The No. 5 Texas men’s golf team enters the home stretch of its season, looking to ride the momentum of its two previous tournaments as it travels to Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida this weekend.
The Longhorns will stay busy this month, with the Hayt Collegiate Tournament on March 8-10 marking the first of five tournaments before the Southeastern Conference Championship. Texas enters this stretch hot, finishing first and third in its last two tournaments, with its two star players in top form.
Junior Tommy Morrison is coming off his first individual collegiate victory at the Amer Ari Invitational in Hawaii where he shot 21 under par over three rounds. With the triumph, Morrison climbed to No. 6 in the World Amateur Golf Rankings.
“I definitely feel like there’s a monkey off my back, and I think I’ll play with even more confidence following a win,” Morrison said.
Junior Christiaan Maas, who is No. 12 in the rankings, struggled in Hawaii and tied for 63rd place. However, Maas bounced back, tying for fourth at the Investec South African Open Championship and winning the Freddie Tait Cup for low amateur at the professional event.
Maas ended his round Saturday two shots back of the lead with a chance to win on Sunday, only for the final round to be canceled due to rain and course conditions.
“I’m not really sure how to feel right now,” Maas said after the tournament, according to Compleat Golfer. “It’s a massive honor to win the Freddie Tait, but still, I’m disappointed we couldn’t play today.”
Morrison and Maas are not the only players stepping up for the squad. Freshman Daniel Bennett has established himself as one of the best collegiate players in the country, climbing to No. 5 in the Scoreboard Individual men’s rankings. He currently leads the team with a 68.67 scoring average.
Junior Luke Potter has also had a bounce-back season after a rough campaign last year with Arizona State. Potter’s scoring average has dropped to 70.53 compared to his 72.40 average last season.
Texas needs to be firing on all cylinders as it approaches its first SEC Championship. There are eight other SEC teams in the top 20 of the Scoreboard team rankings, so the Longhorns will have their work cut out for them.
If Texas can continue to perform at a high level, there’s no reason it can’t cement itself as a top contender before the SEC Championship in April.
