(UWIRE) COLLEGE STATION, Texas — When Tiger Woods arrived on the scene in 1996 and uttered his famous "Hello world," golf exploded onto the national scene as something that didn’t belong to 55-year-old doctors and lawyers at hoity-toity country clubs near scenic beaches. In 1996, Texas A&M senior Bobby Gates was 11 years old, and silently swinging his way towards the top of the junior golfing world.
Gates, born on Dec. 31, 1985, grew up in the heart of Gator country in Gainesville, Fla. His father, Bob Gates, a professional in his own right, was a major factor in the young Gates’ development as a golfer.
"Growing up, my dad taught me everything," Gates said. "He started me out with little clubs, and just kinda went from there. Around 8th or 9th grade I really found a passion for the game, and decided it was something I wanted to pursue."
Standing at 6-feet-6-inches, Gates said he played basketball through junior high and into high school, but never found a passion for it like he did with golf.
"Besides," Gates said with a sly smile, "golf is more fun than those other sports. And its something I can play for the rest of my life."
During his amateur career, Gates collected a slew of honors and victories. In 2001, Gates won the Florida State Junior Championship and finished runner-up the following year. At Buchholz High School, Gates finished third in 2003 and sixth in 2000.
"He is one of the reasons this program has progressed so fast," said A&M men’s head coach J.T. Higgins. "He was such a great junior golfer that it drew many others to the program. He has been one of the building blocks of this program over the past four years."
Gates was a first team American Junior Golf Association All-American in 2004, and Golfweek ranked him as the No. 6 junior golfer in the country.
"I really enjoyed playing different places as a kid," he said. "My dad and I got to go to a lot of cool courses. Plus in those tournaments the competition was really stiff and it helped improve my game in all areas."
Gates also competed in team competitions as a junior golfer, and said that those style events taught him how to play as a piece of a unit and spilled over when he came to A&M.
Then, during his senior year in Florida, Gates received a letter from A&M, showing interest in having him on their team.
"I really hadn’t thought about playing college golf," Gates said. "Then, one day I got a letter from [A&M Head Coach] Higgins. They showed me the plans for the current facility and it sparked my interest. I took a visit out here, as well as to TCU and Florida, but I really loved the people here and felt it was a perfect fit."
Now, almost four years later, Gates is in his final semester as an Aggie, and he and the team are poised to make a run at the Big 12 and into the NCAA tournament.
"Bobby is an awesome player," head coach Higgins said. "He is so physically gifted. The challenge for him now is to make this semester the best one ever. He has done so many great things for us and has always been a positive role model and a great leader — we are really going to be sad to see him go."
The team has been spending the offseason and the first part of 2008 sharpening their skills.
"Everyone is working as hard as they have ever worked right now," Gates said. "We are working on the little things that we have gotten away from and our focus is as sharp as it’s been. When those big moments come, we will be ready."
The Aggies tee it up for their first competitive round during the last week in February in Hawaii, and have about two months until they take on the conference in the Big 12 Tournament in Trinity, Texas.
With Gates at the helm and a solid core around him, including junior phenomenon Bronson Burgoon, fresh off a semester in academic ineligibility, the Aggies will attempt to make some serious noise around the country come May.
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