2016-17 Men's Golf
Roster
Matthew Rushton 2015-16 Men's Golf Roster
Height
5'10''
Class
Junior
Hometown
Cape Town, South Africa
High School
Heritage Academy (Bluffton, SC)
AS A SENIOR:
- Represented the Irish in seven tournaments, competing as an individual in one.
- Had 16 of his 19 competitive rounds score towards the team total.
- Had three top-five finishes and two in the top-25.
- Finished third in the Battle at the Warren (April 15) for his highest finish of the season.
- Scored a season low of 139 (-3) at the Notre Dame Kickoff Challenge (Sept. 3) which earned him a tie for fourth.
- Was Notre Dame’s top finisher at both the USF Olympic Intercollegiate (Sept. 12-13) and ACC Championship (April 21-22).
- Tied for fifth at USF with a 214 (+1).
- Posted a season-low 212 (+2) to tie for 15th at the Fighting Irish Gridiron Golf Classic (Oct. 9-11).
AS A JUNIOR:
- Played in 10 of 11 tournaments and led the Irish with a 73.22 stroke average and all 27 of his rounds counted towards.
- Totaled eight top-25 finishes and three inside the top-10.
- His best finish came when he won the Notre Dame Kickoff Challenge (Aug. 30) with a six-under par 136.
- It marked his first career medalist finish.
- He also tied for ninth at the Clemson Invitational (April 1-3) with a two-over par 218.
- Led Notre Dame at the ACC Championship by tying for 16th with an even-par 216.
- All told, he was the team’s highest finisher in five of his 10 starts.
AS A SOPHOMORE:
- Only Notre Dame player to start all 11 tournaments during sophomore season.
- Team-low 73.84 stroke average in 31 total rounds at the top of the Irish lineup.
- Logged a .935 percentage (29-for-31) in rounds counting toward the Notre Dame team total.
- Led all Irish players with 11 sub-par rounds, including nine under-par efforts (seven rounds in the 60s).
- Earned a then career-best finish in solo third place (68-70=138) at the Notre Dame Kickoff Challenge (Aug. 30).
- Solo 11th place at Gopher Invitational (Sept. 7-8), firing a combined 219 (73-75-71).
- Tied for 14th place at the Windon Memorial (Sept. 21-22), equaling a career-low with a second round 67.
- Earned runner-up honors for the first time at the Rod Myers Invitational (Oct. 11-12), tying for second place with a two-round score of 139 (68-71).
- Shared top Notre Dame finisher honors at the Lamkin San Diego Classic (March 9-10), carding a three-round score of 227 (69-77-81) to tie for 47th place.
- Earned best spring finish at the Mason Rudolph Championship (April 3-5), firing a final score of 222 (69-76-77) to tie for 27th place.
AS A FRESHMAN:
- Started first 10 career collegiate tournaments during freshman campaign, compiling a 74.70 scoring average over 30 rounds.
- Flew out of the gates in first-ever tournament appearance at the Gopher Invitational (Sept. 8-9), tying for sixth place with a three-round score of 210 (67-73-70).
- Carded a second round score of one-under-par 70 at the Fighting Irish Gridiron Golf Classic (Sept. 23-24), ultimately finishing in a tie for 27th place overall (74-70-77-221).
- Added second top 20 effort of the fall at the Georgetown Intercollegiate (Oct. 21-22), sharing 18th place (71-74-74-219).
- Earned third career top 20 result at the Irish Creek Collegiate (April 5-6), tying for 17th place with a four-over score of 217 (72-72-73).
- Broke into the top 10 for the second time at the Notre Dame Oak Hill Intercollegiate (April 21-22), earning a share of ninth place at the historic Oak Hill Country Club (74-71-77-222).
PREP AND PERSONAL:
- Originally from Cape Town, South Africa.
- Prepped at Heritage Academy.
- Won the Boys 15-19 championship at the 2012 International Junior Golf Tour Port Royal Golf Club (Hilton Head, S.C.) tournament, firing a two-day score of 142 (73-69).
- Logged five top-25s on the summer 2012 circuit, highlighted by an eighth-place finish in the Southern Junior (Country Club of North Carolina) and a runner-up effort at the American Junior Golf Association/Under Armour Vicky Hurst Championship (Squire Creek Country Club, Choudrant, La.).
- Four top-five finishes on the 2011 IJGT docket, including a tie for second place at the Falcons Fire Golf Club tournament (Kissimmee, Fla.).
- Won a pair of IJGT events in 2010, claiming the top prize at the TPC Sawgrass (Ponte Vedra Beach, Fla.) and the Port Royal Club tournaments.
- Named Golfweek Junior Player of the Week in recognition of his three-under par (72-69-141) at Port Royal.
- Recorded six straight victories in IJGT events in 2009.
- Enrolled in the Mendoza College of Business.
Rushton’s Career Statistics
Year | Tournaments | Rounds | Count | Strokes | Avg. | Top Rd | Top 36 | Top 54 | Top Finish (Field)- Event |
2013-14 | 10 | 30 | 25/30 | 2,241 | 74.70 | 67 (-4) | 140 (-1) | 210 (-3) | T-6th (Gopher Invitational) |
2014-15 | 11 | 31 | 29/31 | 2,289 | 73.84 | 67 (-3) | 138 (-4) | 212 (+2) | T-2nd (Rod Myers Invitational) |
2015-16 | 10 | 27 | 27/27 | 1,977 | 73.22 | 68 (-3) | 136 (-7) | 216 (+2) | 1st (ND Kickoff Challenge) |
2016-17 | 8 | 22 | 16/19 | 1,602 | 72.82 | 67 (-3) | 139 (-3) | 212 (+2) | 3rd (Battle at the Warren) |
Career | 39 | 110 | 97/107 | 8,109 | 73.38 | 67 (-4) | 136 (-7) | 210 (-3) | 1st (’15 ND Kickoff Challenge) |