Sunday, September 9
Independence, Minn.
All Day
Coastal Carolina University
at
2018 Gopher Invitational
Men’s Golf Set to Open 2018 Fall Slate at Gopher Invitational
9/8/2018 11:14:00 AM | Men's Golf
2018 Sun Belt Champions open up play this weekend in Minnesota
Gopher Invitational Live Scoring: Click here
Tournament Site: GopherInvitational.com
Course Website: Windsong Farm Golf Club
Independence, Minn. – The defending 2018 Sun Belt Men's Golf Champions will tee off its 2018-19 season this weekend at the 14th Gopher Invitational hosted by the University of Minnesota at the Windsong Farm Golf Club in Independence, Minn.
The tournament will consist of 36 holes on Sunday, Sept. 9, and will conclude with 18 holes on Monday, Sept. 10. The fall event will start at 7:15 a.m. on Sunday with nine teams going off the front nine, while six teams will tee off on the back nine at 7:30 a.m.
Hosting the event for the sixth time, the Windsong Farm Golf Club will play at a par of 71 (35-36) and just over 7,300 yards.
"It's always exciting to kick off a new season and even more so this year. We are setting out to defend our Sun Belt Championship and we have put together a very challenging schedule that will see us play the very best in the country in several different parts of the country," commented head coach Jim Garren. "Our roster this year has five new guys to go along with four returners. We have a very talented group and they are hungry, so now it's time to go test ourselves and see what we've got."
Headlined by Big 12 powerhouses Oklahoma and Texas, who were both among the final eight teams to reach the NCAA Division I Championship match play quarterfinals last season, half of the 14-team field this weekend competed in the 2017 NCAA Championship event. Defending Gopher Invitational champion Arkansas also reached the postseason last year along with Michigan State, Purdue, San Diego State and the Chanticleers.
Three of the teams in this weekend's event are nationally ranked in No. 3 Oklahoma, No. 10 Texas and No. 17 Arkansas, while four others received votes in the GCAA's preseason poll including Purdue, Michigan State, New Mexico and San Diego State.
"The field for the Gopher Invitational this weekend is tremendous with eight of the 14 teams that are participating having played in the NCAA postseason last year, including Arkansas who is the defending tournament team champion and made the final 15 at the NCAAs last year," continued Garren. "This is what we want, and our guys welcome the challenge. Our thoughts are pretty simple, if we want to be considered among the elite programs in the nation we need to go play them. The course is big and it's challenging. We are going to learn a lot about our group this week."
The Chanticleers will send out the lineup of – No. 1 Luis Ruiz, No. 2 Morgan Deneen, No. 3 Wes Artac, No. 4 States Fort and No. 5 Zack Taylor.
Ruiz and Deneen will look to build on their seasons from a year ago in which the senior duo led the Chanticleers with a team-best season scoring averages of 72.69 and 73.00, respectively, while also earning all-Sun Belt Conference honors.
Artac and Taylor are both new to the program and will be making their debuts for the Chanticleers. However, both are very experienced golfers that will look to make an impact in the CCU lineup this season. Artac is a graduate transfer from Texas Tech, while Taylor joined the program this summer from the University's PGA Golf Management (PGM) program, similar to the way Deneen did last year.
In the No. 4 spot is Fort, a veteran returner that was one of CCU's most consistent performers last spring, highlighted by two wins in the match play portion of the conference championship tournament and finishing in a tie for third overall with a 54-hole score of 212, 1-under par, at the Sun Belt Championship.
Also in action this weekend for the Chanticleers will be freshman Brady Hinkle who will play in an individual tournament called the Pioneer Collegiate, which is just down the road from his fellow teammates at the Gopher Invitational.
"I'm excited that Brady gets to compete at Pioneer Creek. This will be a big week for him gaining valuable experience," stated Garren. "This is a great way to get him used to the travel and different playing conditions that come with the transition to college golf. He's shown a lot of promise in the preseason and I'm excited to see how he performs this weekend."
Live scoring of the Gopher Invitational can be found HERE.
