Oct. 31, 2010
Coach Higgins Interview
C. Peck Interview
DALLAS - The 16th-ranked Texas A&M men's golf team will close out the fall portion of its season close to home this week when the Aggies compete Monday and Tuesday in the Royal Oaks Intercollegiate at Royal Oaks Country Club.
The first two rounds are scheduled for Monday with the final round set for Tuesday. A&M is the tournament's only champion, having claimed team titles in 2008 and again last season, when the Aggies shot a 4-under 848 and tallied a three-stroke victory over SMU.
"We love playing in Dallas at Royal Oaks," head coach J.T. Higgins said. "There is a very strong field here and we'll have to play with great focus, intensity and composure to bring home the championship for the third straight season. The course sets up great for us and we feel comfortable with our game plan on how to attack it. We are looking forward to a great trip."
Joining Texas A&M in the 12-team field are host Baylor, Big 12 foes Oklahoma and No. 25 Texas Tech, and No. 11 Iowa, No. 15 Arkansas, Lamar, Long Beach State, New Mexico, Penn State, SMU and UNLV.
The Aggies have had a very strong fall campaign, finishing fourth or better in some of the strongest tournaments on the collegiate schedule. Most recently, A&M placed third at the U.S. Collegiate Championship last week in Atlanta.
Junior Jordan Russell (College Station) leads the squad into the Royal Oaks Intercollegiate after a third-place finish last week. Russell, who sports a team-best 71.75 average, fired three sub-par rounds and finished the USCC at 6-under. Also competing for A&M in Dallas will be sophomore Cameron Peck (72.08 average), senior John Hurley (73.33), sophomore Case Cochran (74.33) and junior Geoff Shaw (75.33). Senior Conrad Shindler (74.44) will play in the tournament as an individual.
The team will again be playing without senior Nacho Elvira, who is wrapping up play this weekend for his native Spain at the World Amateur Championships in Argentina.
A&M will be paired with Baylor and UNLV in the first two rounds and will tee off in a shotgun start beginning at 8:30 a.m.
For Aggie fans interested in attending, Royal Oaks is located just east of Central Expressway (US 75) on Greenville Avenue. The course sits south of LBJ Freeway (I-635) between Royal Lane and Meadow Road.
Fans can also follow the action through live scoring at Golfstat.com and aggieathletics.com. Updates will also be available on twitter at @AggieMensGolf.
ROYAL OAKS INTERCOLLEGIATE BREAKDOWN
November 1 & 2 - Royal Oaks Country Club (par 71/7,068 yards), Dallas, Texas
The Field (12 teams): No. 11 Iowa, No. 15 Arkansas, No. 16 Texas A&M, No. 25 Texas Tech, Baylor, Lamar, Long Beach State, New Mexico, Oklahoma, Penn State, SMU, UNLV. Format: team stroke play, 54 holes Rounds 1 & 2: Monday, 8:30 a.m. CT Round 3: Tuesday, 8:30 a.m. CT Host Institution: Baylor Defending Champions: Texas A&M (848, -4); James Kwon, SMU (207, -6) A&M Lineup: Case Cochran (So., 74.33 average); John Hurley (Sr., 73.33); Cameron Peck (So., 72.08); Jordan Russell (Jr., 71.75); Geoff Shaw (Jr., 75.33). Conrad Shindler (Sr., 74.44) will compete as an individual. Live Scoring: www.golfstat.com Updates: via twitter at @AggieMensGolf Up Next: Feb. 16-18 at John A. Burns Intercollegiate, Wahiawa, Hawai'i