PALM CITY, FLA. – The Texas A&M men's golf team opened play at the Valspar Collegiate Invitational Monday, owning fourth place after 36 holes of competition.
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"I thought we played pretty well today," Aggie head coach J.T. Higgins said. "The wind was blowing consistently out of the north about 20 miles per hour with gusts harder than that and they had the course set up very tough. The greens are firm and fast with the pins tucked. It was set up like a championship and these are some of the best teams in the country."
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Texas A&M (294-290=584) stands at 16-over par for the tournament, sitting behind Texas (+2), LSU (+12) and Oklahoma State (+15) on the 15-team leaderboard.
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"I thought we hung in there really well to put ourselves in good position and within striking distance," Higgins added. "I think the wind is supposed to blow again tomorrow, but if we can post a good score you never know what can happen."
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Rookie Chandler Phillips (73-68=141, -1) stands out as the highest-ranking Aggie on the leaderboard, holding a share of fourth place after surging up 21 spots in the player standings with a second-round 68. Sophomore Andrew Paysse (71-77=148, +6), meanwhile, was below par during his first turn on the golf course before ending the day in a tie for 29th.
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"Really proud of Chandler and Andrew," Higgins commented. "He (Paysse) really put up a nice round this morning and Chandler was just money this afternoon. He kept the ball in play great off the tee and put it in the right positions, even when he missed the green he put it in manageable spots."
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Sophomore Cameron Champ (76-73=149, +7) stands in a tie for 35th, while senior Adria Arnaus (74-76=150, +8) is a shot back in 47th. Ben Crancer (79-73=152, +10), meanwhile, rounds out the A&M contingency at the event in a tie for 57th after two rounds of play.
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"I like what I saw today," Higgins said. "Everybody showed a lot of fight and determination and kept battling the whole way through. Obviously, when you're 16-over par you can point to a lot of things you could have done better but at the same time it just wasn't easy with the conditions out there."
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The tournament resumes Tuesday morning with a concluding 18 holes on the Floridian Golf Course. The Aggies will be paired along Memphis and Oklahoma State on the events final day of competition.
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"I thought we played pretty well today," Aggie head coach J.T. Higgins said. "The wind was blowing consistently out of the north about 20 miles per hour with gusts harder than that and they had the course set up very tough. The greens are firm and fast with the pins tucked. It was set up like a championship and these are some of the best teams in the country."
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Texas A&M (294-290=584) stands at 16-over par for the tournament, sitting behind Texas (+2), LSU (+12) and Oklahoma State (+15) on the 15-team leaderboard.
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"I thought we hung in there really well to put ourselves in good position and within striking distance," Higgins added. "I think the wind is supposed to blow again tomorrow, but if we can post a good score you never know what can happen."
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Rookie Chandler Phillips (73-68=141, -1) stands out as the highest-ranking Aggie on the leaderboard, holding a share of fourth place after surging up 21 spots in the player standings with a second-round 68. Sophomore Andrew Paysse (71-77=148, +6), meanwhile, was below par during his first turn on the golf course before ending the day in a tie for 29th.
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"Really proud of Chandler and Andrew," Higgins commented. "He (Paysse) really put up a nice round this morning and Chandler was just money this afternoon. He kept the ball in play great off the tee and put it in the right positions, even when he missed the green he put it in manageable spots."
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Sophomore Cameron Champ (76-73=149, +7) stands in a tie for 35th, while senior Adria Arnaus (74-76=150, +8) is a shot back in 47th. Ben Crancer (79-73=152, +10), meanwhile, rounds out the A&M contingency at the event in a tie for 57th after two rounds of play.
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"I like what I saw today," Higgins said. "Everybody showed a lot of fight and determination and kept battling the whole way through. Obviously, when you're 16-over par you can point to a lot of things you could have done better but at the same time it just wasn't easy with the conditions out there."
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The tournament resumes Tuesday morning with a concluding 18 holes on the Floridian Golf Course. The Aggies will be paired along Memphis and Oklahoma State on the events final day of competition.
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