PALM DESERT, Calif. – On a challenging scoring day in which just one team shot under par, the UT Arlington men's golf team gutted out a 299 in the 1st round of the Wyoming Desert Intercollegiate on Wednesday from the Classic Club Course.
 
Original tee times were altered to a shotgun start for the field of 16 teams due to expected inclement weather and high winds, and the Mavericks battled well on tough day that saw every player in the lineup make exactly two birdies.
 
Caleb Hicks led the way for UTA as he carded those pair of birdies and only made three bogeys to sign for a 1-over 73 and resides in a tie for 19th place overall.
 
Fresno State (286) was the lone team in red figures on Wednesday on the par-72, 7,305-yard layout as the Bulldogs sit alone in 1st place at -2 – three shots ahead of #47 Colorado.
 
The Mavs are only 13 shots back of Fresno State with still 36 holes remaining, and just 10 behind 2nd place with plenty of time to make a move. UTA resides ahead of a pair of fellow Western Athletic Conference members in Southern Utah (14th, 313) and Utah Tech (15th, 314).
 
UTA SCORES
Team
11) UT Arlington: 299 (+11)
 
Lineup
T-19) Caleb Hicks: 73 (+1)
T-42) Zak Jones: 75 (+3)
T-42) Hiroki Miya: 75 (+75)
T-49) Daniel Cronje: 76 (+4)
T-66) Alberto Menacho: 78 (+6)
 
INSIDE THE SCORES
HICKS
Hicks began his day on the par-4 7th and opened with three-straight pars. The back-9 holes featured a pair of birdies and bogeys, and coming in he made one more bogey on the par-4 3rd in an otherwise clean front side. He ranks 9th in the field par-4 scoring average through day one, and he also co-leads the Mavss in pars with 13 (Jones).
 
JONES
Through the senior's first 11 holes, he sat at even par with one birdie and one bogey to go along with nine pars. However, making the turn to the front side of the course, Jones was met with two double bogeys on holes 1 and 3 before a birdie on the par-5 4th resulted in the round of 75.
 
MIYA
In the 1st round, the New Zealand native was off to a respectable start, carrying a +1 round through 10 holes. However, three bogeys through his next six holes – a stretch of holes 15-1 – dropped the junior on the leaderboard, but he still posted nothing higher than a 5 on his card in the opening round.
 
CRONJE
The South African was also having a respectable round through 12 holes with two birdies and two bogeys and sat at even par heading to the 2nd hole with six holes remaining. However, over those final six holes he made bogeys on four of them and posted a 41 on the front en route to the 76.
 
MENACHO
Considering he carded three bogeys and a double through his first six holes, Menacho was able to take control of his round. After sitting at +5 at that point, the Peru native played the final 12 holes in only 1-over and maintained a round in the 70s by signing for a 78.
 
THIS AND THAT
UTA is tied for 6th in the field in par-5 scoring at -1 (4.95) … the Mavs have played the par-4, 399-yard 13th hole collectively in even par (4.49 field average).
 
NEXT UP
The 2nd round of the 54-hole event is scheduled for Thursday, with the final round slated for Friday. Live scoring will be available via Golfstat.
 
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: @UTAMavsMGolf 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 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.