SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. — Out of the 15 teams that played in the morning wave of the first round at the NCAA Division I Men’s Golf Championship, just two teams finished under par.
Texas Tech holds a two-shot lead over Sam Houston State at 4 under at Grayhawk Golf Club thanks to an impressive collection of opening rounds. Sophomore Ludvig Aberg shot a 2-under 68 while senior Andy Lopez and freshman Baard Skogen each shot rounds of 1-under 69. Aberg and Lopez made just one bogey each on the challenging Raptor course.
The rest of the morning wave finished over par, with Oregon State and San Diego State at 6 over and Arkansas and SMU at 7 over.
“We just played solid, we played like we played at regionals, all five guys are in it,” said head coach Greg Sands. “We’re confident, we’re working on some mental stuff that that seems to be working really well and the guys are executing and clicking at the right time.”
NCAA Championship: Leaderboard
Off the course, the Red Raiders have been working on their language this season: what they tell themselves, working on believing who they are as a team and individuals and not putting any emotions to problems.
“If you don’t put an emotion to the problem, then it’s not a problem,” added Sands.
Bringing the
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— Texas Tech Men’s Golf (@TexasTechMGolf) May 28, 2021
Lopez broke it down in simple terms: “Strong language, just having a good self talk.”
Another key to Texas Tech’s early success? Forgetting how big the stage is and realizing they’re just playing golf.
“It’s not that hard, we just treat it as another tournament,” explained Lopez. “Everyone else can feel like it’s gonna be a really, really big tournament. They’re gonna get nervous, but I think right now we’re all keeping our cool and understanding that it’s just a golf tournament and we’re playing really well.”
On the individual leaderboard, Cole Bradley – playing solo with his father and coach, Rob Bradley by his side – shot a bogey-free, 4-under 66. Sam Houston State’s William Holcomb and Ting-Wei Hsieh are T-2 at 3 under after the morning.