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University of North Carolina Athletics
Peter Fountain, Ryan Smith Sign With Men's Golf
November 13, 2019 | Men's Golf
Two of the top junior golfers in the country
Peter Fountain of Raleigh and Ryan Smith of Carlsbad, Calif., signed National Letters of Intent to attend the University of North Carolina and play men's golf, Tar Heel head coach Andrew DiBitetto announced today.
"Coach (Matt) Clark and I are thrilled to add Peter and Ryan to our Tar Heel Golf family," says DiBitetto. "It feels like they've been committed to us forever, so this is certainly an exciting day. We are building something special here with an outstanding group of young men committed to succeeding in all areas of life – academically, in the community and playing championship golf. We are bringing more highly-driven and competitive individuals into our program and signing Peter and Ryan is another great step in the process. This is an excellent day for our golf program, Peter, Ryan, as well as their parents and families."
Fountain attends Broughton High School in Raleigh, for whom he won the 2019 4-A state high school championship as a junior by eight strokes. As a sophomore, he helped Broughton secure the state title with a second-place finish in the individual competition in a playoff.
The younger brother of former Tar Heel golfer Preyer Fountain, he is the reigning North Carolina Junior Boys champion and is rated the No. 1 player in the state overall by the Tar Heel Youth Golf Association. He is ranked No. 1 in the state in the class of 2020 by Junior Golf Scoreboard and No. 2 by Golfweek.
"Peter is talented and confident, competing successfully in all levels of amateur golf," says DiBitetto. "He is a tremendous young man with an enormous heart, who cares for others. He's very familiar with our program and our current players, which should help his transition into college golf. Peter was born a Tar Heel and has a burning desire to bring a national championship to Chapel Hill. We can't wait for him to officially represent the University of North Carolina."
Fountain shot 7-under-137 in winning the 2019 high school title, the eighth-best result ever in that tournament. He also won the high school regional last season and was named the High School OT Golfer of the Year in North Carolina. Already a two-time all-state selection, he finished second at the AJGA Pinehurst Junior and third in the Carolinas Amateur in 2019, was an honorable mention Rolex All-America and finished fifth at the AJGA Wyndham Invitational in 2018 and reached the round of 32 at the U.S. Junior Amateur in 2017.
"Growing up it's always been all Carolina, it was my dream school," says Fountain. "I didn't even want to think about going anywhere else. I've always known that Carolina was the place for me. I don't take the opportunity to play golf here lightly. UNC has the reputation of being one of the top schools in the country both athletically and academically. There aren't two coaches better than Coach DiBitetto and Coach Clark. They are all about the 'Carolina Family' and have made me realize how special being a part of the 'Family' is. Both of them have made it clear they aren't there just to be good, but to be elite – to compete for ACC and national titles. There's a special vibe coming from UNC Golf, and I'm blessed and excited to be a part of that."
Smith has played in five USGA events, winning U.S. Amateur qualifiers in 2018 and 2019 and advancing to match play in both the 2018 and 2019 U.S. Amateurs at Pebble Beach and Pinehurst, respectively. He reached the quarterfinals in the 2017 U.S. Junior Amateur and the round of 16 at that same event a year later. He also was the youngest qualifier at age 14 for the 2017 U.S. Four Ball in Pinehurst.
"Ryan's physical skills and abilities are special and stand out compared to others his age," says DiBitetto. "He had an amazing junior career highlighted by success in U.S. Junior Amateurs, U.S. Amateur qualifiers and the U.S. Amateur. Advancing to match play in the most prestigious amateur event in the world at Pebble Beach and Pinehurst No. 2 is an incredible feat at any age, but even more so as a junior golfer. He's also played well in PGA Tour pre-qualifiers and Monday qualifiers. Ryan brings a wealth of experiences and lofty goals to Chapel Hill and we look forward to doing everything we can to help him chase his dreams on and off the course."
Smith has competed in three PGA Tour Monday Qualifiers, finishing as low amateur in the qualifying round at the 2019 Farmers Insurance Open and Waste Management Phoenix Open. He also won the FCG Western States Players Cup this year and tied for second at the AJGA Junior at Big Sky, Montana, finished seventh at the AJGA Lake Las Vegas Junior and tied for seventh at the Arnold Palmer Invitational Junior.
In 2018, Smith won the Southern California Junior Amateur and posted numerous top-20 finishes in junior events, including five in the top 10. He was seventh at the Aaron Baddeley International, eighth at Callaway, reached the round of 16 at the U.S. Junior Am, was 10th at the Dustin Johnson World Junior and tied for 17th at both the PING Invitational and Western Junior. He also tied for 24th at the Junior Players, tied for 27th at the Rolex Tournament of Champions. He was fifth in 2017 at the Rolex Tournament of Champions.
"I chose the University of North Carolina due to its incredible mix of academics and athletics and its outstanding golf team," says Smith. "The history of championships at UNC runs very deep and I'm grateful to Coach DiBitetto and Coach Clark for offering me this opportunity to be part of such a storied program. I cannot wait to get to Chapel Hill and battle for a national championship with a great team of coaches and players."
Smith resided in Leesburg, Va., until age nine before moving to California. His home course is the La Costa Resort and Spa Legends Course in Carlsbad. He's attended Classical Academy High School in Escondido, Calif., and Santa Fe Christian High School in Solana Beach, Calif.
