamily | @WellsFargo pic.twitter.com/ZjnOFvqowg — Carolina Basketball (@UNC_Basketball) January 11, 2026 UNC began the […]
›