Saturday, April 24
Saint Simons Island, Ga.
6:30 AM
Texas A&M
vs
Georgia
The deciding point was captured by Dan Erickson, a “super” senior from Whittier, Calif., who edged Georgia’s Eli Scott 1-up on the 22nd hole.
Photo by: Steven Colquitt/UGAA
Aggies Upset Top-Seeded Georgia to Advance at SEC Championship
Apr 24, 2021 | Men's Golf
ST. SIMONS ISLAND, Ga. – The Texas A&M men's golf team upset top-seeded Georgia to advance to the semifinals of the 2021 Southeastern Conference Championship on Saturday at the Sea Island Golf Club.
The Aggies will face fifth-seeded Arkansas in the semifinals, which were postponed to Sunday due to stormy weather in the area. The Aggies and Hogs will face off at 6:30 a.m. CT and tee off from 10th hole.
Sunday's Matchup:
All times are Central
"(Beating top-seeded Georgia) says a lot about this team," Aggie head coach Brian Kortan said. "I was concerned about the team being ready because they had to expend so much energy just to get to match play. But these guys don't surprise me. They are a competitive crew. We aren't the most talented or the prettiest team, but they have guts, they are ultra-competitive and they are tough. I'm glad they're Aggies, that's for sure."
The deciding point was captured by Dan Erickson, a "super" senior from Whittier, Calif., who edged Georgia's Eli Scott 1-up on the 22nd hole. Erickson faced an early three-hole deficit, but battled back to even the match after 14 holes. Scott took the lead again on 16, but Erickson brought it back to level on 18. On the fourth extra hole, Erickson gave the Aggies the victory with his first lead of the day with a par, while Scott posted a bogey.
"Eli (Scott) made a couple of early putts and got 3-up pretty quickly," Kortan said. "I saw Dan on the 7th fairway and he told me 'I'm going to reel him in, one hole at a time' and that's what he did. It was a great match. They traded blows and Dan eventually outlasted him. It was a helluva match."
Other Aggies tallying victories were junior Sam Bennett and freshman Daniel Rodrigues. Bennett, the 2021 Ben Hogan Award semifinalist, was dominant in a 3&2 victory over Spencer Ralston, while Rodrigues tallied a 1-up victory over Davis Thompson, who is the fourth-ranked amateur golfer in the world.
"It was just a tremendous team effort," Kortan said. "Danny (Rodrigues) took down the fourth-ranked amateur in the world head-to-head. Walker (Lee) was down but battled back and fell on the 19th hole. Willie (Paysse) had a lead but couldn't hold on. And Sammy Bennett…who wants to play that cat right now? This team has toughness, heart and grit and when they are all locked-in they are hard to beat."
Saturday's Quarterfinal (#8 Texas A&M defeats #1 Georgia, 3-2)
###
About Texas A&M Athletics | Home of the 12th Man: One of the most successful Athletics Departments in the nation, Texas A&M ranked No. 15 in the 2018-19 Learfield IMG College Directors' Cup standings and is one of eight Division I institutions nationally to finish in the top 20 of the prestigious ranking of athletics success for at least 13 consecutive years. For more information, go to www.12thMan.com.
About Texas A&M University:
Texas A&M University, the flagship university within the Texas A&M University System, is a tier-one research institution with nearly $1 billion in research grants and more than 69,000 students. The President of Texas A&M University has strategic oversight for campuses in College Station and Galveston, TX and Doha, Qatar. We include The Health Science Center with the College of Medicine, Dentistry and Pharmacy, as well as The Texas A&M School of Law and Mays Business School. For more information, go to www.tamu.edu.
The Aggies will face fifth-seeded Arkansas in the semifinals, which were postponed to Sunday due to stormy weather in the area. The Aggies and Hogs will face off at 6:30 a.m. CT and tee off from 10th hole.
Sunday's Matchup:
| # | Time – Hole | #5 Arkansas (No. 23 Golfstat) | #8 Texas A&M (No. 11 Golfstat) |
| #5 | 6:30 a.m. - 10 | Segundo Pinto | Walker Lee |
| #4 | 6:40 a.m. - 10 | William Buhl | William Paysse |
| #3 | 6:50 a.m. - 10 | Tyson Reeder | Daniel Rodrigues |
| #2 | 7:00 a.m. - 10 | Manuel Lozado | Dan Erickson |
| #1 | 7:10 a.m. - 10 | Julian Perico | Sam Bennett |
"(Beating top-seeded Georgia) says a lot about this team," Aggie head coach Brian Kortan said. "I was concerned about the team being ready because they had to expend so much energy just to get to match play. But these guys don't surprise me. They are a competitive crew. We aren't the most talented or the prettiest team, but they have guts, they are ultra-competitive and they are tough. I'm glad they're Aggies, that's for sure."
The deciding point was captured by Dan Erickson, a "super" senior from Whittier, Calif., who edged Georgia's Eli Scott 1-up on the 22nd hole. Erickson faced an early three-hole deficit, but battled back to even the match after 14 holes. Scott took the lead again on 16, but Erickson brought it back to level on 18. On the fourth extra hole, Erickson gave the Aggies the victory with his first lead of the day with a par, while Scott posted a bogey.
"Eli (Scott) made a couple of early putts and got 3-up pretty quickly," Kortan said. "I saw Dan on the 7th fairway and he told me 'I'm going to reel him in, one hole at a time' and that's what he did. It was a great match. They traded blows and Dan eventually outlasted him. It was a helluva match."
Other Aggies tallying victories were junior Sam Bennett and freshman Daniel Rodrigues. Bennett, the 2021 Ben Hogan Award semifinalist, was dominant in a 3&2 victory over Spencer Ralston, while Rodrigues tallied a 1-up victory over Davis Thompson, who is the fourth-ranked amateur golfer in the world.
"It was just a tremendous team effort," Kortan said. "Danny (Rodrigues) took down the fourth-ranked amateur in the world head-to-head. Walker (Lee) was down but battled back and fell on the 19th hole. Willie (Paysse) had a lead but couldn't hold on. And Sammy Bennett…who wants to play that cat right now? This team has toughness, heart and grit and when they are all locked-in they are hard to beat."
Saturday's Quarterfinal (#8 Texas A&M defeats #1 Georgia, 3-2)
| Matchup | Result |
| Trent Phillips (UGA) def. Walker Lee (A&M) | 1-up (19 holes) |
| Connor Creasy (UGA) def. William Paysse (A&M) | 3 & 2 |
| Daniel Rodrigues (A&M) def. Davis Thompson (UGA) | 1-up |
| Sam Bennett (A&M) def. Spencer Ralston (UGA) | 3 & 2 |
| Dan Erickson (A&M) def. Eli Scott (A&M) | 1-up (22 holes) |
###
About Texas A&M Athletics | Home of the 12th Man: One of the most successful Athletics Departments in the nation, Texas A&M ranked No. 15 in the 2018-19 Learfield IMG College Directors' Cup standings and is one of eight Division I institutions nationally to finish in the top 20 of the prestigious ranking of athletics success for at least 13 consecutive years. For more information, go to www.12thMan.com.
About Texas A&M University:
Texas A&M University, the flagship university within the Texas A&M University System, is a tier-one research institution with nearly $1 billion in research grants and more than 69,000 students. The President of Texas A&M University has strategic oversight for campuses in College Station and Galveston, TX and Doha, Qatar. We include The Health Science Center with the College of Medicine, Dentistry and Pharmacy, as well as The Texas A&M School of Law and Mays Business School. For more information, go to www.tamu.edu.
Players Mentioned
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