April 16, 2006
No. 16-ranked Texas Tech fired a 12-under-par 276 on Sunday to capture the Aggie Invitational title by a single stroke over host Texas A&M.
The ninth-ranked Aggies entered the final round with a 15-stroke lead over Tech at Traditions Golf Club. A&M closed with a solid four-over 292 in ideal conditions but could not hold off the hard-charging Red Raiders. Tech had a 54-hole total of 868 to A&M's 869.
"We didn't play great but we didn't play that bad either," A&M coach J.T. Higgins said. "You have to tip your hat to Texas Tech. They played a tremendous round of golf. Any team that shoots 12-under on this golf course is a deserving champion."
No. 2 Oklahoma State finished third at 877, followed by Kent State (883), SMU (899), No. 12 Baylor (909), Kansas State (916), Oklahoma (916), Colorado (924), Michigan State (928) and Augusta State (928).
Tech's Oscar Floren closed with a tournament-record six-under 66 to take individual honors with a seven-under 207 total. Baylor's Ryan Baca was second at 212, A&M's Andrew Parr placed third at 215 and Oklahoma State's Pablo Martin, the nation's top-ranked collegian, took fourth at 216.
The Aggies got off to a rocky start on Sunday, but kept pace with Tech behind the play of Parr and freshman Bronson Burgoon. Parr closed with a 69 while Burgoon had a 71 and tied for seventh with a 218 total.
A&M sophomore Robert Gates, the leader after two rounds, also tied for seventh at 218 after closing with a 76.
Senior Jerad Harklau finished 14th (224) and sophomore Martin Piller tied for 21st (226).
Competing as individuals for A&M, junior Chris Massoletti tied for 21st (226), sophomore Kris Devlin tied for 44th (233), sophomore Trey Todd tied for 50th (234) and junior Dillon Gooch finished 66th (247).
The Aggies are back in action at the Big 12 Championship April 24-25 in Tulsa, Okla.