For complete coverage of CCU men's golf, follow the Chants on social media @CoastalMGolf (Twitter), facebook.com/CCUChanticleers (Facebook), @GoCCUSports (Instagram) or visit the official home of Coastal Carolina Athletics at goccusports.com.
Tournament Site: GopherInvitational.com
Course Website: Windsong Farm Golf Club
Independence, Minn. – The defending 2018 Sun Belt Men's Golf Champions will tee off its 2018-19 season this weekend at the 14th Gopher Invitational hosted by the University of Minnesota at the Windsong Farm Golf Club in Independence, Minn.
The tournament will consist of 36 holes on Sunday, Sept. 9, and will conclude with 18 holes on Monday, Sept. 10. The fall event will start at 7:15 a.m. on Sunday with nine teams going off the front nine, while six teams will tee off on the back nine at 7:30 a.m.
Hosting the event for the sixth time, the Windsong Farm Golf Club will play at a par of 71 (35-36) and just over 7,300 yards.
"It's always exciting to kick off a new season and even more so this year. We are setting out to defend our Sun Belt Championship and we have put together a very challenging schedule that will see us play the very best in the country in several different parts of the country," commented head coach Jim Garren. "Our roster this year has five new guys to go along with four returners. We have a very talented group and they are hungry, so now it's time to go test ourselves and see what we've got."
Headlined by Big 12 powerhouses Oklahoma and Texas, who were both among the final eight teams to reach the NCAA Division I Championship match play quarterfinals last season, half of the 14-team field this weekend competed in the 2017 NCAA Championship event. Defending Gopher Invitational champion Arkansas also reached the postseason last year along with Michigan State, Purdue, San Diego State and the Chanticleers.
Three of the teams in this weekend's event are nationally ranked in No. 3 Oklahoma, No. 10 Texas and No. 17 Arkansas, while four others received votes in the GCAA's preseason poll including Purdue, Michigan State, New Mexico and San Diego State.
"The field for the Gopher Invitational this weekend is tremendous with eight of the 14 teams that are participating having played in the NCAA postseason last year, including Arkansas who is the defending tournament team champion and made the final 15 at the NCAAs last year," continued Garren. "This is what we want, and our guys welcome the challenge. Our thoughts are pretty simple, if we want to be considered among the elite programs in the nation we need to go play them. The course is big and it's challenging. We are going to learn a lot about our group this week."
The Chanticleers will send out the lineup of – No. 1 Luis Ruiz, No. 2 Morgan Deneen, No. 3 Wes Artac, No. 4 States Fort and No. 5 Zack Taylor.
Ruiz and Deneen will look to build on their seasons from a year ago in which the senior duo led the Chanticleers with a team-best season scoring averages of 72.69 and 73.00, respectively, while also earning all-Sun Belt Conference honors.
Artac and Taylor are both new to the program and will be making their debuts for the Chanticleers. However, both are very experienced golfers that will look to make an impact in the CCU lineup this season. Artac is a graduate transfer from Texas Tech, while Taylor joined the program this summer from the University's PGA Golf Management (PGM) program, similar to the way Deneen did last year.
In the No. 4 spot is Fort, a veteran returner that was one of CCU's most consistent performers last spring, highlighted by two wins in the match play portion of the conference championship tournament and finishing in a tie for third overall with a 54-hole score of 212, 1-under par, at the Sun Belt Championship.
Also in action this weekend for the Chanticleers will be freshman Brady Hinkle who will play in an individual tournament called the Pioneer Collegiate, which is just down the road from his fellow teammates at the Gopher Invitational.
"I'm excited that Brady gets to compete at Pioneer Creek. This will be a big week for him gaining valuable experience," stated Garren. "This is a great way to get him used to the travel and different playing conditions that come with the transition to college golf. He's shown a lot of promise in the preseason and I'm excited to see how he performs this weekend."
Live scoring of the Gopher Invitational can be found HERE.
For complete coverage of CCU men's golf, follow the Chants on social media @CoastalMGolf (Twitter), facebook.com/CCUChanticleers (Facebook), @GoCCUSports (Instagram) or visit the official home of Coastal Carolina Athletics at goccusports.com.
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