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Lance Simpson talks US Open qualifying and NCAA Championships

On3 imageby:Austin Price•05/20/25•

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It’s been a whirlwind 24 hours for Tennessee golfer Lance Simpson. After qualifying for the US Open in Texas, he flew to California to meet his Vol golf teammates to prepare for the NCAA Championships.

“I think it was cool playing that qualifier in a field with so many great golfers on the PGA tour and LIV tour,” Simpson said. “To be able to go out there and compete with all of them and beat a lot of really really good players, it just made me feel like I had more belief in my game and that I can do all the things I’ve ever dreamed of.”

Rounds of 69 and 65 had Simpson sitting inside the top 5 as he walked off the green at Bent Tree Country Club in Dallas on Monday. That’s when the waiting game began to see if he would be one of the seven players to qualify for the Open at famed Oakmont next month.

“I got off the golf course immediately called Coach (Brennan) Webb and he was like just get the mindset that you’re in a playoff so for the next like two 2 1/2 hours I was just pacing around the driving range,” Simpson said. “I just kept telling myself I did all I could do out there and just see what happens and luckily eight under held up there and I was able to get through.”

Simpson ended up finishing tied for fourth place and getting in ahead of Masters winner Sergio Garcia and former Vol turned LIV tour golfer Caleb Surratt.

Simpson has been the leader of the Vol golf team all season. He is the veteran on this team but this was different. This was individual golf and a chance to live out a dream and a goal.

“Yeah, it’s definitely something I’ve always dreamed about whenever I started golfing,” Simpson said. “Actually in January at the beginning of the year, I wrote down a couple goals that I had this year and one of them was to play in a major so to be able to knock that off, felt really good after the round yesterday.”

So what made him set a major championship goal while he is still playing for the Orange?

“I just felt like I’ve surrounded myself with the right guys and had the right coaches just prepare me each week,” Simpson said. “I just felt super confident in my game heading into 2025 and I was like all right, let’s just set some high goals and go chase them. To play a major is one of them so it’s pretty awesome to do that here in a couple weeks.” 

Now he must turn his attention to playing for Tennessee. He has to put Oakmont aside and look at the opportunity this week at Omni La Costa Resort in Carlsbad, California. The team is making their second straight appearance there and what an opportunity sits in front of them.

“It’s definitely going to be a weird transition knowing that I just qualified for the U.S. Open,” Simpson said. “At the beginning of the year, the team sat down and we just all talked about how we wanted to win a national championship. That’s what we’ve been working towards together all year, so I’m excited to go out there and fight with the team and hopefully bring back a national championship.”

This team has persevered through a tough and rigorous schedule. They had their best tournament of the year during regional qualifying last week. They are peeking at the right time and he says all of the bonds that have been built are a big reason why.

“I think we bonded really well on and off the golf course and it seems like we all enjoy being around each other so whenever we’re out there playing it feels like we’re all fighting for each other every shot which just allows me to feel like I can have more freedom in my game just like everyone else,” Simpson said.

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