Men's Golf: Comprehensive 2016 spring preview

If you were to look at any PGA Tour event from October to mid-March, chances are you’d see a winning score near 20 under par.

There’s no US Open, no grind it out and hope for the best events, and that is generally for a reason.  If you’re going to win the biggest and baddest events further down the calendar, you'd better have built up the confidence to do so.

That frame of mind is something hundreds of tour pros adhere to and, as it turns out, so does Texas A&M’s head golf coach J.T. Higgins.

Following a season in which his squad didn't receive a regionals bid for the first time in 15 years, Higgins decided it was time to shake things up.

“Last year, we played the ninth toughest schedule in the country,” He said. “(I didn’t know this) but a reporter from Golfweek told me that we only lost to four schools ranked outside the top 50. Then they told us we didn't get to go to regionals, which was tough to swallow,

“So what we realized was that you don’t need to play the toughest schedule to show you’re a good team.”

By embracing different tournaments, Higgins hopes to enhance his talented squads confidence throughout the spring. Beginning in February, the Aggies will play a loaded schedule leading into the postseason. That begins in Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida at the Sea Best Invitational, a tournament that has been an A&M staple since 2013.

“When we first started going to (Sea Best) it was really kind of a warmup test. It wasn't a great field but it was a great golf course,” Higgins said. “Well, that tournament has really used us to build up their field. Now there is seven top-25 teams in the field, so we’re just jumping right into the fire.”

While the field has obviously become tougher in the last few years, Pete Dye’s Valley Course is one that excites Higgins because of its ability to separate teams. If you play well, you can distance yourself from the other competitors.

From there, A&M will head to Hawaii for another event they are familiar with. Spending February in Florida and Hawaii, sounds nice doesn't it? That’s exactly what the team thinks too, which is exactly why they continue to go.

“The best thing about Hawaii,” Higgins said. “Is how competitive it is at home. Everyone wants to go on that trip, so they battle hard in qualifying and it gets us in the right frame of mind.”

After returning to the mainland, A&M will play in the Louisiana Classics tournament for the first time. While the field is of a lesser caliber than say the Southern Highland Collegiate Masters, which is not on A&M’s schedule this season, it bolsters the top team in the country and gives the Aggies a chance to play well close to home.

“We’re going to drive and get some good experience in without beating our brains in against top 10 teams,” Higgins said. “Illinois is there and they’re the top team in the country and we think we can play with them, but at the same time, we definitely think we should beat everyone else that is there.”

In doing so, the Aggies would continue to build on the confidence that they accrued during the fall.

In four fall tournaments, A&M finished sixth or better in three of them, including a second place finish in Ireland. Following their trip overseas, the Aggies concluded 2015 by finishing 11th in San Diego. While it was by far their worst showing of the season, Higgins is not putting a lot of stock into worrying about it. When you hear the schedule surrounding it, you’ll understand why.

“In the first three tournaments, I thought we played really good golf. We were very competitive, and from top to bottom everyone had made improvements and gotten better,” Higgins said. “We traveled home from Ireland where we had played six days in a row. Then (once we’re home) we have one day off with jet-lag, then qualify three days in a row, pick the team and leave a day later for San Diego, where we played four days in a row. So we had played 13 rounds in 17 days in eight different timezones.”

In a sport that requires supreme focus for hours on end, you can imagine how burnt out a mind could be after that stretch. While the spring will not resemble that type of global chaos, it will be mentally taxing. Which, as Higgins says, could work to his team’s advantage.

“The biggest challenge we have this spring is that there really isn't a lot of downtime. Between tournaments and qualifying, we’re going to be playing a lot of golf. We’ve told them there really isn't any time to get down on yourself this semester. If you have a bad day, guess what, you get to play again tomorrow so you might as well get in the right frame of mind.”

That semester kicks off on Monday and you can bet the Aggies are ready to go.

“This is literally the most excited I’ve been in about a year and half and I think we’re going to surprise a lot of people,” Higgins said. “I think we’ve got a really solid group of guys who are committed to playing good golf. It’s going to be a really fun spring.”

• Focus on the future:

Look, golf is hard. Seriously. It’s even harder when you focus on things you can no longer control. Higgins sat the team down to discuss the ending of last year’s season in their first meeting this year and advised them to let it go and focus on getting back to where they belong. If the Aggies can do that, success will follow.

• Stay healthy:

As an admitted Tiger fan and golfer, I can tell you this, the sport is not kind to the body. Sophomore Cameron Champ had an incredible junior golf career before coming to College Station, but has been injured most of his time at A&M. Now he is finally healthy. With his size, natural power and insane talent, it is no secret that this team reaching its goals is strongly tied to Champ’s health.

•  Listen to your elders:

There’s three seniors in A&M’s likely starting lineup that will be asked to help lead this team. Adria Arnaus, Ben Crancer and Andrew Lister all possess different talents and personalities that will be pivotal to the Aggies success this spring. Higgins is expecting a lot out of this group and you should too.

The young guys:

Max Miller, College Station, TX
“Max shot the great round in Ireland the first day (67) and really showed what he is capable of. His biggest adjustment was more on the academic side. Getting used to college classes and handling his business there, which I think he’s getting. You know, golf is such a mental game that if you don’t handle your business in one part of your life, it is going to impact your golf game. He’s learning to balance those things and get to where he knows if he can handle those, he can just worry about golf when he is out here.”

Chandler Phillips, Huntsville, TX
“Chandler has played in every tournament, which I think is his intention, to never miss a tournament. He’s also learned a lot. He learned that there is a pretty big difference between junior golf and college golf as far as course setups and the length. He knew he had to get a little bit bigger and stronger, so he is working on those things.”

Brandon Smith, Frisco, TX
“We think he’s probably going to redshirt. He was injured in the fall, but he’s healthy now. At our first practice, I thought he looked phenomenal. He’s got a terrific short game and I think, at the very least, he’s going to push some guys in the starting lineup. He may even crack the lineup and end up playing.

Cav's projected starting lineup:

Ben Crancer, Sr.

Adria Arnaus, Sr.

Andrew Lister, Sr.

Cameron Champ, Fr.

Chandler Phillips, Fr.

The schedule:

Feb 1-2: Sea Best Invitational, Ponte Vedra Beach, Fl:

Feb 17-19: John A. Burns Invitational, Kauai, HI:

Feb 29-March 1: The Louisiana Classics, Lafayette, LA:

March 5-6: The Desert Mountain Intercollegiate, Scottsdale, AZ

March 12-13: The General Hackler Championship, Myrtle Beach, SC

Mar 21-22: The Floridian Invitational, West Palm Beach, FL

April 2-3: The Aggie Invitational, Bryan, TX

April 15-17: SEC Championship, Sea Island, GA

May 16-18: NCAA Regional Championship, TBA

May 27- June 1: NCAA Championship, Eugene, OR