There’s nothing better than winning in front of your fans. It’s even more special to win on the most prestigious day in golf.
Texas A&M men’s golf completed play at the Aggie Invitational at the Traditions Club on Sunday, April 10. Rounds 1 and 2 of the Invitational took place on Saturday, April 9.
On Day 1 of the invitational, A&M fifth-year Walker Lee led all competitors on the individual leaderboard with a score of 3 under. Senior teammate Sam Bennett joined Lee in the top five with a score of 1 over par. A&M also led the way on the team leaderboard with a nine-stroke lead over second place Texas Tech. Other Aggies in the top 10 were sophomore Evan Myers, sophomore Daniel Rodrigues and junior William Paysse.
A&M coach Brian Kortan said he was proud of the way A&M fought through the difficult weather conditions.
“We had some really tough conditions today, and the guys hung in there and stayed patient,” coach Brian Kortan said. “We made some mistakes, but we just hung in there. On a day like today, you are going to make some. The wind was blowing hard, and the course was playing difficult.”
Moving into the final day of the Invitation, A&M kept the pedal to the metal.
Lee continued his strong performance to take the individual win, his fifth career, at the Aggie Invitational with Bennett also finishing inside the top five. Impressively, Lee was the only player to not finish over par. Myers also managed to finish within the top 10.
A&M ended up taking home the team win as well with a score of 23 over par, completing the sweep in front of its home fans.
Kortan said the already hard level of difficulty at the Traditions was heightened by the weather conditions.
“Traditions is tough on a calm day, and then you throw this at it, and you had to be tough to get through the day,” Kortan said. “I think we have a really tough team and it showed. They hung in there and were patient enough to make it through the day. It was incredible toughness and patience by the guys to fight through a difficult golf course in tough conditions against a couple top-10 teams. To do that is a nice way to head into the postseason.”
Lee said the Aggie Invitational is always an amazing tournament because of the opportunity to play in front of the best fans in the country.
“It is awesome,” Lee said. “[Aggie Invitational] is the best tournament we play in because of the fans. We travel all over the country, and no other team has the support like this.”
Up next for the Aggies is the SEC Championship at Sea Island Golf Club in St. Simons, Ga. SEC Championship Stroke Play is from April 20-22, and SEC Match Play is from April 23- 24.