ATLANTIC BEACH, Fla. – The Texas A&M men's golf team staked claim to a lead the Sea Best Invitational after Monday's 36 holes.
The Maroon & White posted rounds of 9-under 275 and 10-under 274, ending the day at 19-under 549. The Aggies enter Tuesday's final round looking to fend off Florida Atlantic and Florida Gulf Coast who are tied for second place, six strokes back at 13-under 555. Texas A&M is hunting for back-to-back tournament titles for the first time since January 2020.
Phichaksn Maichon leads the pack with a 9-under 133 with rounds of 66 and 67. He logged seven birdies in the opening round and five in the closing circuit. In Tuesday's final round, Maichon will be in the same group as his closest pursuers, including second-place Guilerhme Grinberg (-8) of Florida Atlantic and third-place Christian Figueredo (-7) of Florida Gulf Coast.
Wheaton Ennis finished the day in fifth placed at 5-under 137. He fired five birdies in each round.
Jaime Montojo and Vishnu Sadagopan were among five golfers tied for seventh place at 3-under 139. Aaron Pounds was one stroke back in 12th place. Michael Heidelbaugh heads into Tuesday tied for 18th place at 1-under 141.
Tuesday's final round features a shotgun start at 7 a.m.
For the most up-to-date information on Texas A&M men's golf, follow the Aggies on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
TEXAS A&M QUOTES
Head Coach Brian Kortan
On the strong showing through two rounds...
"It was just an accumulation of a lot of solid golf. They put a lot of shots together and took care of the ball really well for the most part. We wedged it really well today which is something we talked about and work on quite a bit. It was good to see that work play out on the course. Overall the guys were ready to play. They wanted to get out there and get the spring season started."
On what they need to do to claim the title tomorrow...
"Winning the golf tournament is something we want every time out. So the guys will be ready to go. We just have to keep doing the things we did today. We have to take care of the ball off the tee which puts you in position to attack these par 4s and play the par 3s as well."
On having six guys posting rounds that would have scored ...
"It's great when you have everybody playing well. That means the preparation and the time and effort they're putting in at home is paying off. I felt bad for Vish (Sadagopan). He woke up with the flu this morning. He was going to be in the lineup for us, but we had to sub him out. This morning it looked like a bad coach decision (after he opened with a 65), but he's in rough shape. We're really proud of his fight today. P (Phichaksn Maichon) was out there doing what P does – playing a lot of good golf. It was good to see Wheaton (Ennis) put some great stretches together. But everybody contributed. It was a great team effort today."
TEAM STANDINGS
TEXAS A&M SCORES
The Maroon & White posted rounds of 9-under 275 and 10-under 274, ending the day at 19-under 549. The Aggies enter Tuesday's final round looking to fend off Florida Atlantic and Florida Gulf Coast who are tied for second place, six strokes back at 13-under 555. Texas A&M is hunting for back-to-back tournament titles for the first time since January 2020.
Phichaksn Maichon leads the pack with a 9-under 133 with rounds of 66 and 67. He logged seven birdies in the opening round and five in the closing circuit. In Tuesday's final round, Maichon will be in the same group as his closest pursuers, including second-place Guilerhme Grinberg (-8) of Florida Atlantic and third-place Christian Figueredo (-7) of Florida Gulf Coast.
Wheaton Ennis finished the day in fifth placed at 5-under 137. He fired five birdies in each round.
Jaime Montojo and Vishnu Sadagopan were among five golfers tied for seventh place at 3-under 139. Aaron Pounds was one stroke back in 12th place. Michael Heidelbaugh heads into Tuesday tied for 18th place at 1-under 141.
Tuesday's final round features a shotgun start at 7 a.m.
For the most up-to-date information on Texas A&M men's golf, follow the Aggies on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
TEXAS A&M QUOTES
Head Coach Brian Kortan
On the strong showing through two rounds...
"It was just an accumulation of a lot of solid golf. They put a lot of shots together and took care of the ball really well for the most part. We wedged it really well today which is something we talked about and work on quite a bit. It was good to see that work play out on the course. Overall the guys were ready to play. They wanted to get out there and get the spring season started."
On what they need to do to claim the title tomorrow...
"Winning the golf tournament is something we want every time out. So the guys will be ready to go. We just have to keep doing the things we did today. We have to take care of the ball off the tee which puts you in position to attack these par 4s and play the par 3s as well."
On having six guys posting rounds that would have scored ...
"It's great when you have everybody playing well. That means the preparation and the time and effort they're putting in at home is paying off. I felt bad for Vish (Sadagopan). He woke up with the flu this morning. He was going to be in the lineup for us, but we had to sub him out. This morning it looked like a bad coach decision (after he opened with a 65), but he's in rough shape. We're really proud of his fight today. P (Phichaksn Maichon) was out there doing what P does – playing a lot of good golf. It was good to see Wheaton (Ennis) put some great stretches together. But everybody contributed. It was a great team effort today."
TEAM STANDINGS
| 1 | Texas A&M | -19 | 275-274=549 |
| t-2 | Florida Atlantic | -13 | 276-279=555 |
| t-2 | Florida Gulf Coast | -13 | 280-275=555 |
| 4 | UNC Wilmington | -3 | 282-283=565 |
| t-5 | Kennesaw State | +3 | 292-279=571 |
| t-5 | North Alabama | +3 | 288-283=571 |
| 7 | Lipscomb | +7 | 293-282=575 |
| 8 | Jacksonville | +12 | 290-290=580 |
| 9 | Louisiana Tech | +18 | 291-295=586 |
| 10 | Queens-Charlotte | +20 | 290-298=588 |
| 11 | UCF | +21 | 292-297=589 |
| 12 | USC Upstate | +30 | 299-299=598 |
TEXAS A&M SCORES
| 1 | Phichaksn Maichon | -9 | 66-67=133 |
| 5 | Wheaton Ennis | -5 | 69-68=137 |
| t-7 | Jaime Montojo | -3 | 70-69=139 |
| t-12 | Aaron Pounds | -2 | 70-70=140 |
| t-18 | Michael Heidelbaugh | -1 | 70-71=141 |
| INDIVIDUAL | |||
| t-7 | Vishnu Sadagopan | -3 | 65-74=139 |