The University of Texas at Austin Athletics
University of Texas
Southwestern Invitational
No. 5 Men's Golf preview: Southwestern Invitational
01.26.2025 | Men's Golf
The Longhorns compete at Sherwood Country Club on Monday through Wednesday.
When: Monday, January 27 – Wednesday, January 29
Format: 18 holes of stroke play on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday
Where: Sherwood Country Club (Thousand Oaks, Calif.)
Course Par and Yardage: Par-71; 7,081 Yards
Live Scoring: https://scoreboard.clippd.com/tournaments/234021/scoring/team
Tournament Notes
The Tourney Field: The 14-team field at the Southwestern Invitational includes (rankings reflect the latest Scoreboard powered by Clippd poll on Nov. 13): No. 11 Arizona, California, Chattanooga, No. 24 Duke, No. 14 Florida, No. 19 Pepperdine (host), San Diego State, San Jose State, No. 5 TEXAS, No. 10 UCLA, UNLV, USC, No. 15 Vanderbilt and Washington.
Team Rankings: Texas is No. 5 in the latest Scoreboard powered by Clippd poll (Nov. 13) and No. 5 in the final Fall 2024 Bushnell/Golfweek Division I Coaches poll (Nov. 1).
Last Time Out: Texas concluded the fall season with a 2-0-1 mark in round-robin match play against New Mexico State, New Mexico and No. 22 Stanford at the NB3 Matchplay (Oct. 8-9) in Santa Ana Pueblo, N.M. The Longhorns posted a 3-2 victory over New Mexico State and followed with a 2.5-2.5 tie against New Mexico on the opening day, before adding a 4.5-0.5 victory over Stanford on the final day of competition. Christiaan Maas registered a perfect 3-0 mark in his individual match-play contests during the tournament.
Third at Season-Opening Folds of Honor: The Longhorns earned a third-place team finish at the season-opening Folds of Honor Collegiate (Sept. 9-11) at American Dunes Golf Club in Grand Haven, Mich. The 15-team field featured six squads in the preseason Bushnell/Golfweek Division I Coaches poll. No. 16 Alabama claimed the team title with a 54-hole score of 12-under 840 (275-288-277), while No. 9 Illinois placed second at 5-under 847 (286-278-283). Texas took third at 3-over 855 (287-286-282). Tommy Morrison posted a career-best runner-up showing in the individual standings with a three-round total of 8-under 205 (70-70-65), while Christiaan Maas placed sixth at 4-under 209 (70-70-69).
Runner-up at the Hogan Collegiate Invitational: Texas posted a 54-hole total of 6-under 834 (280-273-281) to finish runner-up in an elite field at the Ben Hogan Collegiate Invitational (Sept. 30-Oct. 1) at historic Colonial Country Club in Fort Worth. No. 8 Oklahoma claimed the team title at 10-under 830 (276-275-279), while No. 1 Auburn placed third at 4-under 836 (282-274-280). The 15-team field featured 12 squads in the latest Bushnell/Golfweek Division I Coaches poll, including three of the top four ranked teams in the nation. Oklahoma, Texas and Auburn were the only three squads among the tournament's 15 teams to finish with under-par totals in the 54-hole event. Daniel Bennett carded a three-round total of 5-under 205 (65-69-71) to tie for third on the individual leaderboard in his collegiate debut. All five Texas players placed inside the top 20 in the final individual standings in the 75-person field.
2023-24 in Review: During the 2023-24 season, Texas competed in 14 tournaments (12 stroke-play, two match-play) and registered eight top-three team finishes. The Longhorns claimed three victories (Big 12 Match Play on Oct. 9-11, Big 12 Championship on April 22-24, and NCAA Austin Regional on May 13-15), four runner-up performances (OFCC/Fighting Illini Invitational on Sept. 15-17, Cypress Point Classic on Oct. 30-31, Johnnie-O Intercollegiate on March 11-12 and Augusta Haskins Award Invitational on April 6-7) and one third-place effort (Southern Highlands Collegiate on Feb. 25-27). Texas won the Big 12 Championship by an 18-stroke margin over runner-up Oklahoma, then returned to record a 16-stroke victory over second-place Tennessee at the NCAA Austin Regional. The Longhorns concluded the year with a 13th-place showing at the NCAA Championship.
