Kats unveil formidable 2015-16 schedule
7/14/2015 12:51:00 PM | Men's Golf
The two-time defending Southland Conference champion Sam Houston State men's golf program will compete in 10 tournaments across six states during the 2015-16 season, fourth-year head coach Brandt Kieschnick announced Tuesday.
For the fifth consecutive season, the Bearkats open their fall slate at the Sam Hall Intercollegiate (Sept. 14-15) from the Hattiesburg Country Club in Hattiesburg, Miss., setting up a challenging schedule that will feature squads from the Southeastern Conference and Pac-12 Conference among others.
“The last two years, we built the schedule so if we played well, we put ourselves in a position to be nationally ranked at the end of the season, which is what we did last year,” Kieschnick said. “The schedule is set up to play the best teams in the country. We want to stay ahead of the curve and compete.”
After competing at the Mark Simpson Colorado Invitational (Sept. 28-29), hosted by the University of Colorado from Denver's Colorado National Country Club, the Bearkats turn their sights towards hosting the Bayou City Collegiate Championship (Oct. 12-13) from Pearland's Golfcrest Country Club alongside Houston and Rice.
Sam Houston has been shipped to Bremerton, Wash., and Auburn, Ala., each of the last two seasons for NCAA Regional play, providing additional incentive for the Kats to hit different parts of the country during the season, although Kieschnick says the schedule's format may provide the biggest benefit.
“The thing that stands out to me is that it's spaced out really well,” Kieschnick said. “We're not gone more than two weeks then we have a week to practice, get ready and study up for the next event. By far, this schedule flows the best for us.”
The Kats close out the fall slate with their third consecutive trip to the Herb Wimberly Intercollegiate (Oct. 19-20), hosted by New Mexico State at the university's course. Sam Houston tees off spring play Feb. 8-9 at UTSA's Oak Hills Invitational from San Antonio's Oak Hills Country Club.
From there, the Bearkats will have 10 days to prepare for the All-American Intercollegiate (Feb. 19-21), hosted by Houston and Rice at the Golf Club of Houston in Humble, a tournament that Sam Houston took runner-up a season ago, finishing ahead of No. 10 Baylor, No. 31 Houston and No. 38 Arkansas.
“Last year, the Bayou City, which is now the All-American, where we finished second, was big for us because we saw some top 10 schools and we lost by two to the ninth ranked team in the country,” Kieschnick said. “That really started our push to get in the top 30.”
Sam Houston heads west for its second-straight trip to the Jones Invitational (Feb. 29 - March 1), hosted by Pepperdine at the North Ranch Country Club in Westlake Village, Calif., and competes for the first time at the University of Wyoming Cowboy Classic (April 4-5) from Phoenix's Whirlwind Golf Club one month later.
Sandwiched between the two is a fourth-consecutive journey to the Border Olympics (March 11-12) from Laredo Country Club. Once again, Stonebridge Country Club's Dye Course in McKinney plays host to the Southland Conference Championship (April 18-20), a venue the Kats hope will vault the squad into one of six postseason sites.
“We're bringing in some new fresh talent,” Kieschnick said of his squad. “This team could be very young or we could have some juniors step up and hit the top five. I'm excited because we'll be competitive again. I want the top five to be competitive. My goal is to be better this year.”
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