A&M senior golfer ready for NCAA Championships

Texas A&M's Conrad Shindler sees no reason why he shouldn't feel right at home at the NCAA Men's Golf Championship this week at Karsten Creek.

Shindler knows the track, loves the format and has experienced both the highs and lows of the 30-team event that crowns an NCAA winner.

"Luckily for me I've played a bunch of competitive golf at Karsten Creek and I feel very comfortable around the golf course, and even though it's going to be difficult, I still know more than lot of other people do that are playing it for the first time," said Shindler, who is from Coppell. "We've seen the course and you just kind of remember all the little things. It's a great course, so it sticks in your mind very well."

Shindler played junior tournaments at Karsten Creek, got in some practice a few years ago with the OSU golfers while in Stillwater for an Aggies-Cowboys football game, and most recently played three rounds in the Ping GolfWeek Preview last fall.

Shindler finished 21st individually in a field of the top 15 teams in the nation at the Preview.

He shot 72-76-76--224 and helped the Aggies finish fourth behind OSU, UCLA and Georgia.

The Aggies would take another fourth after three days at NCAAs, with the top eight teams after 54 holes qualify for the match-play portion of the tournament, a format that Shindler has shown a liking to while at A&M.

In the past two seasons, Shindler is a perfect 8-0 at the Callaway Collegiate Match Play Championships.

"When you hit as far as he does and straight as he does, that's pretty tough for somebody 20- to-30 yards behind him," said A&M coach J.T. Higgins "He puts a lot of pressure on them to hit good shots. He's in the fairway and out in front of you, so now you have to hit a longer iron, a better shot."

For Shindler though, it's more than talent when it comes to going head-to-head against an opponent.

"I get in a very competitive mindset and I just feel like in match play it doesn't matter who my opponent is, I can take him down," said Shindler. "I've been in some holes before in match play and all it takes is three good holes and you are right back in it. It's not like you have to chip away for four hours if someone has a seven shot lead. I can get this done in four holes."

Shindler also won the clinching point in the Aggies' quarterfinal match against Arizona State, which helped A&M on its way to the NCAA title in 2009.

"I know in match play one bad hole isn't going to kill you so it's a lot easier to put it behind me," Shindler said. "I wish it was easier in stroke play but sometimes it's not."

If there is a hole in Shindler's game, Higgins says it is letting go of a poor shot or poorly played hole. It's a weakness many golfers have and one Shindler has improved on while at A&M.

And while Shindler was not one to talk to the first day at the West Regional when he shot 81, he proved he can put it behind him by shooting 68 and 67 the next two rounds.

"It was the most frustrating I'd seen him on the golf course in over a year and I'm glad he went through it at regional rather than nationals," said Higgins. "The good thing is with his experience and maturity he realizes it's a team sport and regardless of what he shot the first day he had an opportunity to help us the next two [days]."

Shindler had gone through a similar fate at NCAAs last May, posting an 81 in the second round and then coming back with an even-par 72.

"That day it was frustrating but you realize at some point your score is not going to count, that you have to use the rest of your round to get yourself ready for the next day and understand this is what we have to work on now and get ready for the next two days," said Shindler of his regional start. "Sometimes it does take getting off the golf course and getting away from it and hitting the reset button."

Those days have become few and far between for Shindler, who this season has recorded 10 of his 15 collegiate career rounds in the 60s, including a 66, which helped him to a second place finish at the Royal Oaks Intercollegiate held at Dallas.

He's also had a third, fourth and seventh for four top-10s in 11 tournaments and is averaging 72.45, or less than 1-over par a round.

"As time goes on you just understand how to score," Shindler said. "College golf courses are a different animal compared to other golf courses we see. They are extremely difficult in their set up and you start to understand when it's right to be aggressive. I've always been an aggressive player and I don't want to back down, but I use my aggression at the right times. I used to fire at a lot of flag sticks. Now I understand 25 feet is a good shot so you look for conservative targets, but still have an aggressive mentality so you can kind of keep your aggression going the whole day."

One of Shindler's more memorable nines was as a sophomore, when he fired a 33 coming in on the final round of stroke play to get A&M into the match play format at NCAAs. That followed his first hole-in-one in the opening nine of the tournament.

Those two moments, along with winning the title, were images the AJGA All-American hopes to keep with him this week at Karsten Creek, especially after falling short of defending their title last year when the Aggies had to go home after the first three rounds.

"Last year not making it to match play and expecting to be there flat-out sucked," Shindler said. "Looking back at the year of success, you understand what it takes to win. We know every step of the road what it takes to get done, so that is nice to have. A lot of people don't have that -- it's all new experiences, new pressures, new situations -- so that's an advantage we have."

NOTES -- John Hurley and Conrad Shindler are the two Aggies who participated for A&M the year it won the national title. Jordan Russell and Nacho Elvira were on the team. ... Shindler plans on turning pro after the U.S. Amateur, held in August. At that time he will need seven credits to graduate and plans to graduate in December. ... Oklahoma State, the host school at the NCAAs, is the No. 1 team in the GolfWeek rankings. Georgia Tech, Alabama, UCLA, Florida and Texas A&M follow. Texas and Texas Tech are in the top 20. ... UCLA's Patrick Cantlay is the top-rated individual. OSU's Peter Uihlein and Kevin Tway are No. 2 and 3, respectively. A&M's top rated player is Russell at No. 19.

What: NCAA Men's Golf Championships

When: Tuesday-Sunday

Where: Karsten Creek, Oklahoma State, Stillwater, Okla.

Defending champs: Augusta State; Scott Langley, Illinois

Format: 54 holes of stroke play; Top eight qualify for match play.

No. 8 seed A&M's fivesome: Seniors Nacho Elvira, Conrad Shindler, John Hurley; junior Jordan Russell; sophomore Cameron Peck.