The Fields Factor: Now in his 28th season as head coach at Texas, John Fields has guided the Longhorns to 22 NCAA Championship appearances in his 26 opportunities (no NCAA tourney in 2020 due to COVID-19). Under Fields' leadership, UT has posted 10 top-five and 16 top-15 finishes at the NCAA Championship, including NCAA team titles in 2012 and 2022 and runner-up showings in 2016 and 2019. Prior to his time at Texas, Fields led the University of New Mexico to nine NCAA Championship appearances in 10 seasons (1988-97). He has earned Golfweek's National Coach of the Year honors three times (2012, 2016 and 2022) and Big 12 Coach of the Year accolades nine times (2002, 2003, 2004, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017 and 2022) during his tenure at Texas. Fields was inducted into the Texas Athletics Hall of Honor on Sept. 20.
Longest Active NCAA Championship Streak: UT's streak of 17 consecutive NCAA Championship appearances is the longest current streak in NCAA Division I men's golf. Here's a look at the longest active NCAA Championship appearances entering the 2024-25 season.
|
Number of Consecutive NCAA Championship Appearances |
School |
|
17 |
TEXAS |
|
13 |
Oklahoma |
|
10 |
Vanderbilt |
|
7 |
North Carolina |
Advancing to Match Play: Not only has Texas been a mainstay in advancing to the NCAA Championships, the Longhorns have consistently produced strong results while at the national championship. In the last 12 opportunities (dating back to the 2012 NCAA Championships), UT has advanced to the Match Play quarterfinals stage (final eight teams) a total of SEVEN times. Texas is one of just THREE schools (joined by Illinois and Vanderbilt) to advance to Match Play at least SEVEN times in the last 12 opportunities (2020 tourney was canceled due to COVID-19).
|
NCAA Match Play Appearances in Last 12 Tournaments (2012-24) |
School |
|
8 (2013-14-15-16-17-21-23-24) |
Illinois |
|
7 (2012-13-15-16-18-19-22) |
TEXAS |
|
7 (2015-16-17-19-21-22-24) |
Vanderbilt |
|
6 (2016-17-18-19-21-22) |
Oklahoma |
|
6 (2014-17-18-19-21-22) |
Oklahoma State |
The Texas Lineup: UT will be represented by the following five players at the Southwestern Invitational:
- Tommy Morrison (Jr., 69.33 avg.)
- Daniel Bennett (Fr., 68.33 avg.)
- Christiaan Maas (Jr., 69.33 avg.)
- Luke Potter (Jr., 71.33 avg.)
- Jack Gilbert (So., 73.56 avg.)
