Tech takes third to advance to OVC Championship match play
WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. – The Tennessee Tech men’s golf team made a big jump up the leaderboard during the second round Monday, and held on Tuesday to finish in third place at the 2026 OVC Men's Golf Championships. With their finish, the Golden Eagles advance into match play Wednesday, where they will square off first against UT Martin beginning at 7:03 a.m. CDT. Tech will join Little Rock, UT Martin and Bryant in the head-to-head challenge on Wednesday on the Ackerman-Allen Course at the Birck Boilermaker Golf Complex on the campus of Purdue University. Winners of the morning matchups will meet in the afternoon with the winner capturing the league’s automatic invitation into the NCAA Tournament. “I’m so proud of these guys and how they battled back after the first day to make it into match play,” said head coach Polk Brown. “We have been working all year for this opportunity and we’re excited to compete for another championship.”
By Rob Schabert, TTU Athletics
WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. – The Tennessee Tech men's golf team made a big jump up the leaderboard during the second round Monday, and held on Tuesday to finish in third place at the 2026 OVC Men's Golf Championships. With their finish, the Golden Eagles advance into match play Wednesday, where they will square off first against UT Martin beginning at 7:03 a.m. CDT.
Tech will join Little Rock, UT Martin and Bryant in the head-to-head challenge on Wednesday on the Ackerman-Allen Course at the Birck Boilermaker Golf Complex on the campus of Purdue University. Winners of the morning matchups will meet in the afternoon with the winner capturing the league's automatic invitation into the NCAA Tournament.
"I'm so proud of these guys and how they battled back after the first day to make it into match play," said head coach Polk Brown. "We have been working all year for this opportunity and we're excited to compete for another championship."
Following a first round Sunday in which they shot an 11-over par, the Golden Eagles found themselves in sixth place and looking at an uphill battle.
Coach Polk Brown's team accepted the challenge on Monday and put together their finest round of the week, carding a two-over team score to vault all the way from sixth to third place. Tech's fight to continue the climb was repulsed on Tuesday as Little Rock and UT Martin remained above the Golden Eagles in the team standings.
Little Rock coasted to first place and the top position for match play, posting three sub-par rounds to finish with a team total of 28-under for a 45-shot edge over UT Martin. The Skyhawks grabbed second place in the opening round with a three-over total, and added a four-over tally Monday, giving them a six-shot margin over the Golden Eagles. They managed to add one more stroke to their lead over Tech Tuesday, finishing at 17-over 230.
Tech's 54-hole total was 24-over par.
Individually, Nick Etherton paced the Golden Eagles with a sixth-place showing at four-over 217. The 5-10 senior from Friendsville, Tenn., was consistent on the Purdue acreage, shooting identical scores of 72 on the first two days, and adding a 73 on Tuesday.
Senior Haden Maxwell recovered from a six-over 77 on Sunday to shoot par over the final two rounds, fashioning a 70 Monday and a 72 Tuesday to finish 10th individually at 219. He vaulted 11 spots on the leaderboard with four birdies in his final tour.
Just one shot back, junior Alex Broyles was 12th overall at 220, just seven-over par. His top round came on Sunday at 72, but he was just off that pace with a 73 on Monday and a 75 on Tuesday.
One more shot behind was freshman Cooper Gettler, finishing in 19th place with a 221 total after rounds of 74, 72 and 76. Fellow freshman Bryson White completed Tech's tournament lineup. His rounds of 77, 72 and 75 left him just three shots back of Gettler at 11-over par and 224, placing him 27th in the field.
For match play on Wednesday, Tech's lineup against UT Martin will kick off with Etherton matching up with Grant Phillips, beginning on hole No. 10 at 7:03 a.m. Eight minutes later, Gettler will battle Drew Williams, followed by Broyles against J.G. Wilson at 7:19 a.m., and White facing Bryce Harmon at 7:27 a.m. The final pair, teeing off at 7:35 a.m., will see Maxwell meeting Luke Caldwell.
Bryant and Little Rock will play at the same morning times, teeing off on hole No. 1.
Live scoring is available at ovcsports.com.
Photo | Matt Dexter, TTU Athletics
