TUCSON, Ariz. – The No. 11 Texas A&M men's golf team earned its third tournament trophy of the season with a 36-under-par performance at the Arizona Thunderbirds Intercollegiate at Tucson Country Club.
The Maroon & White shot 828 (270-278-280) at the par-72, 7,072 course to beat the host, No. 22 Arizona (-33), by three strokes. California (-23), BYU (-16) and Long Beach State (-11) rounded out the top five.
Leading Arizona by two strokes with all 10 golfers having one hole left to play, the Maroon & White held off the Wildcats at the wire. Vishnu Sadagopan sealed the deal with a birdie to wrap up his round, sending A&M to its third victory of the season.
Arizona and Texas A&M were tied with four holes remaining, but Sam Bennett led a late charge, posting three birdies down the stretch. He carded a 4-under-par, 68 to lead Ol' Sarge's charges in the final round.
Bennett and Phichaksn Maichon tied for sixth place at 9-under, 207. Jaime Montojo also landed in the top 10 with an eighth-place performance at 8-under, 208. BYU's Zac Jones won medalist honors at 16-under, 200.
The Aggies fivesome was rounded out with Sadagopan in 11th place at 6-under, 210 and Daniel Rodrigues posting a 3-over, 219.
Michael Heidelbaugh, who was competing as an individual, also tied for 11th at 6-under, 210.
Texas A&M wrapped up round two Tuesday morning with a 10-under, 278, staking claim to a five-stroke lead over Arizona and California at 29-under-par, 549. Maichon highlighted A&M's second round with a 5-under, 67, including eight birdies. Bennett carded a 3-under, 69.
The Aggies return to action February 16-18 when they travel to Lihue, Hawai'i for the John A. Burns Intercollegiate on the Ocean Course at Hokuala.
TEAM SCORES
Texas A&M 270-278-280=828 (-36)
Arizona 276-277-278=831 (-33)
California 278-276-287=841 (-23)
Brigham Young 275-285-288=848 (-16)
Long Beach State 285-280-288=853 (-11)
SMU 288-282-284=854 (-10)
New Mexico 289-284-284=858 (-6)
Iowa State 287-285-287=859 (-5)
Saint Mary's (Calif.) 297-283-280=860 (-4)
Santa Clara 285-289-291=865 (+1)
West Virginia 298-291-280=869 (+5)
Cal Poly 292-281-298=871 (+7)
Seattle 289-288-294=871 (+7)
New Mexico State 288-291-296=875 (+11)
Central Michigan 300-304-300=904 (+40)
INDIVIDUAL SCORES
T6th Phichaksn Maichon 70-67-70=207 (-9)
T6th Sam Bennett 70-69-68=207 (-9)
T8th Jaime Montojo 66-71-71=208 (-8)
T11th Vishnu Sadagopan 68-71-71=210 (-6)
T11th Michael Heidelbaugh (i) 69-69-72=210 (-6)
T50th Daniel Rodrigues 66-80-73=219 (+3)
TEXAS A&M QUOTES
Senior Sam Bennett
On the strong finish...
"It was good. It was a pretty frustrating round for me at first. I wasn't getting many putts to fall, but I was able to stay patient. Coach (Matt) Fast and (Brian Kortan) told me on 15 we were tied, so I knew I need to make a few birdies coming down the stretch. I was able to make three out of my last four pretty crucial birdies to close off Arizona on their home course. It feels nice."
For the most up-to-date information on Texas A&M men's golf, follow the Aggies on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
The Maroon & White shot 828 (270-278-280) at the par-72, 7,072 course to beat the host, No. 22 Arizona (-33), by three strokes. California (-23), BYU (-16) and Long Beach State (-11) rounded out the top five.
Leading Arizona by two strokes with all 10 golfers having one hole left to play, the Maroon & White held off the Wildcats at the wire. Vishnu Sadagopan sealed the deal with a birdie to wrap up his round, sending A&M to its third victory of the season.
Arizona and Texas A&M were tied with four holes remaining, but Sam Bennett led a late charge, posting three birdies down the stretch. He carded a 4-under-par, 68 to lead Ol' Sarge's charges in the final round.
Bennett and Phichaksn Maichon tied for sixth place at 9-under, 207. Jaime Montojo also landed in the top 10 with an eighth-place performance at 8-under, 208. BYU's Zac Jones won medalist honors at 16-under, 200.
The Aggies fivesome was rounded out with Sadagopan in 11th place at 6-under, 210 and Daniel Rodrigues posting a 3-over, 219.
Michael Heidelbaugh, who was competing as an individual, also tied for 11th at 6-under, 210.
Texas A&M wrapped up round two Tuesday morning with a 10-under, 278, staking claim to a five-stroke lead over Arizona and California at 29-under-par, 549. Maichon highlighted A&M's second round with a 5-under, 67, including eight birdies. Bennett carded a 3-under, 69.
The Aggies return to action February 16-18 when they travel to Lihue, Hawai'i for the John A. Burns Intercollegiate on the Ocean Course at Hokuala.
TEAM SCORES
Texas A&M 270-278-280=828 (-36)
Arizona 276-277-278=831 (-33)
California 278-276-287=841 (-23)
Brigham Young 275-285-288=848 (-16)
Long Beach State 285-280-288=853 (-11)
SMU 288-282-284=854 (-10)
New Mexico 289-284-284=858 (-6)
Iowa State 287-285-287=859 (-5)
Saint Mary's (Calif.) 297-283-280=860 (-4)
Santa Clara 285-289-291=865 (+1)
West Virginia 298-291-280=869 (+5)
Cal Poly 292-281-298=871 (+7)
Seattle 289-288-294=871 (+7)
New Mexico State 288-291-296=875 (+11)
Central Michigan 300-304-300=904 (+40)
INDIVIDUAL SCORES
T6th Phichaksn Maichon 70-67-70=207 (-9)
T6th Sam Bennett 70-69-68=207 (-9)
T8th Jaime Montojo 66-71-71=208 (-8)
T11th Vishnu Sadagopan 68-71-71=210 (-6)
T11th Michael Heidelbaugh (i) 69-69-72=210 (-6)
T50th Daniel Rodrigues 66-80-73=219 (+3)
TEXAS A&M QUOTES
???@sammy_golf24243 talks about the strong finish to close out the Arizona Thunderbirds Intercollegiate.#GigEm | ?? | #BTHOthefield pic.twitter.com/bGyXVTiNvl
— Texas A&M Men's Golf (@AggieMensGolf) February 1, 2023
Senior Sam Bennett
On the strong finish...
"It was good. It was a pretty frustrating round for me at first. I wasn't getting many putts to fall, but I was able to stay patient. Coach (Matt) Fast and (Brian Kortan) told me on 15 we were tied, so I knew I need to make a few birdies coming down the stretch. I was able to make three out of my last four pretty crucial birdies to close off Arizona on their home course. It feels nice."
For the most up-to-date information on Texas A&M men's golf, follow the Aggies on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.