CHANDLER, Ariz. – One week after recording the 4th-best round in program history, the UT Arlington men's golf team went to work re-writing the nearly 60-year-old history book once again on Monday as the Mavericks tied the 8th-best round all-time as part of the Wyoming Cowboy Classic at Whirlwind Golf Club at Wild Horse.
UTA shot an 11-under 277 2nd round to propel nine spots up the leaderboard following an opening-round 5-over 293 earlier in the day, and sits in a tie for 6th place just 12 shots off the overall lead held by UCLA entering Tuesday's final round.
All four counting scores in the UTA lineup were under par in the 2nd round, led by a career-low 68 from freshman
Caleb Hicks. The 277 is just three shots shy of what the Mavs' produced in the 2nd round exactly one week ago as that 274 was the 4th-best in program history (record: 270).
However, playing the par-71 Chambers Bay Golf Course – site of the 2015 U.S. Open – last week, that 274 was just 10-under par. The 11-under performance put together in the 2nd round Monday was tied for the 6th-lowest round relative to par in program history.
While Hicks signed for the low round of the tournament for UTA, it's been the incredible play of senior
Tanner Gore which has helped spearhead the Mavs on this recent stretch. Gore shot an opening-round 1-under 71 before following it up with a 3-under 69 in the 2nd round and resides in a tie for 15th overall in the field of 119 with a 4-under 140 total, just four shots off the individual lead.
The performances continued a gaudy spring for Gore as he has now recorded seven-straight rounds of even par or better, with six of those being below par, including five in a row.
After shooting a 1st-round 75, Hicks rebounded with the impressive 68 in the 2nd round – his first time breaking 70 in a collegiate event. He is tied for 32nd overall with a 1-under 143 total after making six birdies in the 2nd round, including five on the front side as part of an opening-9 31.
Hicks is tied on the leaderboard with
Camilo Avila, who set a career-low of his own during the 2nd round with a bogey-free 3-under 69 – also the first time the senior has broken 70 in a collegiate tournament. He recorded an opening-round 74, but commenced his 2nd round par-birdie-birdie-birdie before recording 14-straight pars to conclude his day.
Paul Gonzalez rounded out the UTA lineup scoring for the 2nd round with a 1-under 71 and resides just one shot back of Avila and Hicks with a 36-hole even-par 144 total and a tie for 40th overall.
Concluding the UTA scoring for day one was freshman
Kyle Cox with rounds of 78-74: 152, and individual
Jacob Massengale with rounds of 75-81: 156.
UCLA leads the 20-team field with a 558 total – two ahead of Cal State Fullerton (560) – but UTA sits just the aforementioned 12 shots back with the 570 total. The Mavs are only two shots back of UC Davis (568) and five behind Santa Clara (565).
The Mavs' 2nd round helped them jump up the leaderboard nine spots – tied for the largest improvement in the field along with 3rd-place Grand Canyon (562).
The final round is scheduled for Tuesday with another 8:30 a.m. Central shotgun start (7:30 a.m. local). Live scoring and pairings will be available
via Golfstat by clicking here or visiting the link accompanying this release. Additionally, updates will be posted on the official Twitter account of the program
@UTAMavsGolf.
Gore commenced his 2nd round with an exclamation, eagling the par-4, 337-yard 5th. After taking a 3-iron off the tee and leaving himself with about 30 yards, Gore chipped in for his 10th career eagle, tying him for the 4th-most in program history (record: 14).
UTA rolled in 122 pars over the first two rounds, representing the 2nd-most in the field behind only the 130 converted by Utah State. Avila led the way for the Mavs by making 27 pars – tied for the 3rd-most in the field through 36 holes.
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