LITTLE ROCK, Ark. – Coming off a week break after consecutive top-5 all-time program records, the UT Arlington men's golf team concludes the fall portion of its 2021-22 schedule on Monday and Tuesday, Oct. 18-19, at the Little Rock Invitational from the Founder's Course at Chenal Country Club.
 
UTA LINEUP
1) Paul Gonzalez
2) Caleb Hicks
3) Daniel Steinarsson
4) Daniel Cronje
5) Kyle Cox
 
Gonzalez, Hicks and Steinarsson will each be competing for the fifth time this season in as many qualifying opportunities; meanwhile, Cronje will be making his fourth appearance this year in the team lineup while Cox will be notching his second. More information about each competitor is later in this release.
 
TOURNAMENT INFO
Format: 36 Holes Monday | 18 Holes Tuesday
Time: Shotgun Start Both Days @ 8 AM
Layout: Par 72 | 7,115 Yards
Live Scoring: Golfstat
Participating Teams: Abilene Christian, Boise State, Central Arkansas, Illinois State, Lamar, Little Rock, Missouri State, North Texas, Oral Roberts, Troy, ULM, UT Arlington, UTEP, Wichita State
 
LOOKING TO STAY HOT
Three weeks ago, UTA posted a -19 performance at the Mark Simpson Colorado Invitational, which ranked as the 2nd-best score to par in program lore. The Mavericks' 845 three-round total was the 6th best in program history.
 
Then, two weeks ago in their most recent tournament at SMU's Trinity Forest Invitational, the Mavs posted an 844 total to not only represent a season best, but also tie for the 5th-best in program history and best since the 2018-19 season.
 
INSIDE THE LINEUP

• Gonzalez has been arguably the best golfer in the Sun Belt Conference this fall. The Waxahachie native has four top-20 finishes, including back-to-back top 5s and a runner-up showing at Trinity Forest. Throwing out an outlier of an 82 and a season-opening 74, nine of Gonzalez's 10 other rounds this season have been under par. He leads the Mavs with a 70.58 scoring average in 12 rounds, and five of his last six rounds have been in the 60s. Gonzalez has posted consecutive 205s, which are tied for the 4th-lowest totals in program history.
   
• Hicks has a 72.58 scoring average in 12 rounds to rank 2nd on the team. He also ranks 2nd behind Gonzalez in par-or-better rounds (six) and rounds in the 60s (two). All 12 of his rounds this year have been used in the team score, and Hicks is coming off a season-best T-10 at Trinity Forest thanks to a 3-under 210 total – one shot shy of equaling his career best.
   
• All but one of Steinarsson's rounds have been used in the team score this season as the Icelander carries a 73.67 scoring average across 12 rounds. He is coming off a career-best T-17 two weeks ago thanks to a career-low 214 total (70-70-74). Steinarsson has four par-or-better rounds this year, with the 70s representing season bests.
   
• Cronje will look to improve upon his 75.89 scoring average. After posting a season-opening round of level-par 72, the South African has only had one round of even par in eight other opportunities this fall, and that was a 71 in the 1st round of the Trinity Forest Invite.
   
• Cox has had an up-and-down fall season to this point. This will be his fourth tournament of the year – two as an individual and two as part of the team lineup. Five of the lefty's nine rounds this fall have been par-or-better, but he also has three rounds of +6 or higher. Cox carries a 73.67 scoring average into play this week.

LAST TIME HERE
This will be the fifth-straight year that UTA has competed at the Little Rock Invite. Last year, Hicks posted his first runner-up finish with a 7-under 209 total as he helped lead the Mavs to a 3rd-place showing with a 16-under 848 – at the time the 7th-best 54-hole total in program history. UTA won this event – which has been played annually since 1994 – back in 1998.
 
GONZALEZ IN THE PROGRAM RECORD BOOK
With his hot start to the season, Gonzalez has positioned himself in numerous top-3 career lists in the program record book, including:
 
Scoring Average
1) Paul Gonzalez: 73.03
2) Zack Fischer: 73.10
3) Paul McConnell: 73.17
 
Par-Or-Better Rounds
1) Zack Fischer: 54
2) Zack Reeves: 50
T-3) Paul Gonzalez: 49
        Tyrone Mordt
 
Birdies
1) Bobby Massa: 387
2) Zack Reeves: 377
3) Paul Gonzalez: 373
 
Eagles
1) Cash Wilkerson: 14
2) Zack Reeves: 12
T-3) Paul Gonzalez: 11
        Kyle Cox
        Tanner Gore
        Bobby Massa
 
NEXT UP
UTA will take a few months away from competition before the spring season begins. The full spring slate is still being finalized and will be announced when it is completed on UTAMavs.com.
 
FOLLOW THE MAVS SOCIALLY
For up-to-date news, photos and videos of the UTA men's golf program, follow us on Twitter: @UTAMavsMGolf, Instagram: @UTAMensMGolf and Facebook: /UTAMavsMGolf.
 
ABOUT TEXAS RANGERS GOLF CLUB
Opened in February of 2019, the state-of-the-art Texas Rangers Golf Club is the new home of UTA'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.
 
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 – which opened in March of 2021 – features 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.