Inside the Texas Lineup
Tommy Morrison: No. 11 in the latest World Amateur Golf Ranking (Jan. 22) … No. 7 in the latest NCAA individual rankings by Scoreboard (Nov. 13) … one of 25 players on the final fall watch list for the Fred Haskins Award presented by Stifel … has registered a 69.33 scoring average over the first three tournaments this season … has placed in the top-11 in each of his first three stroke-play appearances this year … eight of his nine rounds this season have been par or better, including five rounds in the 60s … posted a collegiate career-best runner-up individual finish at the season-opening Folds of Honor Collegiate (Sept. 9-11) with an 8-under 205 (70-70-65), just one stroke behind medalist Dominic Clemons (Alabama) … tied for 11th at the OFCC/Fighting Illini Invitational (Sept. 20-21) with a 2-under 208 (69-70-69) … tied for 11th at the Ben Hogan Collegiate Invitational (Sept. 30-Oct. 1) with a 1-over 211 (74-68-69) … tied for 10th at the prestigious 2025 Jones Cup Invitational (Jan. 10-12) at Ocean Forest Golf Club … competed in the 2024 Spirit International for Team USA (Nov. 14-16) at Whispering Pines Golf Club … won the 2024 European Amateur Championship (June 26-29) in a three-way playoff at The Scandinavian in Oldvej, Denmark … became the first American player to win the prestigious title since the tourney began in 1986 and joined an elite list of champions that includes Sergio Garcia (1995) and Rory McIlroy (2006) along with former Longhorn Christoffer Bring of Denmark in 2021 … posted a 72-hole score of 9-under 279 (68-70-74-67) and advanced to the three-way playoff that also included Arizona State's Preston Summerhays and Ireland's Max Kennedy … by virtue of his victory at the European Amateur, he earned a spot in the 152nd Open Championship at Royal Troon … earned the Bronze Medal at The Open Championship (July 18-21), as he tied for second among the 12 amateurs in the 152-player field … posted a four-round score of 11-over 295 (75-73-74-73) at The Open … one of just four amateur players and 80 total individuals to make the 36-hole cut at Royal Troon … also competed in the 2024 U.S. Amateur and advanced to the Round of 32 in match play … 2024 PING All-Central Region team and first-team Academic All-Big 12 selection as a sophomore … competed in each of UT's 14 events during the 2023-24 season and ranked third on the team in scoring average (71.73) … tallied six top-12 individual finishes … seventeen of his 37 rounds were par or better, including 13 rounds in the 60s … placed seventh at the 2024 Austin Regional with a 4-under 209 (67-69-73) … tied for 11th at the 2024 Big 12 Championship with a 3-under 285 (72-73-66-74) … recorded a season-best tie for fourth at the 2024 Western Intercollegiate with a 2-under 208 (75-67-66) … registered his collegiate-low 18-hole score of 7-under 64 in the final round of the 2024 Valspar Collegiate Invitational … enrolled at Texas prior to the 2023 spring semester … competed in seven of UT's nine events in the spring of 2023 and ranked third on the team in scoring average (71.50) … shot par or better in 11 of his 18 stroke-play rounds, including a pair of rounds in the 60s … carded a season-best tie for eighth at the 2023 NCAA Bath Regional with a 5-under 208 (68-70-70) … claimed medalist honors and advanced to the quarterfinals in match play at the 2023 U.S. Junior Amateur … advanced to the Round of 16 in match play at the 2023 Amateur Championship.
Daniel Bennett: No. 175 in the latest World Amateur Golf Ranking (Jan. 22) … No. 1 in the latest NCAA individual rankings by Scoreboard (Nov. 13) … tied for third at the Ben Hogan Collegiate Invitational (Sept. 30-Oct. 1) with a 5-under 205 (65-69-71) in his collegiate debut … participated in the 2024 Alfred Dunhill Championship on the DP World Tour (Dec. 12-15) in South Africa … competed in the 2024 Spirit International for Team South Africa (Nov. 14-16) at Whispering Pines Golf Club … participated in the prestigious 2025 Jones Cup Invitational (Jan. 10-12) at Ocean Forest Golf Club … posted five wins and 26 top-10 finishes during his junior career … competed at the Amateur Championship and the U.S. Junior Amateur in the summer of 2024 … won the Boland Amateur stroke play championship in April 2024 with a 54-hole total of 209 (71-69-69) … earned the win at the Nomads Coastal Noom 1 in January 2024 with a three-round score of 206 (73-63-70) … claimed victory at the Northern Amateur Open in South Africa in March 2023 … won the stroke-play portion of the 2023 Nomads South Africa Boys Under-19 Championship by 21 strokes, as he recorded a 72-hole total of 34-under-par 254 (62-61-68-63) … also tallied wins at the Cape Town Junior in October 2022 and the KwaZulu-Natal Open in May 2022.
