Nine of the top 30 teams in the country, including three in the top 10, are descending upon the prestigious Southern Highlands Golf Club this week for the annual Southern Highlands Collegiate. Southern Highlands is the Rebels home course and the home team has won seven times in the last 17 years, but faces a stiff challenge in 2022. –By Brian Hurlburt.
The public is encouraged to attend the tournament and admission is free for this event that each year ranks at or near the top of the collegiate golf schedule in terms of strength of field.
PGA TOUR EXEMPTION: The individual champion will receive an exemption into the Shriners Hospitals for Children Open, which will take place Oct. 6-9, 2022, at TPC Summerlin in Las Vegas.
THE FIELD: (15 teams, Golfweek ranking): No. 2 Pepperdine, No. 3 Oklahoma, No. 9 Georgia, No. 15 Georgia Tech, No. 18 Texas, No. 19 Florida, No. 21 Illinois, No. 29 New Mexico, No. 30 Northwestern, San Diego, SMU, Southern California, TCU, UCLA and UNLV
The Rebels lineup:
Competing for UNLV will be senior David Rauch (9:40 a.m., hole 1), senior J.J. Gresco (9:30 a.m., hole 1), freshman Aaron Jarvis (9:20 a.m., hole 1), sophomore Ben Sawaia (9:10 a.m., hole 1) and sophomore Caden Fioroni (9:00 a.m., hole 1). Junior George Leigh (9:00 a.m., hole 10), freshman Tommy Kimmel (9:10 a.m., hole 10) and senior Jack Kozlowski (9:30 a.m., hole 10) will compete as individuals.
Due to a covid-shortened spring season, the Southern Highlands Collegiate was not played in 2021. In 2020, UNLV finished in 13th place at 25-over. Southern California won the team title by two shots at 3-under 861. Individually, Texas’ Parker Coody and Southern California’s Yuxin Lin tied for medalist honors at 8-under 208, but Coody’s par on the first playoff hole gave him the title and the exemption into the 2020 Shriners Hospitals for Children Open, Las Vegas’ PGA Tour event.