LAS VEGAS – Texas A&M head men's golf coach J.T. Higgins was officially inducted in the Golf Coaches Association of America Hall of Fame Monday night at the organization's Hall of Fame Reception and Awards Banquet in Las Vegas.
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Higgins was joined by Bruce Brockbank, Jimmy Stobs and Sandy Terry to form the GCAA's 2015 Hall of Fame Class.
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"It's a little surreal," Higgins said of his inducting. "I'm not sure I felt like I'm old enough to go into the hall of fame, in a lot of ways I feel like we're just getting started. I'm really honored, this has been a great opportunity to thank a lot of people that helped us become successful, reach a lot of goals and impact a lot of lives. Former players, assistant coaches, friends, family and, of course, Texas A&M have all made such a big impact on my life, and this has been a great chance to tell everyone thank you."
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Higgins is in his 15th season at the helm of the Texas A&M golf program after a successful stint at New Mexico. He led the Aggies to a school-record 12 straight NCAA tournaments from 2002-14 and guided the program to its first national championship in 2009. Higgins has been named conference coach of the year in both the Big 12 and Mountain West and is a four-time Golf Pride Grips District/Region Coach of the Year. A total of 30 of his players have earned all-region honors and 17 were selected all-conference.
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Texas A&M golfers have earned 12 PING All-America honors under Higgins' tutelage. His teams have posted the 10 lowest scoring averages in school history and succeeded in the classroom with six Cleveland Golf/Srixon All-America Scholars and 19 Academic All-Conference honors. Aggies Andrea Pavan and Nacho Elvira represented Europe in the Arnold Palmer Cup while Higgins coached Team USA at the Toyota Junior Golf World Cup.
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"You realize that no one accomplishes anything alone, you've got to have great support and great people around you," Higgins added. "Without those people you're not successful, and you certainly don't get awards like this. I've been extremely fortunate to be around some incredible people, and I'm extremely grateful for everything they've done for me."
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Prior to Texas A&M, Higgins led New Mexico to four NCAA regional and two NCAA Championship appearances. In 2001, he was named Golf Pride Grips District VII Coach of the Year. Higgins' UNM teams never finished below fourth at the conference championships and in 1998 won the NCAA West Regional. In 1998 and 2000, the Lobos advanced to the NCAA Championships. Three UNM players earned PING All-America honors under Higgins' guidance. Four of his players were named Cleveland Golf/Srixon All-America Scholar and 12 earned academic all-conference honors. UNM's Wil Collins received the 2001 Ben Hogan Award.
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In addition to his success on the golf course, Higgins served on and chaired the GCAA All-America, International Selection, Ben Hogan Award and Jack Nicklaus Award committees. He also serves as a voter on the Bushnell/Golfweek Coaches poll and serves as Division I Director-Central on the GCAA National Advisory Board.
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Higgins was joined by Bruce Brockbank, Jimmy Stobs and Sandy Terry to form the GCAA's 2015 Hall of Fame Class.
Â
"It's a little surreal," Higgins said of his inducting. "I'm not sure I felt like I'm old enough to go into the hall of fame, in a lot of ways I feel like we're just getting started. I'm really honored, this has been a great opportunity to thank a lot of people that helped us become successful, reach a lot of goals and impact a lot of lives. Former players, assistant coaches, friends, family and, of course, Texas A&M have all made such a big impact on my life, and this has been a great chance to tell everyone thank you."
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Higgins is in his 15th season at the helm of the Texas A&M golf program after a successful stint at New Mexico. He led the Aggies to a school-record 12 straight NCAA tournaments from 2002-14 and guided the program to its first national championship in 2009. Higgins has been named conference coach of the year in both the Big 12 and Mountain West and is a four-time Golf Pride Grips District/Region Coach of the Year. A total of 30 of his players have earned all-region honors and 17 were selected all-conference.
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Texas A&M golfers have earned 12 PING All-America honors under Higgins' tutelage. His teams have posted the 10 lowest scoring averages in school history and succeeded in the classroom with six Cleveland Golf/Srixon All-America Scholars and 19 Academic All-Conference honors. Aggies Andrea Pavan and Nacho Elvira represented Europe in the Arnold Palmer Cup while Higgins coached Team USA at the Toyota Junior Golf World Cup.
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"You realize that no one accomplishes anything alone, you've got to have great support and great people around you," Higgins added. "Without those people you're not successful, and you certainly don't get awards like this. I've been extremely fortunate to be around some incredible people, and I'm extremely grateful for everything they've done for me."
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Prior to Texas A&M, Higgins led New Mexico to four NCAA regional and two NCAA Championship appearances. In 2001, he was named Golf Pride Grips District VII Coach of the Year. Higgins' UNM teams never finished below fourth at the conference championships and in 1998 won the NCAA West Regional. In 1998 and 2000, the Lobos advanced to the NCAA Championships. Three UNM players earned PING All-America honors under Higgins' guidance. Four of his players were named Cleveland Golf/Srixon All-America Scholar and 12 earned academic all-conference honors. UNM's Wil Collins received the 2001 Ben Hogan Award.
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In addition to his success on the golf course, Higgins served on and chaired the GCAA All-America, International Selection, Ben Hogan Award and Jack Nicklaus Award committees. He also serves as a voter on the Bushnell/Golfweek Coaches poll and serves as Division I Director-Central on the GCAA National Advisory Board.