University of Minnesota Athletics
Gophers Head to Hawai'i
11/2/2016 12:00:00 AM | Men's Golf
The Gophers will trade in the brisk fall of Minnesota for a more tropical climate as they travel to Hawai'i for their final competition of the fall, the Ka'anapali Collegiate Classic. The three round, 54-hole tournament tees off 1:30 CST November 4 and runs until November 6.
The travel squad: It will be a familiar squad traveling for Minnesota as all five competitors competed at the Royal Oaks Intercollegiate. Justin Doeden, Thomas Longbella, Riley Johnson, Rúnar Arnorsson and William Leaf all make their second straight appearance. The five earned their right to play this weekend after an intense week of qualifying at Hazeltine, Troy Burne and Interlachen.
"William Leaf solidified himself in that last spot," coach John Carlson said. "He won the qualifier convincingly."
The field: This is the largest field Minnesota has faced all fall, consisting of 24 teams. They are:
Ball State
Boise State
Bowling Green
Cal State Fullerton
Clemson (26)
CSUN
Georgia (15)
Georgia State
Gonzaga
Hawai'i
Hawai'i-Hilo
Houston
Kansas (29)
Long Beach State
Loyola Marymount
LSU (4)
North Carolina - Wilmington
North Florida (42)
Oklahoma (10)
Sacramento State
South Carolina (40)
Texas-San Antonio
UC Santa Barbara
"It's definitely going to be different," Carlson said. "There are going to be about 120 players on the golf course, so the rounds are going to be slow."
The field is relatively unfamiliar with Minnesota, as they have only faced off with Ball State this season.
Seven teams find themselves ranked in GolfWeek's top-50 with LSU (4), Oklahoma (10), Georgia (15), Clemson (26), Kansas (29), South Carolina (40) and North Florida (42) included in the talented field.
Carlson expects all 24 teams to come ready to play in Hawai'i. "If you look at all the teams that are there, they are competitive on an annual basis," Carlson said. "We are going to have to go there ready to play.
The course: The Royal Ka'anapali Course plays at par-71 and is 6,700 yards long.
Carlson compared the layout of the course to Royal Oaks. "Last week should really help us prepare for Hawai'i." He also expects the wind they encounter to be similar to Windsong, the course that hosted the Gopher Invitational.
Notes: Thomas Longbella captured the Gophers' first top-10 finish of the season at the Royal Oaks Intercollegiate. He finished tied for sixth place and shot 4-under 209. The freshman has finished as one of Minnesota's top three finishers in the first four tournaments of his college career.
Boasting his fourth straight top-20 finish of the season, Justin Doeden will look to make it a perfect 5-for-5 in Hawaii. He finished at Royal Oaks tied for 13th.
With a trip to Hawai'i on the line, all the players brought their best effort at qualifying this week.
"You feel bad that you can't take all 14 guys," Carlson said. "That qualifier was really intense. It brought out the best in everyone."
Players Mentioned
