It has been 24 years since FAMU won the HBCU national title under the PGA Works Collegiate Championship banner. FAMU won it behind the stellar play of Mike “JD” Rice in 2000. Rice was the medalist for FAMU, taking the title of the nation’s top HBCU golfer.
FAMU got its second national championship with Rice at the helm of the team as head coach on Wednesday. The title was never in doubt as the Rattlers jumped out to a double-digit lead on the first day and ballooned it to 21 strokes at the end of the second day. In the third round, the team bested the Alabama State Hornets by 8-net points, ballooning the final margin to 29 strokes.
The Rattlers also dominated the top medalist spots, taking three of the top four slots. Marcus Taylor took top medalist honors of the tournament finishing with a total of +2 for the tournament after carding a one-under-par 71 on the challenging TPC Sawgrass Stadium course. FAMU’s Patrick Mwendapole would take second place, finishing at seven-over-par for the three-day total. Jared Southerland of Tennessee State University finished third at eight-over par, while Taylor Bell of FAMU placed fourth, finishing at 10-over-par and tied with Prairie View A&M’s Rondarius Walters.
FAMU now holds two national championship crowns
FAMU now holds two current HBCU national championships when coupled with the Rattler football team’s HBCU football national championship.
Rice, a FAMU sports Hall of Famer for his play at FAMU, was ecstatic to be a part of both FAMU’s first championship as a player and the current national championship as the head coach.
“I’m just honored to be back at Florida A&M and 24 years is a long time coming,” Rice said. “I’m just really excited for the guys to have a chance at this championship, which is probably the best run tournament we play in all year. The golf course was playing tough all week and we’re just glad to come out a champion.”
The 2024 PGA Woks Collegiate Championship was held at the TPC Sawgrass at Ponte Vedra Beach, Fla. The course was set up to mimic the tough condition of the annual PGA Tour’s The Players Championship played annually on the same course. The PGA Works utilized both courses at Sawgrass, the Valley and the world-famous Stadium Course with its signature island 17th green.
FAMU became the new champion as the defending champion Howard Bison, who won the NEC championship did not compete in the tournament. The Bison are in preparation to make an appearance at the NCAA Regional this weekend.
Chaminade (Hawaii) takes Division-II Championship
It was a tight battle for the Division II national championship. In the end, Chaminade University of Honolulu edged out Lincoln University (MO)by one stroke to take the championship. Bluefield State took third place honors.
In Division II, the race would be tight going into the last round before Chaminade prevailed. Going into the final round, there was a log jam at the top of the leaderboard as Lincoln University of Missouri, Bluefield State University, Chaminade University of Honolulu, and Kentucky State University all in position to win the title.
Austin Shoemaker of Lincoln University took the medalist honors for Division II. Ethan Alexander placed second for Chaminade, while Robert Johnson of Kentucky State placed third.
Howard women’s golf takes runners-up
Texas A&M-Corpus Christi made a late charge on the second round to overtake the Howard Bison. It was a two-team race going into the final round. In the end, Texas A&M would edge out the Bison by five strokes, prevailing as the PGA Works 2024 Women’s Collegiate national champions. Howard would take second place. Head coach and Director of Golf Sam Puryear was here pushing the ladies to make the charge.
Sadanun Sitanonth took home medalist honors with a +4 overall score. University of British Columbia’s Una Chou took second place.
Several seniors played their intercollegiate tournament and will be looking for opportunities to further their golf aspirations. PGA Works, the APGA Tour and the PGA Tour is committed to growing the game of golf through education and diversity.