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Men's Golf Set to Host 14th Annual Gopher Invitational
9/7/2018 11:06:00 AM | Men's Golf
Gopher Invitational Live Scoring: Click Here
Gopher Invitational Tee Times: Click Here
Tournament Site: GopherInvitational.com
Course Website: Windsong Farm Golf Club
MINNEAPOLIS – The Minnesota men's golf team begins the 2018-19 season this weekend as it hosts the 14th Gopher Invitational Sunday, Sept. 9 and Monday, Sept. 10 at Windsong Farm Golf Club in Independence, Minn. The tournament is free to attend, and Saturday's practice round beginning at 11 a.m. is also open to the public.
The Gopher Invitational will start at 7:15 a.m. Sunday with nine teams going off the front nine, while six teams will tee off on the back nine at 7:30 a.m. The day will feature 36 holes of continuous play. Monday's final round will have the same start times with slots designated based on scores after the first two rounds.
"We want to defend our home turf," associate head coach Justin Smith said. "We only get one opportunity to play in front of our home state, friends and family. Every other event is away, so we need to take great pride in this. Hopefully we can raise the bar this year.
"I'm looking forward to a group that's going to go out and compete as hard as they can. Knowing they'll make mistakes – that's going to happen over 54 holes – but it's how you respond to that adversity. We may not be the most talented team there, but there's no reason we can't compete the hardest and that's what we expect out of this group."
Half of the 14-team field competed in last season's NCAA Division I Championship, highlighted by Oklahoma and Texas, who were both among the final eight teams to reach the match play quarterfinals. Defending Gopher Invitational champion Arkansas also reached the postseason last year along with Coastal Carolina, Michigan State, Purdue and San Diego State.
"With sponsorships, the support of volunteers, the golf course and facilities we have, the way we take care of the teams when they get here, it's just been a really cool experience for us, not just as a home event, but for teams that come in from all over the country," Smith said of hosting the annual tournament. "We take huge pride in it; it sets up the rest of our year. Teams absolutely love coming here; there's not a better time to come to Minnesota than the first part of September.
"(Director of Men's Golf) John (Carlson) has done an incredible job building the tournament to what it is. He's very prideful of that. It's been a lot of years in the making with a lot of sponsorships and a lot of dollars and a lot of support from our department. It's exciting to think of where this will be five to 10 years from now because every year it's improving."
The field: No. 17 Arkansas, Charlotte, Coastal Carolina, Iowa, Minnesota (which will field two teams), Michigan State, New Mexico, North Carolina State, No. 3 Oklahoma, Purdue, San Diego State, No. 10 Texas, Utah and Washington.
In addition to the three ranked teams, five others received votes in the GCAA's preseason poll including Purdue, Michigan State, New Mexico and San Diego State. Nine teams return from last year's field, which was rated 13th-toughest among 276 Division I college tournaments last season.
The course: Windsong Farm Golf Club is hosting the Gopher Invitational for the sixth time. It will play at a par of 71 (35-36) and just over 7,300 yards.
The lineup: Minnesota will have two teams competing at its home tournament. Juniors Thomas Longbella and Noah Rasinski, sophomores Angus Flanagan and Evan Long and freshman Lincoln Johnson will comprise the "A" team, while seniors Campbell Fisher and Peter Jones, sophomore Gus Minkin and freshmen Will Grevlos and Harry Plowman-Ollington will be on the "B" team. Redshirt freshman Ben Frazzini will be in action as an individual.
Minnesota returns eight letterwinners from last year's squad, including three of its top four scorers. Flanagan is the team's top returner after leading the team in scoring average (73.22) and rounds under par (8) a year ago. In addition to their eight returning letterwinners, the Gophers welcome three true freshmen and a transfer.
