BATH, Mich. — The Fighting Illini men’s golf team – ranked No. 2 and No. 3 in the latest Golfweek and GolfStat team rankings, respectively – tees off Monday at Eagle Eye Golf Club to begin three days of competition at the 2023 NCAA Bath Regional hosted by Michigan State University. The Orange and Blue are making their 15th consecutive NCAA Regional appearance and are also looking to advance to the NCAA Championship round for the 14th time in the last 15 seasons.
THE SETTING
The 2023 NCAA Bath Regional is hosted by Michigan State University at Eagle Eye Golf Club in Bath, Mich., just outside of East Lansing. The par-71, 7,126-yard course was designed by Chris Lutzke, in collaboration with Pete Dye, and features a rolling “links” style and a signature island green on No. 17. The course has received numerous honors and recognitions and in 2022 it was ranked No. 85 on Golfweek’s list of the top 100 public courses in the U.S.
TOURNAMENT FORMAT
The 54-hole tournament will be played over three days, Monday-Wednesday, with 18 holes slated for each day.
The low four scores will count towards the team score in each round, with the top five teams, and the low individual not on one of those teams, advancing to the NCAA Championship.
THE FIELD
The Fighting Illini enter the postseason as the No. 1 seed at the Bath Regional in a strong field that includes 11 of 13 programs ranked inside the top-65 of the latest Golfweek/Golfstat team rankings. Behind the No. 2/3-ranked Illini are No. 7/10 Florida, No. 15/15 Texas, No. 21/22 Oregon and No. 27/27 Kansas State to round out the top five seeds. Georgia (26/34), Liberty (37/39), San Diego (47/50), Michigan State (65/61) and Wisconsin (62/65) are seeded 6-11, respectively. Illinois State (108/108) and Purdue Fort Wayne (209/213) round out the 13-team field vying for five bids to the NCAA Championship, May 26-30 in Scottsdale, Ariz.
The 10 Individual qualifiers are: Barend Botha, Toledo; Ben Warian, Minnesota; Tyler Goecke, Wright State; Palmer Jackson, Notre Dame; Nathan Han, Columbia; Mikkel Mathiesen, Wright State; Caleb VanArragon, Valparaiso; Nate Stevens, Notre Dame; Anthony Delisanti, Valparaiso; Jack Simon, St. John’s.
FIGHTING ILLINI LINEUP
No. 1: Tommy Kuhl
No. 2: Matthis…
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