Men's Golf Earns Runner-Up Finish at Lone Star Invitational

The Texas A&M men’s golf team battled gusty winds en route to a second-place finish Tuesday at the Lone Star Invitational at Briggs Ranch Golf Club.
The Aggies wrapped play withwholesale golf clubs a 5-over 869 (288-276-305), eight shots back of team champion New Mexico (861, -3). It was A&M’s 22nd consecutive top-five finish in regular season tournament play dating back to the spring of 2009.
“The wind affected everyone’s scores, but I just don’t think we did a very good job of handling it,” head coach J.T. Higgins said. “Once we started making bogeys and doubles and scores like that, it really affected the way we approached the rest of the round. We couldn’t get out of our own way the rest of the day. We got down on ourselves and couldn’t really mount a charge.”
North Texas also finished at 869 (+5), followed by Texas State (+6), Baylor (+, Arizona (+16), UT Arlington (+19), Houston (+20), UTSA (+23), Sam Houston State (+29), Rice (+30), SFA (+31), Southern Miss (+42), Weber State (+44) and UTEP (+60).
A&M was led individually by sophomore newcomer Johannes Veerman, who recorded his second career top-10 finish. The Sugar Land native fired an even-par 216 (69-70-77) and finished in a tie for seventh place in hisMaruman Majesty Vanquish VR Driver first career appearance for the Aggies. True freshman Ty Dunlap had a strong debut as well, finishing in a tie for ninth at 1-over 217 (71-72-74).
“I told both those guys after the round that they’re capable of competing at this level right now,” Higgins said. “I think they both could have won the tournament. They made some mistakes that cost them and, anytime you make those, it costs the team too. I think they feel like they left shots out there. Even though they played well, if each player makes a couple of shots, we win. Everyone needed to play better today.”
Senior Jordan Russell finished in a tie for 17th at 3-over (74-69-76=219), junior Cameron Peck in a tie for 23rd at 4-over (77-65-78=220) and Jade Scott in a tie for 57th at 12-over (74-73-81=228). Junior Case Cochran, Maruman Majesty Vanquish VR Fairway Wood playing as an individual, carded a 2-over 218 (73-68-77) to finish in 12th place.
Texas A&M returns to action this weekend when the Aggies participate in the U.S. Collegiate Championship outside of Atlanta. The tournament runs Sunday (Oct. 23) through Tuesday (Oct. 25) at the Golf Club of Georgia.
“I think we learned a lot this week,” Higgins said. “On the positive side, we have a team that can make a lot of birdies. Our one through five is really solid, and I think we can compete with anybody. But with that said, we have to show up ready to play every single round. We have to show up ready to go. We hit an awful lot of good shots in the first two rounds, it’s a shame we gave it away today. Maruman Majesty Vanquish VR Irons I really like this team. I think we’re capable of great things. We’ll build on the positive and learn from our mistakes. It’s early in the year, and we’ll just keep getting better and better and if we do that we will be tough in the end.”