Christiaan Maas: No. 15 in the latest World Amateur Golf Ranking (Jan. 22) … No. 6 in the latest NCAA individual rankings by Scoreboard (Nov. 13) … two-time All-American at Texas … one of 25 players on the final fall watch list for the Fred Haskins Award presented by Stifel … has registered a 69.33 scoring average over the first three stroke-play tournaments this season … boasts a pair of top-10 finishes and has placed in the top-14 in each of his first three appearances this year … eight of his nine rounds this season have been par or better, including five rounds in the 60s … tied for third at the OFCC/Fighting Illini Invitational (Sept. 20-21) with a 7-under 203 (69-68-66) … placed sixth at the season-opening Folds of Honor Collegiate (Sept. 9-11) with a 4-under 209 (70-70-69) … registered a perfect 3-0 mark in his individual match-play contests during the NB3 MatchPlay (Oct. 8-9) … participated in the 2024 Alfred Dunhill Championship on the DP World Tour (Dec. 12-15) in South Africa … competed in the 2024 Spirit International for Team South Africa (Nov. 14-16) at Whispering Pines Golf Club … earned Division I PING third-team All-America and Golfweek third-team All-America honors along with PING All-Central Region team accolades as a sophomore in 2023-24 … claimed a spot on the 2024 All-Big 12 Team … 2024 first-team Academic All-Big 12 selection … competed in 13 of UT's 14 events in 2023-24 and led the team in scoring average (71.09) … tallied four top-10 and seven top-20 individual finishes on the year … nineteen of his 34 rounds on the season were par or better, including 12 rounds in the 60s … posted his first collegiate career individual victory at the 2024 NCAA Austin Regional with a 9-under 204 (71-67-66) … tied for 11th place at the 2024 NCAA Championships with a 72-hole score of even-par 288 (74-71-70-73) and earned a spot on the NCAA Championship All-Tournament Team … tied for fourth at the 2024 Johnnie-O Intercollegiate with an 8-under 208 (69-68-71) … recorded a runner-up finish at the 2024 Africa Amateur Championship at Leopard Creek Golf Club (Malelane, South Africa) … registered a 72-hole total of 13-under 275 (71-69-63-72) and advanced to a three-man playoff at the Africa Amateur, before Altin Van der Merwe made birdie on the first playoff hole to capture the title … fired a 9-under 63 during the third round of the Africa Amateur and tied the course record for lowest 18-hole score … recorded a third-place finish at the 2023 OFCC/Fighting Illini Invitational with a 7-under 133 (69-64) ... posted a collegiate-best 18-hole score of 6-under 64 in the second round of the 2024 OFCC/Fighting Illini Invitational … competed for his home country of South Africa at the 2023 World Amateur Team Championship in Abu Dhabi, UAE and helped his team to a seventh-place finish in the team standings, marking the first top-10 result for South Africa since 1982 at the prestigious event … recorded a 72-hole total of 8-under 280 (70-70-71-69) at the WATC to tie for 17th place in the individual standings … runner-up at the 2023 Western Amateur … earned Division I PING second-team All-America and PING All-Central Region team honors as a freshman in 2022-23 … named the 2023 Big 12 Conference Newcomer of the Year and was selected to the All-Big 12 Team … competed in each of UT's 14 events and led the team in stroke average (70.57) … during his 12 stroke-play tourney appearances, he registered five top-10 and 10 top-20 individual finishes … shot par or better in 23 of his 35 stroke-play rounds, including 12 rounds in the 60s … earned a season-best runner-up finish at the 2023 Southern Highlands Collegiate with a 10-under 206 (66-69-71) … tied for 17th at the DP World Tour's 2022 Alfred Dunhill Championship in Melalane, South Africa with a 9-under 279 (71-70-70-68) … played alongside Ernie Els in the opening two rounds at the Alfred Dunhill Championship … also made the cut and tied for 35th at the DP World Tour's 2022 Investec South African Open Championship in Johannesburg at 5-under 283 (69-65-72-77) … claimed a five-shot victory with a 14-under 270 (65-70-67-68) to win the prestigious Brabazon Trophy at Saunton Golf Club in England in May 2022.
