CHAMPAIGN, Ill. – The Illinois women's golf team heads back to South Carolina this weekend for the Clemson Invitational, hosted by Clemson University in Sunset, S.C., on March 25-27.
THE SETTING
The Clemson Invitational will be held at The Reserve at Lake Keowee, with the course set for a par 72 and will play 6,386 yards. Jack Nicklaus placed his signature on The Reserve with a 7,112-yard masterpiece along the emerald waters of Lake Keowee with soaring views of the Blue Ridge Mountains. Be ready to enjoy year-round golf and over-sized practice facilities, including a mobile shade canopy, short game area and putting green.
TOURNAMENT FORMAT
There will be 18 teams competing in the 54-hole tournament with 18 holes on each on Friday (March 25), Saturday (March 26) and Sunday (March 27). Friday and Saturday will feature tee times between 8-10:15 a.m. CT off of holes one and 10, with Sunday's tee times set for 7:30-9:45 a.m. CT off of holes one and 10. Official tee times will be published on Golfstat when finalized.
THE FIELD
Along with the Illini, the 18-team field includes Clemson, No. 6 Florida, No. 14 Florida State, Furman, Kansas, Kentucky, Kent State, No. 17 LSU, Maryland, Miami, Michigan State, Notre Dame, Purdue, Tennessee, UNCW, Vanderbilt and No. 22 Virginia Tech.
FIGHTING ILLINI LINEUP
No. 1: Isabel Sy
No. 2: Kornkamol Sukaree
No. 3: Lexanne Halama
No. 4: Crystal Wang
No. 5: Siyan Chen
Individual: Alise Knudson
ILLINI AT THE CLEMSON INVITATIONAL
This will be the third appearance for Illinois in the Clemson Invitational, with the Illini registering top five finishes in both of the previous two appearances in 2019 and 2021.
The Illini finished in fifth place at the Clemson Invitational a season ago, the team's highest placing tournament result of the season. Former standout Tristyn Nowlin shot a 3-under 69 in the final round to total -5 for the 54-hole event and finish in a tie for third place. Illinois had two others in the top 15 with Isabel Sy in 12th place at +1 and Crystal Wang in a tie for 14th at +3. Sy shot a 3-under 69 in the final round after 74s in each of the first two rounds.
After thunderstorms caused the final round of play at the Clemson Invitational to be canceled in 2019, the Illini finished fourth with the program's best 36-hole tournament total of 574 (-2), beating the previous record of 579 (+3) earned at the Lady Buckeye Invitational in 2018. Illinois was led by then-freshman Kornkamol Sukaree, who surpassed former Illini Grace Park for the best 36-hole tournament finish in program history with 140 (-4). Sukaree was in a five-way tie for eighth in a deep field.
LIVE SCORING
Live scoring for the Clemson Invitational will be available on Golfstat.com. A recap and results will be posted on FightingIllini.com following each day of play.
LAST TIME OUT
The Illinois women's golf team finished the Briar's Creek Invitational in sixth place after turning in a 19-over par tournament total of 883 on the par 72, 6,116-yard Golf Club at Briar's Creek course on March 14-15. Sophomore Isabel Sy led Illinois individually as she equaled her career best finish to tie for eighth place after posting an even-par 216 with standout rounds of 69-72 in the final two rounds. It was her first top-10 finish of the season and second in her career.
UP NEXT
The Illini next head to Columbus, Ohio for their final tournament of the regular season with the Lady Buckeye Spring Invitational, hosted by Ohio State on April 15-16.
For more Fighting Illini women's golf news, stay tuned to FightingIllini.com and follow @IlliniWGolf on social media: Twitter | Instagram | Facebook.
