@UTAMavsMGolf Looks To Close Fall Slate Strong At Little Rock Invitational

LITTLE ROCK, Ark. – Looking to close out the fall portion of its 2019-20 schedule on a high note, the momentum-riding UT Arlington men's golf team heads back to Arkansas for the second time in as many weeks, this time to tee it up in the Little Rock Invitational Monday and Tuesday, Oct. 21-22.

Action is set to commence with 36 continuous holes on Monday with the final round slated for Tuesday. Both days will get underway with shotgun starts at 8:15 a.m. Live scoring will be available via Golfstat by following the link attached to this release or by clicking here.

The Mavericks will utilize the exact same lineup which has propelled them to a top-100 ranking through the season's first three events:

1) Paul Gonzalez
2) Caleb Hicks
3) Kyle Cox
4) Daniel Cronje
5) Zakary Jones

In addition to that quintet, Zach Cole is expected to compete as an individual for the Mavericks, which would represent his third such appearance in that position already this year.

Those six will be competing against a strong field as five teams – including #90 UTA – reside inside the top 100 of the initial Golfstat Rankings released earlier this week: Campbell (#60), Little Rock (#70), Illinois State (#80) and Texas State (#100). Additionally, a pair of others (Southern Miss #109 & Middle Tennessee #112) are just outside the top 100 in the field of 17.

That #90 ranking for UTA is its highest (relative to the end of the season) since the 2011-12 squad finished the year at #66. All-time, the best-ever finish in the Golfstat Rankings for UTA came in 2008-09 when that edition of the Mavericks closed the year at #43 – the only top-50 finish in program history.

This year's club is on pace – with continued strong play – to potentially surpass that mark. Through UTA's first nine rounds of the year, six have been at or below par, and it enters this week with a 287 scoring average. By comparison, last fall the team had none of those such rounds. Dating back to this past spring, 15 of UTA's last 22 rounds have been even par or better, with 14 of those checking in under par.

UTA commenced its 2019-20 season by being co-champions of the UTSA Lone Star Invitational last month before posting an incredible 18-under performance two weeks ago at Colorado's Mark Simpson Invitational – representing the 2nd-best score to par in program history. Last week at Arkansas State's Bubba Barnett Intercollege, UTA secured its third-straight top-5 finish to begin the year with a 3rd-place showing as part of a 3-over 867 total which included a pair of par-or-better rounds.

Gonzalez (71.22) and Cox (71.67) continue to lead UTA in scoring average as the junior and sophomore, respectively, are both under par for the year. Each has six par-or-better rounds, while Gonzalez has four rounds in the 60s already and Cox has two. Cox has finished in the top 20 in all three tournaments, and is coming off consecutive top-10 finishes the last two weeks, including a career-best 8-under 208.

Hicks is right on a 73 stroke average with four par-or-better performances, and the sophomore is coming off a season-best 2-under final round at the Bubba Barnett Intercollegiate. Jones is right behind the pace of Hicks with a 73.33 average and is responsible for the team's only other round in the 60s in addition to a trio of scores 72 or lower.

After a tough start to his collegiate career, freshman Cronje settled down in his third event to post a trio of rounds between 72 and 74 at Arkansas State, with an even-par 72 in his final round representing the best of his young career to this point. Cole, meanwhile, carries a 76.67 average through six rounds in his junior season.

This will be the final tournament for UTA until the spring as the Mavs will next return to competitive action in mid-February at Houston's All-American Intercollegiate.

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THE NEW HOME OF UTA GOLF: Texas Rangers Golf Club
The recently-opened state-of-the-art Texas Rangers Golf Club is the new home of the UT Arlington's men's and women's golf programs. The world's only Major League Baseball-branded golf course, TRGC is the result of a $24 million renovation and updated routing of the former Chester W. Ditto Golf Course at Brown Boulevard and Collins Street, just a few miles north of UTA's campus. The Home of UTA Golf was designed by UTA alumni John Colligan and Trey Kemp of Arlington-based Colligan Golf Design. It features an expansive 23-acre practice area, and a new 33,871-square-foot clubhouse – set to open in early 2020 – will feature a full-service restaurant and bar, covered patio overlooking the golf course, pro shop, locker rooms and numerous rental and event spaces. For more information about TRGC, click here.

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Players Mentioned

Zach Cole

Kyle Cox

Daniel Cronje

Paul Gonzalez

Caleb Hicks

Zak Jones

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