AUGUSTA, Ga. – The No. 1 and No. 23 University of North Georgia men's and women's golf teams are ready to compete in the 2024 Peach Belt Conference Championship this weekend. The Nighthawks are the host of this year's championship which takes place at Forest Hill Golf Club in Augusta, Ga. 

Both the men and women will play the course to par 72. The men's 18-hole round will total 7,086 yards, while the women's will add up to 6,123 yards. This year marks the first time the conference championship will take place in Augusta, Ga., the home of the conference office. 

Tournament Information
The tournament begins Friday, Apr. 19 and lasts until Sunday, Apr. 21, with all participating teams playing one 18-hole round on each day. As is standard, the team with the lowest combined score between its five participating golfers will win the championship. Listed below are the five selected competitors for the Nighthawks and their Friday morning tee times in round one.

Gr. – Will Chambless – 10:50 a.m.
Gr. – Jack Vajda – 10:40 a.m. 
So. – Hunter Smith – 10:30 a.m.
Jr. – Ethan Day – 10:20 a.m. 
Jr. – Hughes Threlkeld – 10:10 a.m.

Gr. – Amari Smith – 12:30 p.m.
Jr. – Ellie Rippee – 12:20 p.m. 
Fr. – Abby Franks – 12:10 p.m.
Sr. – Danielle Humphrey – 12:00 p.m.
Jr. – Jadin Ware – 11:50 a.m.

Fan Information
Spectators are welcome to follow players throughout the tournament, per NCAA guidelines.  There is no charge to attend.  Spectators must remain on the cart path and may use carts only if medically required. Spectators who are walking must either stay on the cart paths or in the rough at least 50 yards away from players at all times.

Communication between spectators and players is prohibited and may result in a penalty to the player as it can be seen by a third party (fellow competitor or a coach from another team) as giving advice to the player.

Live Stats
Live stats for the tournament will be kept through the Golf Stat platform and are available at the links below.

Men's Championship: https://results.golfstat.com/public/leaderboards/gsnav.cfm?pg=participants&tid=28639

Women's Championship: https://results.golfstat.com/public/leaderboards/gsnav.cfm?pg=participants&tid=28640

Tournament Website
Fans can visit the 2024 PBC Championship website here for more information about both championships. 

Tournament Preview

The men's team, led by head coach Bryson Worley, currently ranks as the No. 1 team in the country by the Bushnell/Golfweek DII Coaches Poll. 

The Nighthawks have played 10 tournament-style events this year and have finished third place or better in a whopping nine of them. That includes four first-place finishes and a program record setting 37-under-par performance at the Cateechee Fall Invitational back in early October. 

UNG finished the regular season first in the conference in scoring average at 284.2 strokes per 18 holes while being the only team to have three individuals (Chambless, Day, senior Noah Zediker) finish in the top-10 on the individual scoring leaderboard. 

The Nighthawks also had three separate individuals earn medalist honors during a tournament this year, tied with No. 3 Georgia Southwestern for the most of any team in the league. 

Worley and UNG are seeking what would be the program's first ever PBC Championship victory after finishing third in the event two years ago and in second-place last season. 

For head coach Sierra Campbell and the No. 23 Nighthawk women's team, they are also seeking the program's first ever victory in the PBC Championship after two top-3 finishes in the last three years. 

UNG had a strong showing this season, finishing third in the conference in scoring at an average of 303.2 strokes per round. Smith and Rippee have led the way this season on the individual level for the Nighthawks. 

Both finished in the top-10 in individual scoring and added a combined four top-10 finishes this year. Rippee earned medalist honors in a tie for first-place at the Low Tide Intercollegiate, after a career-best two-under-par 68 in the opening round of the event. Her 68 also landed as the third-lowest round from any PBC competitor this year.