The Texas men’s golf team spent its weekend in Hockley, Texas, at the Big 12 Match Play Tournament hosted by The Clubs at Houston Oaks. The three-day tournament concluded Sunday afternoon as the Longhorns fell to fourth place behind Oklahoma as Baylor secured the title.
Hunter Ostrom led Texas to a tie with Kansas for second place on the opening day of the tournament. Ostrom, a graduate transfer from Notre Dame, matched up against Kansas’ Ben Sigel and won five holes out of 14 going into day two. Juniors Pierceson Coody and Cole Hammer were other key contributors to the second-place tie.
Sophomore Mason Nome made his fall season debut as he clinched a two-hole win. Nome replaced junior Parker Coody this weekend in Hockley, as Coody did not travel with the team. Christoffer Bring helped secure Friday’s Pool B play with a 3 and 2 victory over Kansas’ William Duquette, winning three out of 16 holes. To close out the Texas-Kansas matchup, sophomore Travis Vick faced Kansas’ Zach Sokolosky where he gained a half-point over the Jayhawks.
Texas beat Texas Tech with a 3-2-1 victory in Saturday’s final round. Ostrom and Coody’s individual performances gave Texas the six points runner-up finish. Ostrom’s one-up victory, Coody’s 3 and 2 play, and Vick’s 3 and 1 play gave the team its second win of the weekend. Both Coody and Vick won three holes on day two, leaving Texas one point behind Oklahoma State. The Longhorns finished with six points in pool play with their wins against Kansas and Texas Tech.
Texas barely missed the championship match on Sunday as the team fell short to Oklahoma State. The men faced Oklahoma, who won their Sunday morning matchup with TCU, and concluded the tournament with a fourth place finish. Nome, Coody and Hammer were the leaders of the pack on day three against OU. Nome and Coody each won three holes out of 16 with victories of 3 and 2 against the Sooners. Hammer earned a half-point in the fourth match off, leading Texas to its fourth place finish after surrendering third place to Oklahoma.
The Longhorns now enter into a two-week bye period before they travel to Carrollton, Texas, on Oct. 18 for the Maridoe Collegiate Invitational. Texas will head to Atlanta, Georgia, on Oct. 26 to compete in the highly reputable East Lake Cup to wrap up the fall season, with live coverage on the Golf Channel.