Luke Potter: No. 62 in the latest World Amateur Golf Ranking (Jan. 22) … No. 80 in the latest NCAA individual rankings by Scoreboard (Nov. 13) … has registered a 71.33 scoring average over the first three stroke-play tournaments this season … has placed in the top-20 in two of his first three appearances this year … four of his nine rounds this season have been par or better, including four rounds in the 60s … … tied for sixth at the OFCC/Fighting Illini Invitational (Sept. 20-21) with a 3-under 207 (68-68-71) … tied for 19th at the Ben Hogan Collegiate Invitational (Sept. 30-Oct. 1) with a 3-over 213 (69-68-76) … participated in the prestigious 2025 Jones Cup Invitational (Jan. 10-12) at Ocean Forest Golf Club … enrolled at Texas prior to the 2024 fall semester … spent his previous two seasons at Arizona State … competed in seven tournaments and registered a 72.40 stroke average as a sophomore in 2023-24 … recorded a season-best tie for seventh at the 2023 Ben Hogan Collegiate with a 4-under 206 (67-70-69) … posted a season-low 18-hole score of 3-under 67 in the opening round of the Ben Hogan Collegiate … tied for 10th at the 2023 Sahalee Players Championship with a 3-over 219 (70-76-73) … competed in 12 tournaments and registered a 71.00 stroke average as a freshman in 2022-23 … his 71.00 stroke average marked the second-lowest by a freshman in Arizona State program history since 1985, trailing only Michael Mjaaseth at 70.72 in 2022-23 … shot par or better in 22 of his 36 stroke-play rounds, including 11 rounds in the 60s … tied for second in the stroke-play portion of the 2022 East Lake Cup with a 3-under 69 … placed fourth at the 2023 Southwestern Invitational with a 5-under 211 (65-75-71) … recorded a collegiate career-low 18-hole score of 7-under 65 in the opening round of the 2023 Southwestern Invitational … the top-ranked player in the Class of 2022 by Golf Channel … three-time Rolex All-American as a junior … 2021 U.S. Junior Amateur semifinalist and 2021 Western Amateur quarterfinalist … won the 2020 Maridoe Amateur at 16 years of age … also claimed the title at the Southern California Golf Association (SCGA) Amateur in 2020, becoming the youngest winner (16) in the 121-year history of the event … recognized as the National High School Golfer of the Year following his freshman season in 2019 … shot a final-round 64 at Poppy Hills in Pebble Beach to win the 2019 California High School state individual title as a freshman while also leading La Costa Canyon to the state team championship … named the 2019 California Freshman Athlete of the Year (all sports), becoming the first golfer since Tiger Woods to earn the accolade.
Jack Gilbert: Has registered a 73.56 scoring average over the first three stroke-play tournaments this season … posted a season-best tie for 19th at the Ben Hogan Collegiate Invitational (Sept. 30-Oct. 1) with a 3-over 213 (73-68-72) … registered a career-low 18-hole score of 2-under 68 in the second round of the Ben Hogan Collegiate Invitational (Sept. 30) … competed in four events as a freshman in 2023-24 and recorded a 77.00 stroke average over 12 rounds … served as the alternate in each of the team's three postseason tournaments last season … posted a season-low 18-hole score of 3-over 73 in the second round of the 2024 Western Intercollegiate (April 16) … No. 11 in the final Class of 2023 recruiting rankings by Golfweek … runner-up at the 2023 Polo Golf Junior Classic … runner-up at the 2023 Sergio and Angela Garcia Foundation Junior Championship … tied for third at the 2021 Sam Burns Classic at the Landings Club with a 6-under 210 (74-67-69).
Players Mentioned