Smith is ranked No. 6 in his class in California by Junior Golf Scoreboard and No. 9 by Golfweek.
"Coach (Matt) Clark and I are thrilled to add Peter and Ryan to our Tar Heel Golf family," says DiBitetto. "It feels like they've been committed to us forever, so this is certainly an exciting day. We are building something special here with an outstanding group of young men committed to succeeding in all areas of life – academically, in the community and playing championship golf. We are bringing more highly-driven and competitive individuals into our program and signing Peter and Ryan is another great step in the process. This is an excellent day for our golf program, Peter, Ryan, as well as their parents and families."
Fountain attends Broughton High School in Raleigh, for whom he won the 2019 4-A state high school championship as a junior by eight strokes. As a sophomore, he helped Broughton secure the state title with a second-place finish in the individual competition in a playoff.
The younger brother of former Tar Heel golfer Preyer Fountain, he is the reigning North Carolina Junior Boys champion and is rated the No. 1 player in the state overall by the Tar Heel Youth Golf Association. He is ranked No. 1 in the state in the class of 2020 by Junior Golf Scoreboard and No. 2 by Golfweek.
"Peter is talented and confident, competing successfully in all levels of amateur golf," says DiBitetto. "He is a tremendous young man with an enormous heart, who cares for others. He's very familiar with our program and our current players, which should help his transition into college golf. Peter was born a Tar Heel and has a burning desire to bring a national championship to Chapel Hill. We can't wait for him to officially represent the University of North Carolina."
Fountain shot 7-under-137 in winning the 2019 high school title, the eighth-best result ever in that tournament. He also won the high school regional last season and was named the High School OT Golfer of the Year in North Carolina. Already a two-time all-state selection, he finished second at the AJGA Pinehurst Junior and third in the Carolinas Amateur in 2019, was an honorable mention Rolex All-America and finished fifth at the AJGA Wyndham Invitational in 2018 and reached the round of 32 at the U.S. Junior Amateur in 2017.
"Growing up it's always been all Carolina, it was my dream school," says Fountain. "I didn't even want to think about going anywhere else. I've always known that Carolina was the place for me. I don't take the opportunity to play golf here lightly. UNC has the reputation of being one of the top schools in the country both athletically and academically. There aren't two coaches better than Coach DiBitetto and Coach Clark. They are all about the 'Carolina Family' and have made me realize how special being a part of the 'Family' is. Both of them have made it clear they aren't there just to be good, but to be elite – to compete for ACC and national titles. There's a special vibe coming from UNC Golf, and I'm blessed and excited to be a part of that."
Smith has played in five USGA events, winning U.S. Amateur qualifiers in 2018 and 2019 and advancing to match play in both the 2018 and 2019 U.S. Amateurs at Pebble Beach and Pinehurst, respectively. He reached the quarterfinals in the 2017 U.S. Junior Amateur and the round of 16 at that same event a year later. He also was the youngest qualifier at age 14 for the 2017 U.S. Four Ball in Pinehurst.
"Ryan's physical skills and abilities are special and stand out compared to others his age," says DiBitetto. "He had an amazing junior career highlighted by success in U.S. Junior Amateurs, U.S. Amateur qualifiers and the U.S. Amateur. Advancing to match play in the most prestigious amateur event in the world at Pebble Beach and Pinehurst No. 2 is an incredible feat at any age, but even more so as a junior golfer. He's also played well in PGA Tour pre-qualifiers and Monday qualifiers. Ryan brings a wealth of experiences and lofty goals to Chapel Hill and we look forward to doing everything we can to help him chase his dreams on and off the course."
Smith has competed in three PGA Tour Monday Qualifiers, finishing as low amateur in the qualifying round at the 2019 Farmers Insurance Open and Waste Management Phoenix Open. He also won the FCG Western States Players Cup this year and tied for second at the AJGA Junior at Big Sky, Montana, finished seventh at the AJGA Lake Las Vegas Junior and tied for seventh at the Arnold Palmer Invitational Junior.
In 2018, Smith won the Southern California Junior Amateur and posted numerous top-20 finishes in junior events, including five in the top 10. He was seventh at the Aaron Baddeley International, eighth at Callaway, reached the round of 16 at the U.S. Junior Am, was 10th at the Dustin Johnson World Junior and tied for 17th at both the PING Invitational and Western Junior. He also tied for 24th at the Junior Players, tied for 27th at the Rolex Tournament of Champions. He was fifth in 2017 at the Rolex Tournament of Champions.
"I chose the University of North Carolina due to its incredible mix of academics and athletics and its outstanding golf team," says Smith. "The history of championships at UNC runs very deep and I'm grateful to Coach DiBitetto and Coach Clark for offering me this opportunity to be part of such a storied program. I cannot wait to get to Chapel Hill and battle for a national championship with a great team of coaches and players."
Smith resided in Leesburg, Va., until age nine before moving to California. His home course is the La Costa Resort and Spa Legends Course in Carlsbad. He's attended Classical Academy High School in Escondido, Calif., and Santa Fe Christian High School in Solana Beach, Calif.
Smith is ranked No. 6 in his class in California by Junior Golf Scoreboard and No. 9 by Golfweek.
Players Mentioned
/ Men's Golf
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