Sugar Tree Golf Club dominant en route to 2026 Texas League Play Championship
Briefly: Sugar Tree Golf Club won the first match point and never looked back beating the #16 overall seed Abilene Country Club (South) 10.5-1.5 to claim the Texas League Play Championship. This is Sugar Tree Golf Club’s first-time winning the Texas League Play playoffs.
Golf Course: Nestled along the shores of Lake Whitney, White Bluff Resort has established itself as one of Texas’ premier golf destinations. Developed in the early 1990s, the resort features two championship golf courses designed by former PGA Tour professional Bruce Lietzke. The Old Course, which opened in 1992, is known for its dramatic elevation changes, panoramic lake views, and undulating greens. The New Course, completed in 1998, offers a tighter, more demanding layout that has become a favorite among competitive players.
The Old Course emphasizes shot making and creativity with rolling terrain, elevated tee shots and strategic green complexes, while the New Course presents a more demanding test with narrow fairways, extensive water hazards and a layout that rewards precision. Together, the two Lietzke designs have helped establish White Bluff as one of the most respected 36-hole golf facilities in Texas.
Championship Match: Sunday’s championship match saw #3 Sugar Tree Golf Club face off against #16 Abilene Country Club (South). Sugar Tree opened strong again, winning the first point of the front nine and going on to claim 3.5 of the front nines 4 total match points. Abilene’s lone .5 points of=n the front nine came from Brandon Beale and Hunter Hutchinson. On the back nine Sugar Tree again took the first match point with Heath Barnett and Eric McClintock winning the back nine as well as their overall match, sweeping their competition 3-0. On the back nine Abilene would need to rally to complete a Cinderella championship run from the #16 seed that has never been done before in League Play history. Sugar Tree however would not let up; with 3-0 sweeps in 3 out of 4 matches, they put an emphatic stamp on their championship run and will bring the Texas League Play trophy back with them to Lipan.
Semifinal Matches: Saturday’s first semifinal match was another West Texas showdown between the #16 seed Abilene Country Club (South) and #12 seed Odessa Country Club (Old), a match of two double digits seeds with a spot in the Texas League Play Championship on the line. Both teams split the front nine points 2-2. On the back nine Abilene was able to take 3 out of the 4 total points and on hole 16 Trey Todd drained a six foot putt for birdie to win the back nine 2 & 1 and clinch the half point in the overall match needed to claim their spot in the finals and the clock still had not struck midnight on Abilene’s Cinderella run. In the second semi-final match the #3 seed Sugar Tree Golf Club took on #10 Diamond Oaks Country Club. Sugar Tree opened the front nine in dominant fashion, winning 3 of the 4 points. Diamond Oaks made a fierce push on the back nine at one point having a lead in all four back nine matches. However, the final three holes in the first match would be the deciding factor when Heath Barnett and Eric McClintock of Sugar Tree won 16, 17, and 18 to go from tied to winning 2 & 1 and claiming the deciding point in the match with Sugar Tree winning 7-5.
Quarterfinal Matches: The quarterfinal matches saw Cinderella continue to sharpen the heel of her glass slipper. #16 seed, Abilene Country Club (South) followed up their 11-1 drubbing of the #1 overall seed with a 10-2 win over #8 The Clubs of Prestonwood to claim their spot in the semifinals. Following that match the battle for Odessa Country Club supremacy took place when the Old Course met the Links Course. The Links Course was unfortunately no match for the Old Course getting hot at the right time as the Old Course took it to the Links winning the quarterfinal match 10.5-1.5. In the most thrilling match of the playoffs overall #2 DeCordova Bend and #10 Diamond Oaks required extra holes to see who would earn a spot in the semifinals after Luke Lane and Mike Reinhardt shot a back nine five-under-par 31 to win the last point of the match and bring it to a 6-6 tie. The sudden death playoff would require four holes to decide a winner when Luke Lane made an 8 foot birdie putt to advance Diamond Oaks to the semis. In the last quarterfinal match of the day the then highest seed remaining Sugar Tree Golf Club continued to prove why they earned a top 3 seed beating Pecan Plantation 9.5-2.5.
Round of 16 Matches: Thursday’s Round of 16 began with the #1 overall seed Stonebriar Country Club taking on #16 Abilene Country Club (South). The #16 seed came to play nearly sweeping Stonebriar 11-1 to move on and knock the #1 seed out of the tournament in the opening match of the playoffs. The second match of the day was the most competitive of any of the Round of 16 matches with the #8 overall seed The Clubs of Prestonwood narrowly beating out Spanish Oaks Golf Club by a total of 6.5-5.5. The second match proved to be the deciding half point in the match with Prestonwood scoring a crucial tie to split the full point and keep Spanish Oaks just out of reach. The third match saw two West Texas clubs battle for a spot in the quarterfinals with Odessa Country Club (Links) facing off again Midland Country Club. Midland proved to be no match for the #4 overall seed in the playoffs with Odessa claiming a dominant 10-2 victory. Odessa Country Club (Old) decided they also wanted a piece of the quarterfinal action and could not let their other team show them up. The #12 overall seed pulled another Round of 16 upset this time the #5 overall seed Bridlewood Golf Club, Odessa CC (Old) swept three out of the four matches to claim a 9-3 win and move on. The first match on the opposite side of the bracket saw two former Texas League Play Champions taking on one another, the #2 overall seed DeCordova Bend Country Club and the #15 seed Tierra Verde Golf Club. DeCordova Bend started out hot winning 3 out of 4 points on the front nine and never looked back in route to a 7.5-4.5 victory. Following them the #8 seed Jersey Meadow Golf Club was the next club to fall in a first round upset losing 9-3 to the #10 overall Diamond Oaks Country Club. In the #3 vs. #14 match Sugar Tree Golf Club was not going to join the clubs that were upset beating Rockwall Golf & Athletic Club by a score of 9.5-2.5. The last match in the Round of 16 saw Texas League Play veteran Pecan Plantation Country Club upset the #7 seed Denton Country Club 8.5-3.5 to earn a spot in the quarterfinals for the second year in a row.
TGA League Play: Texas League Play is open to all TGA members clubs that meet the club eligibility requirements. Participating clubs establish a four-club conference and compete over an eight-week regular season. The regular season consists of six interconference matches including three home and three away matches. Eight players represent each club on match day and play four-ball matches. Points are awarded in a Nassau style scoring with each of the four matches being worth three points.
What’s Next: The Texas Golf Association will head to Spanish Oaks Golf Club in Bee Cave June 18-21, 2026 for the playing of the 117th Texas Amateur Championship presented by Hytera US. For more information click here.
More Info: The Texas Golf Association extends its sincere appreciation to the staff, members of White Bluff Resort, for their integral part in making the Texas League Play Playoffs a memorable and successful event. For more information on the Texas League Play, click here.