Georgia Tech’s Ross Steelman, No. 6 in PGA TOUR University Ranking, leads NCAA Championship

SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. – Ross Steelman entered the 2023 NCAA Championship at No. 6 in the PGA TOUR University Ranking and, following a bogey-free 6-under 64 in the opening round, the fifth-year senior from Georgia Tech is poised to move into the top five and earn Korn Ferry Tour membership.

Steelman, who needed at least a solo-fifth finish this week to pass No. 5-ranked William Mouw of Pepperdine University, leads the field by two strokes. Three players, including No. 15-ranked Mateo Fernandez de Oliveira of Arkansas, share second place after matching 4-under 66s.

Friday’s opening round at Grayhawk Golf Club’s Raptor Course represented a complete flip of the script from a year ago for Steelman, who played the first six holes at 6-over par and eventually finished 76th without carding a round better than 76.

“(Last year) I was one of the horror stories. It was punching me right in the teeth from the get go last year,” Steelman said. “Knowing what to expect for 12 months going into it is huge. Last year being my first year playing it, you come in hearing the horror stories of how hard it is, and seeing it on TV and (seeing) balls just bounding over greens. Just being able to know what lies in front of you and know it’s not impossible… then just trying to take it one shot at a time and be disciplined.

“As many greens as you can hit, each one of them is a small victory. Just trying to do that over and over.”

Steelman punched first Friday, draining 20-footers for birdie at the par-4 first and second, followed by birdies at the par-5 fourth, par-3 13th, and par-4 15th and 17th.

Steelman, a native of Columbia, Missouri who played at University of Missouri for two and a half seasons prior to joining Georgia Tech, recently got a boost in the latest PGA TOUR University Ranking, as University of North Carolina’s Austin Greaser announced he would return to Chapel Hill for another season. Greaser was ranked No. 5 at the time of his withdrawal from the 2023 PGA TOUR University Ranking, moving Steelman from No. 7 to No. 6.

Should Steelman go on to finish inside the top five in the final PGA TOUR University Ranking, he will earn Korn Ferry Tour membership for the remainder of 2023, as well as an exemption to Final Stage of 2023 PGA TOUR Q-School presented by Korn Ferry – where the top five finishers and ties earn PGA TOUR cards – and the ability to accept unlimited PGA TOUR sponsor exemptions for the remainder of 2023 and 2024.

“It was nice knowing this week it’s control your own destiny,” Steelman said. “I’m glad Austin [Greaser] is going to be doing what he enjoys doing, going back to school. I talked to him about it; he loves North Carolina. All year I’ve just been trying to focus on the fact that good golf takes care of everything. I’m trying not to worry about it too much.”

Texas Tech University’s Ludvig Aberg, who is in line to finish No. 1 in the PGA TOUR University Ranking and earn PGA TOUR membership for the remainder of 2023 and 2024, opened in 1-under 69 and was one of only 18 players to break par Friday.

PGA TOUR University Ranking Projections

Note: Current No. 13 Rasmus Neergaard-Petersen has completed his season with 16 events on his PGA TOUR University record. When the minimum divisor (18) is applied after the NCAA Championship, he will finish with a Points Average of approximately 811, a current projected rank of No. 22.