Gopher Invitational Team Capsules
Arkansas
Eighth appearance at the Gopher Invitational … finished 12th at 2018 NCAA Championship after tying for fourth at Norman Regional ... also tied for fourth at SEC Championship ... won two tournaments last year, including the Gopher Invitational ... returns three of top four scorers from a year ago, including All-Region honoree Mason Overstreet
Charlotte
Ninth appearance at the Gopher Invitational … finished third at 2018 C-USA Championship, reaching the semifinals ... best finish during regular season last year was fifth place at Janney Shootout ... must replace three of top five scorers from a year ago; top returning scoring average belongs to Marc Boucher (73.56)
Coastal Carolina
First appearance at the Gopher Invitational … reached NCAA postseason last season for first time since 2011 ... won the 2018 Sun Belt Championship ... best finish during regular season last year was fourth place at Janney Shootout ... returns top two scorers and four of top five scoring averages from last season
Iowa
Ninth appearance at the Gopher Invitational … Finished third at the 2018 Big Ten Championships ... best finish came at its own Hawkeye Invitational where it placed second ... junior Alex Schaake was a 2018 All-Big Ten second team selection and led the Hawkeyes with an 18-hole average of 71.88
Michigan State
Eighth appearance at the Gopher Invitational … placed seventh at both the 2018 NCAA Columbus Regional and Big Ten Championships ... tied for first at the Big Ten Match Play and came in second at two tournaments ... three of top four scorers return this year, including Kaleb Johnson (72.62), who tied for first at the Inverness Intercollegiate, and Big Ten Freshman of the Year James Piot (73.47)
New Mexico
Seventh appearance at the Gopher Invitational … tied for fifth at the 2018 Mountain West Championship, which was the team's highest finish of the year ... team was named Academic National Champions by Golf Coaches Association of America ... returns two of top three scoring averages, led by Sean Carlon (74.09)
North Carolina State
First appearance at the Gopher Invitational … competed at the 2018 NCAA Championships, coming in 24th ... placed third at the 2018 NCAA Raleigh Regional ... won two tournaments last season, including their own Wolfpack Intercollegiate ... team featured zero seniors last year ... Benjamin Shipp and Stephen Franken won tournaments in consecutive weeks
Oklahoma
Fourth appearance at the Gopher Invitational … reached the quarterfinals of 2018 NCAA Match Play ... won the 2018 NCAA Norman Regional and the 2018 Big 12 Championship ... captured first place in three other tournaments last season ... five of top six scoring averages returns, including three All-Americans
Purdue
Third appearance at the Gopher Invitational … took ninth at 2018 NCAA Regional ... finished eighth at 2018 Big Ten Championships ... won the Boilermaker Invitational and tied for first at the Big Ten Match Play ... top scorer from last season graduated, but rest of the team returns this year
San Diego State
Third appearance at the Gopher Invitational … finished 10th at the 2018 NCAA Norman Regional ... took eighth at the 2018 Mountain West Championship ... best finish last season came at Warrior Princeville Makai Invitational where they placed second ... must replace top three scorers from a year ago
Texas
Second appearance at the Gopher Invitational … reached the quarterfinals of 2018 NCAA Match Play ... won the 2018 NCAA Raleigh Regional ... finished second at the 2018 Big 12 Championship ... must replace top two scoring averages from last year, but rest of team returns
Utah
Third appearance at the Gopher Invitational … finished 10th at the 2018 NCAA Norman Regional ... took eighth at the 2018 Mountain West Championship ... best finish last season came at Warrior Princeville Makai Invitational where they placed second ... must replace top three scorers from a year ago
Washington
Fourth appearance at the Gopher Invitational … placed ninth at the 2018 Pac-12 Championship ... best finish last season came when Huskies took second at William H. Tucker Invitational ... returns six of top seven scoring averages from last season, including NCAA Regional qualifiers Carl Yuan (71.29) and Henry Lee (72.37)
Gopher Invitational Tee Times: Click Here
Tournament Site: GopherInvitational.com
Course Website: Windsong Farm Golf Club
MINNEAPOLIS – The Minnesota men's golf team begins the 2018-19 season this weekend as it hosts the 14th Gopher Invitational Sunday, Sept. 9 and Monday, Sept. 10 at Windsong Farm Golf Club in Independence, Minn. The tournament is free to attend, and Saturday's practice round beginning at 11 a.m. is also open to the public.
The Gopher Invitational will start at 7:15 a.m. Sunday with nine teams going off the front nine, while six teams will tee off on the back nine at 7:30 a.m. The day will feature 36 holes of continuous play. Monday's final round will have the same start times with slots designated based on scores after the first two rounds.
"We want to defend our home turf," associate head coach Justin Smith said. "We only get one opportunity to play in front of our home state, friends and family. Every other event is away, so we need to take great pride in this. Hopefully we can raise the bar this year.
"I'm looking forward to a group that's going to go out and compete as hard as they can. Knowing they'll make mistakes – that's going to happen over 54 holes – but it's how you respond to that adversity. We may not be the most talented team there, but there's no reason we can't compete the hardest and that's what we expect out of this group."
Half of the 14-team field competed in last season's NCAA Division I Championship, highlighted by Oklahoma and Texas, who were both among the final eight teams to reach the match play quarterfinals. Defending Gopher Invitational champion Arkansas also reached the postseason last year along with Coastal Carolina, Michigan State, Purdue and San Diego State.
"With sponsorships, the support of volunteers, the golf course and facilities we have, the way we take care of the teams when they get here, it's just been a really cool experience for us, not just as a home event, but for teams that come in from all over the country," Smith said of hosting the annual tournament. "We take huge pride in it; it sets up the rest of our year. Teams absolutely love coming here; there's not a better time to come to Minnesota than the first part of September.
"(Director of Men's Golf) John (Carlson) has done an incredible job building the tournament to what it is. He's very prideful of that. It's been a lot of years in the making with a lot of sponsorships and a lot of dollars and a lot of support from our department. It's exciting to think of where this will be five to 10 years from now because every year it's improving."
The field: No. 17 Arkansas, Charlotte, Coastal Carolina, Iowa, Minnesota (which will field two teams), Michigan State, New Mexico, North Carolina State, No. 3 Oklahoma, Purdue, San Diego State, No. 10 Texas, Utah and Washington.
