CHAMPAIGN -  Fighting Illini men's golf will open the fall slate on Friday, hosting the annual OFCC/Fighting Illini Invitational. In its 13th season, the event continually welcomes the top programs in the country to the premier North Course at Olympia Fields Country Club. The 2018 tournament will be no different as No. 16-ranked Illinois will host 11 teams ranked or receiving votes in the 2018 Bushnell Golfweek Preseason Coaches Poll.

"There's nothing like starting your season with one of the biggest events in college golf," head coach Mike Small said of opening the 2018-19 campaign at Olympia Fields. "From a coach's perspective, it's a great event to see where we are, how our guys came back from the summer months and how they're playing. We haven't had much time to work with them because it's early in the season, and in the fall season we generally don't have a lot of time to work with them on the front end. The fall season is a time when you evaluate, observe and formulate ideas of where you want to go in the offseason. This is the perfect event for our coaching staff to see where we stand against top competition on a very demanding, fair and solid golf course."

A three-day, 54-hole event, the 2018 OFCC/Fighting Illini Invitational begins on Friday and continues through the weekend. Teams will play 18 holes each day, with tee times beginning at 8 a.m. The tournament will be held on the 7,353-yard, Par 70 North Course at Olympia Fields Country Club. 

Illini fans are encouraged to come out to Olympia Fields Country Club for the event, admission to the tournament is free. 

The 2018 tournament field includes No. 1 Oklahoma State, No. 2 Alabama, No. 4 Texas A&M, No. T-11 California, No. T-11 Stanford, No. 14 Baylor, No. 20 Southern California, No. 23 UNLV, No. 25 Florida State, RV Purdue, RV South Carolina, Air Force and Indiana. 

"The golf course and the membership make this tournament," Small said of Olympia Fields. "These highly-ranked teams participate because of the golf course and because of the way they're received by the membership. The OFCC/Fighting Illini Invitational is regarded as one of the top three college events in the country when you look at all aspects of a collegiate tournament, and it's an event that we are proud to be a part of and to host. While all teams look forward to the event, no team is more excited to be at this tournament than we are because of the relationship that we have formed with Olympia Fields Country Club and its membership over the last 13 years. It's a relationship that we cherish and regard very highly."

Live scoring for the OFCC/Fighting Illini Invitational will be available on Golfstat, and fans can follow @IlliniMGolf on Twitter for even more live updates. A recap will be posted on FightingIllini.com following each day of play. 

The Illini men's golf squad will open play this season after earning its fourth-consecutive Big Ten Championship title and making its 11th consecutive appearance at the NCAA Championships last year. Four Illini earned All-Big Ten honors as well as PING All-Midwest Region honors including returning juniors Bryan Baumgarten and Michael Feagles. Illinois also returns junior Giovanni Tadiotto and sophomores Brendan O'Reilly and Varun Chopra in addition to welcoming four talented freshmen for 2018-19. 

"We're young in age and we're young in experience," Small said of his Illini squad. "Our juniors have played in collegiate tournaments, but the sophomores and freshmen haven't really played a lot of college golf. I'm excited as anybody to see where they are and to be a part of their development in the months to come."

Luke Armbrust, Adrien Dumont de Chassart, Noah Gillard and Tommy Kuhl make up the Illini freshman class this season, each boasting a decorated list of junior golf achievements. 

Stay tuned to FightingIllini.com for updates throughout the OFCC/Fighting Illini Invitational and for all the latest on Illinois men's golf.