April 25, 2000
Texas A&M rallied on the front nine of the final round at the Big 12 Men's Golf Championships on Tuesday and appeared ready to make a run at second place, but blustery winds took their toll on the back nine and the Aggies went on to finish fifth at Prairie Dunes Country Club.
With No. 3-ranked Oklahoma State all but assured of winning the team championship after firing a tournament-record 272 on Monday afternoon, the rest of the field was relegated to playing for second as the Cowboys took a 10-shot lead into the final day. The Aggies were in fourth at 573, just four strokes behind defending champion and No. 25-ranked Kansas (569) and only one stroke behind No. 17-ranked Texas (572).
But the Aggies made a dramatic rally on the front nine in the final round, making the turn in four-over-par and finding themselves only two strokes behind the Jayhawks and owning a four-stroke lead over Texas.
A&M's Sean Gilliland, who entered the final round in second place in the individual standings, carded a one-over-par 36 on the front nine, as did teammates Matt Lindholm, Dwayne Morley and Josh McCoy. Ty Cox turned in 37.
But just as it appeared the Aggies were gaining momentum, the wind gained strength and ended their chances. The Aggies played the back nine in 27-over-par, with only Lindholm managing to break 40 with a three-over-par 38.
"We were in really good shape after nine holes and had a chance to make a move," A&M coach Bob Ellis said. "But the back side just killed us, just as it did the first two rounds. We just didn't do what we needed to do. Our youth had something to do with it. We need to compete and put ourselves in the position more often. We're disappointed in our finish and we know we can't play this way at regionals. We will learn from this and be better prepared for regionals. We know we can be competitive. It was fun to be where we were going into the final nine. That gave us a taste of where we want to be."
Gilliland took a double bogey on the No. 11 hole, followed by a bogey on No. 12 and eventually finished with a 41 for a final round of 77. But with the rest of the field also battling the severe conditions, Gilliland still managed to finish fifth in the individual race.
"My game just went south on the back nine," Gilliland said. "I wasn't moving the ball very well from tee to green or on the greens. The conditions were awfully tough. I've just got to work on playing in pressure situations. I got a little nervous and my swing got away from me. It seemed like it was that way for the whole team."
Oklahoma State cruised to the team title with a 54-hole total of 851, 12 strokes ahead of runner-up Kansas' 863. Colorado slipped past A&M and Texas into third place at 873, while the Longhorns (876) held off the Aggies (284-289-304=877) by a mere one stroke for fourth.
The Cowboys' Charles Howell waltzed to the individual title, winning by a record 10 strokes over teammate Edward Loar (210) with rounds of 66-66-68=200. Texas' Matt Brost finished third at 212, including a final-round 70, followed by Kansas' Casey Harbour in fourth at 213 and Gilliland at 60-67-77=214.
Morley had a strong final round going for the Aggies until losing his ball on the 18th hole and eventually taking a triple bogey to finish with a 76. Morley finished tied for 15th with a total of 70-73-76=219, while Lindholm tied for 20th at 72-75-74=221, McCoy finished 26th at 72-75-77=224 and Cox tied placed 40th at 76-74-79=229.
After perfect playing conditions for Monday's opening two rounds, Prairie Dunes got its revenge on Tuesday. In the first 36 holes, 18 rounds of par or better were posted and only nine rounds of 80 or worse were posted. But in the windy final round, only four players shot par or better and 17 carded rounds of 80 or more.
The Aggies are back in action at The Maxwell May 12-13 in Ardmore, Okla. The Aggies also are assured of a berth in the NCAA Central Regional May 18-20 in Victoria, Texas.