Texas A&M
PING/Golfweek Preview
Aggies Finish Fourth at PING/Golfweek Preview
Sep 28, 2010 | Men's Golf
Sept. 28, 2010
STILLWATER, Okla. - The ninth-ranked Texas A&M men's golf team finished in a tie for fourth place Tuesday at the PING/Golfweek Preview at Karsten Creek.
The Aggies (297-294-296) finished the tournament with a 23-over par 887, nine shots back of champion and top-ranked Oklahoma State (878, +14). A&M and OSU were the only two teams to shoot three sub-300 rounds at Karsten, home of the 2011 NCAA Championships, which saw no team and only one individual break par.
"Obviously our first goal was to win the tournament, and we didn't achieve that," head coach J.T. Higgins said, "but we came here with other purposes in mind. We wanted to learn more about this golf course and gain confidence on it, because it's really difficult. I think we leave feeling really good about Karsten and feel like we have a good game plan and strategy for taking it on come May. On top of that, we beat a lot of good teams and competed well with Oklahoma State on their home course. So overall I feel pretty good about the week."
No. 7 UCLA was second at 18-over, followed by No. 4 Georgia (+19). Defending national champion and No. 3-ranked Augusta State (+23) tied with A&M for fourth place. No. 11 Texas was fifth at 27-over, followed by No. 10 Georgia Tech (+28), No. 21 Texas Tech (+31), No. 5 Oregon (+40) and No. 20 Virginia (+51).
12th-ranked Arizona State (+58) finished 11th, while UNLV (+64), No. 17 Clemson (+68), No. 23 TCU (+75) and No. 13 USC (+84) rounded out the field.
Individually, senior Nacho Elvira posted another sub-par round on Tuesday, carding a 2-under 70. He shot 5-under over the final two rounds and finished the tournament at a 7-over 223 (84-69-70), good for 16th place.
"I don't think anyone played better than him over the last two days," Higgins said. "He was the best player in the field over the last 36 holes. It's so tough to come back from a really bad round like that and play well. It just shows he's got incredible heart and determination. I'm really proud of him. He's a great leader for our team."
Junior Jordan Russell (75-74-74) also tied for 16th at 7-over, while senior Conrad Shindler (72-76-76) finished 21st with an 8-over 224. Sophomores Case Cochran (226, +10) and Cameron Peck (228, +12) placed 30th and 33rd, respectively.
UCLA's Pontus Widegren won the tournament with a 2-under 214 and was the only player to finish under par on the week.
Texas A&M returns to action October 24-26 when the Aggies compete in the U.S. Collegiate Championship at the Golf Club of Georgia in Alpharetta.
NOTES: The fourth-place finish was the Aggies' second-best ever in the event ... A&M finished third in the 2006 Preview ... A&M's 887 is its best-ever score at Karsten Creek ... the Aggies shot 903 at the 1996 Karsten Creek Collegiate and 894 in the 2001 Central Regional.
