Texas A&M Needs Sunday Surge to Make NCAA Tournament
The Texas A&M Aggies played much better during the second round of the 2022 NCAA Men’s Golf Championships on Saturday but didn’t matter until late in the second round.
After shooting a 20-over-par 300 on Friday, the Aggies followed that up with a 7-over-par 287 to finish with a 36-hole total of 27-over-par 587. But, while the Aggies got better, so did the rest of the field. At one point, when the Aggies finished as one of the early groups, they were in a tie for 24th place.
But, by day’s end, Texas A&M had moved up seven spots from their Friday finish and were in a tie for 17th place.
The Aggies, seeking to win their first NCAA title since 2009, still need help to get past the 54-hole cut on Sunday. Right now, they are xxx shots out of 15th place.
Sam Bennett had the Aggies’ low round of the day, shooting an even-par 70. Coupled with his 77 on Friday, he has a two-day score of 147.
Daniel Rodrigues improved by two shots over his first-round score of 74, and his second-round 72 made him the low Aggie for 36 holes with a score of 146, one shot ahead of Bennett.
William Paysee also had a two-shot improvement on Saturday, going from a first-round 75 to a second-round 73 and a two-round score of 148. He was followed by Walker Lee (78-72—150) and Phichaksn Maichon (74-78—152).
The conditions were better at Grayhawk Golf Club on Saturday, and scores dropped, and the leaderboard turned over, as a result.
Oklahoma took over the lead with one of two under-par rounds of the second round, as the Sooners shot 5-under-par and have a two-shot lead on Vanderbilt, which led after the first round. Oklahoma State — the other team with an under-par score on Saturday — was third, four shots back, while North Carolina and Pepperdine rounded out the Top 5.
After that, Arkansas was in sixth, followed by Auburn. Arizona and Texas were tied for eighth, and Kansas and Georgia were tied for 10th.
After 54 holes at Grayhawk, the field will be cut to the Top 15 teams on Sunday night. The Top 15 will advance to the final round of stroke play on Monday. After Monday’s fourth round, the field will be cut to the Top 8 and those teams will advance to match play to determine the team championship.
Quarterfinal and semifinal matches will be played on Tuesday, and the championship match will be played on Wednesday.
Want to join in on the discussion? Click here to become a member of the All Aggies message board community today!
Follow AllAggies.com on Facebook and Twitter!