In addition to the three ranked teams, five others received votes in the GCAA's preseason poll including Purdue, Michigan State, New Mexico and San Diego State. Nine teams return from last year's field, which was rated 13th-toughest among 276 Division I college tournaments last season.
The course: Windsong Farm Golf Club is hosting the Gopher Invitational for the sixth time. It will play at a par of 71 (35-36) and just over 7,300 yards.
The lineup: Minnesota will have two teams competing at its home tournament. Juniors Thomas Longbella and Noah Rasinski, sophomores Angus Flanagan and Evan Long and freshman Lincoln Johnson will comprise the "A" team, while seniors Campbell Fisher and Peter Jones, sophomore Gus Minkin and freshmen Will Grevlos and Harry Plowman-Ollington will be on the "B" team. Redshirt freshman Ben Frazzini will be in action as an individual.
Minnesota returns eight letterwinners from last year's squad, including three of its top four scorers. Flanagan is the team's top returner after leading the team in scoring average (73.22) and rounds under par (8) a year ago. In addition to their eight returning letterwinners, the Gophers welcome three true freshmen and a transfer.
Gopher Invitational Team Capsules
Arkansas
Eighth appearance at the Gopher Invitational … finished 12th at 2018 NCAA Championship after tying for fourth at Norman Regional ... also tied for fourth at SEC Championship ... won two tournaments last year, including the Gopher Invitational ... returns three of top four scorers from a year ago, including All-Region honoree Mason Overstreet
Charlotte
Ninth appearance at the Gopher Invitational … finished third at 2018 C-USA Championship, reaching the semifinals ... best finish during regular season last year was fifth place at Janney Shootout ... must replace three of top five scorers from a year ago; top returning scoring average belongs to Marc Boucher (73.56)
Coastal Carolina
First appearance at the Gopher Invitational … reached NCAA postseason last season for first time since 2011 ... won the 2018 Sun Belt Championship ... best finish during regular season last year was fourth place at Janney Shootout ... returns top two scorers and four of top five scoring averages from last season
Iowa
Ninth appearance at the Gopher Invitational … Finished third at the 2018 Big Ten Championships ... best finish came at its own Hawkeye Invitational where it placed second ... junior Alex Schaake was a 2018 All-Big Ten second team selection and led the Hawkeyes with an 18-hole average of 71.88
Michigan State
Eighth appearance at the Gopher Invitational … placed seventh at both the 2018 NCAA Columbus Regional and Big Ten Championships ... tied for first at the Big Ten Match Play and came in second at two tournaments ... three of top four scorers return this year, including Kaleb Johnson (72.62), who tied for first at the Inverness Intercollegiate, and Big Ten Freshman of the Year James Piot (73.47)
New Mexico
Seventh appearance at the Gopher Invitational … tied for fifth at the 2018 Mountain West Championship, which was the team's highest finish of the year ... team was named Academic National Champions by Golf Coaches Association of America ... returns two of top three scoring averages, led by Sean Carlon (74.09)
North Carolina State
First appearance at the Gopher Invitational … competed at the 2018 NCAA Championships, coming in 24th ... placed third at the 2018 NCAA Raleigh Regional ... won two tournaments last season, including their own Wolfpack Intercollegiate ... team featured zero seniors last year ... Benjamin Shipp and Stephen Franken won tournaments in consecutive weeks
Oklahoma
Fourth appearance at the Gopher Invitational … reached the quarterfinals of 2018 NCAA Match Play ... won the 2018 NCAA Norman Regional and the 2018 Big 12 Championship ... captured first place in three other tournaments last season ... five of top six scoring averages returns, including three All-Americans
Purdue
Third appearance at the Gopher Invitational … took ninth at 2018 NCAA Regional ... finished eighth at 2018 Big Ten Championships ... won the Boilermaker Invitational and tied for first at the Big Ten Match Play ... top scorer from last season graduated, but rest of the team returns this year
San Diego State
Third appearance at the Gopher Invitational … finished 10th at the 2018 NCAA Norman Regional ... took eighth at the 2018 Mountain West Championship ... best finish last season came at Warrior Princeville Makai Invitational where they placed second ... must replace top three scorers from a year ago
Texas
Second appearance at the Gopher Invitational … reached the quarterfinals of 2018 NCAA Match Play ... won the 2018 NCAA Raleigh Regional ... finished second at the 2018 Big 12 Championship ... must replace top two scoring averages from last year, but rest of team returns
Utah
Third appearance at the Gopher Invitational … finished 10th at the 2018 NCAA Norman Regional ... took eighth at the 2018 Mountain West Championship ... best finish last season came at Warrior Princeville Makai Invitational where they placed second ... must replace top three scorers from a year ago
Washington
Fourth appearance at the Gopher Invitational … placed ninth at the 2018 Pac-12 Championship ... best finish last season came when Huskies took second at William H. Tucker Invitational ... returns six of top seven scoring averages from last season, including NCAA Regional qualifiers Carl Yuan (71.29) and Henry Lee (72.37)
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