WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. – Senior Ben James shot an 8-under, 63 in the second round of the NCAA Winston-Salem Regional. The score is the lowest ever by a Cavalier in an NCAA Regional and tied for the second lowest of any round in program history.
James caught fire with four-straight birdies beginning on the third hole and finished the front nine at 5-under (31) after a birdie on the ninth hole. He started the back nine with birdies four of the first five holes and would have tied the Jimmy Stanger for the program’s lowest round if not for a bogey on his final hole of the day.
It marked the second time that James has carded a 63 in his career and the first since his opening round of his college career in 2022 at the Streamsong Invitational. He eclipsed Ashton Poole’s single round NCAA Regional record of 64 set in 2019 at the Stanford Regional. James is one of six Cavaliers to card a 63 better in a competitive round and the first since classmate Bryan Lee in the third round of the 2024 Puerto Rico Classic.
James enters the final round with a three-stroke lead on Mahanth Chirravuri (Pepperdine) and Cameron Tankersley (Ole Miss) who are both tied for second place on the individual leaderboard.
Meanwhile, the Cavaliers as a team topped their historic opening round performance by one stroke with a 14-under, 270. Virginia stands in first place after 36 holes and six strokes ahead of second-place Pepperdine. Virginia’s second round score of 270 was tied for the second lowest at an NCAA Regional in program history.
Bryan Lee and Paul Chang remain in the top 10 after shooting 67 and 68, respectively. Bryan Lee moved up three spots and is tied for sixth place at 7-under. Chang is a stroke back and tied for eighth at 6-under.
UP NEXT
The final round of the Winston-Salem Regional is slated for Wednesday (May 20). Virginia tee times will begin on hole No. 1 at 7:30 a.m. The top five teams and the low individual not on those teams from the Winston-Salem Regional advance to the finals on May 29-June 3 at Omni La Costa Resort & Spa in Carlsbad, Calif.
LEADERBOARD
|
PL |
TEAM |
RD 1 |
RD 2 |
TO PAR |
|
1. |
Virginia |
271 |
270 |
-27 |
|
T2. |
Pepperdine |
273 |
274 |
-21 |
|
T2. |
Ole Miss |
278 |
269 |
-21 |
|
4. |
Mississippi State |
278 |
272 |
-18 |
|
5. |
Southern California |
278 |
279 |
-11 |
|
6. |
NC State |
287 |
275 |
-6 |
|
7. |
Wake Forest |
278 |
286 |
-4 |
|
8. |
Houston |
287 |
278 |
-3 |
|
9. |
Kentucky |
280 |
290 |
+2 |
|
10. |
Richmond |
293 |
280 |
+5 |
|
11. |
Little Rock |
298 |
280 |
+10 |
|
12. |
Navy |
295 |
284 |
+11 |
|
13. |
Presbyterian |
290 |
290 |
+12 |
|
14. |
Georgia Tech |
283 |
298 |
+13 |
VIRGINIA
|
PL. |
TEAM |
RD 1 |
RD 2 |
TO PAR |
|
1. |
66 |
63 |
-12 |
|
|
T6. |
68 |
67 |
-7 |
|
|
T8. |
68 |
68 |
-6 |
|
|
T25. |
69 |
72 |
-1 |
|
|
T54. |
70 |
76 |
+4 |