Nov. 4, 2009
Kahuku, Hawaii -
Final Scores in PDF Format 
No. 6 Illinois began and ended the fall with its best two rounds of the season. On Wednesday, the Illini shot a final round 11-under par 277 to finish second at the Turtle Bay Collegiate Invitational in Hawai'i with 54-hole score of -8.
The 277 total betters the 281 Illinois scored in round one of the season-opening Wolf Run Invitational. That score also ties for the 13th-best round in school history. In addition, senior Matt Hoffman shot a season-best 69 on the 6,535-yard, par-72 George Fazio Course.
Junior Scott Langley paced the Illini with a four-under par 68, birdying three of his final four holes. Langley finished the tournament tied for eighth place at -2. Senior Zach Barlow was Illinois' top finisher of the tournament at -3, placing sixth after firing a 69 and 70 in his final two rounds.
Sophomore Luke Guthrie made a charge at the individual title. At one point, the Quincy, Ill., native was at -5 for tournament in second place and just one stroke behind the leader. With Illinois starting the day on the 10th hole, Guthrie eagled the 496-yard par 5 17th hole and finished his first nine holes of the day with a 32. In the end, he tied Langley for eighth in the tournament at -2 after finishing with a final round 70, giving him all three rounds at even par of better on the tournament.
Hoffman also finished in the top 20, in a tie for 18th at +3 after his round, while junior Chris DeForest tied for 32nd in the 64-man field at +5 after a final round 73. Freshman Ross Frankenberg, playing as an individual, completed his third straight 74 to finish tied for 36th at +6.
San Diego State cruised to the tournament title at -26, after shooting 274 on Wednesday. The Aztecs' Alex Kang and Andrew Cooley shared individual honors at -7. Santa Clara (-3), Long Beach State (-1) and New Mexico State (+3) round out the top five team scores in the 12-team field.
Illinois, who entered the tournament at No. 3 in the Golfstat computer rankings, posted three top-two finishes in five fall tournaments.
