OU men’s golf inks stellar signing class

Head coach Ryan Hybl inks Brad Dalke, Aaron Terrazas, Blaine Hale, Thomas Johnson and Quade Cummins

NORMAN — University of Oklahoma head men’s golf coach Ryan Hybl announced Thursday the signing of five golfers to national letters of intent during the second day of the 2014-15 early signing period. Joining the Sooners next season will be Quade Cummins, Brad Dalke, Blaine Hale, Thomas Johnson and Aaron Terrazas.

OU’s class is one of the best in the country, according to Hybl. All five members of this year’s class are top-100 recruits, with Dalke ranked in the top five, Terrazas in the top 25 and Hale in the top 50.

"Overall, I think it’s a fantastic class," Hybl said. "It’s a good group of guys and they’re going to come in here and work hard. Expectations will be high on these guys, and I think that with them coming in we will kind of have a target on our back of people eyeballing us early in the season, and that’s good. That’s where we are supposed to be."

BRAD DALKE
Hobart, Okla.
Edmond Christian Academy
Dalke will be a third generation OU student-athlete, following his dad, Bill (member of the 1975 national championship football team), his mom, Kay (member of the first women’s golf team) and his grandfather, Ken Pryor (basketball and baseball in the 1940s). Dalke committed to the Sooners at the age of 12 and is graduating high school a year early.

In September 2014, Dalke represented the United States in the Junior Ryder Cup in Scotland, helping the team to a 16-8 victory over the Europeans by securing 2 of his 3 possible points. Recently, Dalke was named a first-team Rolex Junior All-American for the fourth consecutive year, tying a record held by Tiger Woods and Webb Simpson, and will look to become the first person to claim the honor for a fifth time this season. At 13 years old, Dalke won the AJGA Thunderbird Invitational, becoming the youngest winner of an AJGA invitational in history. He has since won two more invitationals (the AJGA CB&I Invitational and the AJGA Ping Invitational) and has 19 top-five finishes in national and international invitationals. Dalke has played in four AJGA Wyndham Cups, tying Woods’ record, and will have the chance to play in his fifth in July of 2015. If he does, he will become the only male junior golfer to ever accomplish this feat. Dalke won the 2A Oklahoma High School State Golf Championship in 2014, representing Hobart High School. He now attends Edmond Christian Academy and holds a 4.0 GPA. The Junior Golf Scoreboard lists him as the No. 5 player in the class of 2015.

OU Head Coach Ryan Hybl on Brad Dalke:
"Brad’s just really a great guy. Forget about the fact that he’s one of the best players in the country, and even in the world. He’s fun to be around, he’s a hard worker and truly wants to be the best player in the world. I think he can seriously put his stamp here at OU. We’ve been talking about winning national championships ever since he was 12 years old, and hopefully we are going to have that opportunity while he’s here."

AARON TERRAZAS
Veracruz, Mexico
International Junior Golf Academy (Hilton Head Island, S.C.)
Currently the No. 2 amateur in Mexico, Terrazas has been a member of the Mexican National Team for the past four years and competed at the World Amateur Championship. Terrazas is also a member of the Mexican Olympic Team, playing in the Summer Youth Olympics. The past two years, Terrazas finished in the top 10 at the Toyota Junior Golf World Cup and recorded a top-10 showing at the US Junior Amateur in 2013.

Additionally, Terrazas has two top-10 AJGA Invitational finishes to his name. Terrazas is ranked as the No. 25 player in the class of 2015 by Golfweek.

OU Head Coach Ryan Hybl on Aaron Terrazas:
"Aaron’s a great leader, fun to be around and a hard worker. He has been exposed to the national level and has done really good things. I am really looking forward to seeing Aaron, and I think he’s going to have a chance to a big-time college player. I just love his attitude and his leadership."

BLAINE HALE
Dallas, Texas
Lake Highlands High School
Hale has two significant tournament wins under his belt in 2014: the AJGA David Toms Foundation Classic in Shreveport, La., in July and the Bart Granger Memorial, the largest high school tournament in Texas, in September. A four-year letterman, Hale has served as the captain of his high school golf team his junior and senior seasons. He was named UIL 5A All Region for 2011-12 and first-team UIL 5A All State for 2012-13. In 2014, Hale has played in eight Texas Legends Junior World Tour events, securing five top-five finishes, his highest being a tie for second at the Winter Classic. He is a four-year member of the Jackie Burke Cup’s North Team, sponsored by the Texas Golf Association. Hale also won the Lanny Wadkins Junior (July 2013), was runner-up in the Texas State Junior Championship at Horseshoe Bay (July 2012) and finished third in the Texas Cup (2013). Hale is the No. 41 player in the class of 2015, according to Golfweek.

OU Head Coach Ryan Hybl on Blaine Hale:
"Blaine is another big, strong guy who hits it a long way. He has really come on strong the last four or five months. He had a nice summer and won a big tournament down in Louisiana, and he is a great, awesome kid. He’s fun to be around, and he’s talented. He’s going to be able to come in here and help us."

THOMAS JOHNSON
Norman, Okla.
Norman North High School
In 2013, Johnson was voted to Oklahoma’s first team as one of the top five players in the state. Johnson is a three-time all-conference selection (2012, 2013, 2014) and has been ranked in the top 50 on the National Junior Golf Scoreboard. As a sophomore, Johnson tied for first in the 2013 Oklahoma Class 6A State Championship and finished third at the state tournament in 2014. He also has two other tournament wins: the PGA Junior Series at Arbor Links, Neb., and the Oklahoma Open Qualifier. Johnson finished second in three tournaments (Jim McLean Invitational in 2013, Oklahoma Junior Boys Championship and PGA Junior Series Qualifier), 10th at the PGA Junior Championship and 12th at the Oklahoma Open Championship and Orange Bowl International Classic.

OU Head Coach Ryan Hybl on Thomas Johnson:
We’ve got three Oklahoma guys in this class – Thomas Johnson, Quade Cummins and Brad Dalke. Thomas, who is from Norman, has really developed into a nice player and has done some great things nationally. I love all of our Oklahoma guys."

QUADE CUMMINS
Weatherford, Okla.
Weatherford High School

Cummins has been playing golf from an early age, winning his first junior tournament at Riverside Golf Course in Clinton, Okla., at the age of 8. At 11 years old, Cummins won the Junior PGA tournament and became a back-to-back OGA Junior Boys champion in 2011 and 2012. Most recently, Cummins won the Oklahoma Class 4A State Championship as a sophomore, and he also has several Oklahoma Junior Golf Tour tournament titles to his name.

OU Head Coach Ryan Hybl on Quade Cummins:
"Quade Cummins is one of three Oklahoma guys in this signing class. He has basically won about everything that you can win in the state. He is a big, talented guy. He hasn’t played much on the national level, so I am looking forward to seeing him get out and stretch his wings a little bit more over the next year."