CHAMPAIGN, Ill. – The Illinois men's golf team, rated No. 3 nationally in the most recent Golfstat rankings, returns home to host the inaugural Fighting Illini Spring Collegiate, this Saturday and Sunday, in the team's final regular-season tournament leading up to the 2023 postseason.
THE SETTING
The Fighting Illini Spring Collegiate will officially christen the championship-caliber Atkins Golf Club at the University of Illinois (par 71, 7,538 yards). The event not only marks the first collegiate tournament at the newly renovated facility, but also the team's first event in the Urbana-Champaign community since hosting the Illini Spring Classic in April of 2011 at what was then known as Stone Creek Golf Course.
After the course was gifted by the Atkins Family to the University of Illinois and the Illinois Foundation, Fighting Illini Athletics partnered with architect Drew Rogers to enhance the already strong golf course by rebuilding all greens, relocating many and rebuilding all bunkers using the Better Billy Bunker system, and adding length to allow the team to stretch the course to more than 7500 yards. The renovation has resulted in a championship venue that is capable of providing a fair and challenging experience for the nation's top collegiate players.
TOURNAMENT FORMAT
The 54-hole tournament will be a five-count-four format played over two days, with 36 holes of continuous play set for Saturday, followed by Sunday's final round. Each day will begin with tee times off Nos. 1 and 10, starting at 7:30 a.m. CT on Saturday and 8 a.m. CT Sunday.
THE FIELD
The Fighting Illini Spring Collegiate field includes nine programs vying for the title. Challenging the No. 3-ranked Fighting Illini is a group of Big Ten contenders in No. 32 Northwestern, No. 61 Michigan State, No. 66 Indiana, No. 106 Michigan and No. 114 Nebraska. The rest of the field includes Loyola Marymount (95), Ball State (137) and Eastern Michigan (216).
FIGHTING ILLINI LINEUP
No. 1: Jackson Buchanan
No. 2: Adrien Dumont de Chassart
No. 3: Piercen Hunt
No. 4: Tommy Kuhl
No. 5: Matthis Besard
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Individual: Ryan Voois
Individual: Jerry Ji
Individual: Nico Lang
LIVE SCORING
Live scoring for the Fighting Illini Spring Collegiate will be available on Golfstat. A Recap and results will be posted on FightingIllini.com following each day of play.
ILLINI AT THE FIGHTING ILLINI SPRING COLLEGIATE
The 2023 Fighting Illini Spring Collegiate is the inaugural event at the program's new home course, the Atkins Golf Club at the University of Illinois, and the team's first tournament in the Urbana-Champaign community since 2011.
UP NEXT
The Fighting Illini tee off April 28-30 at Galloway National Golf Club in Galloway, N.J., for the 2023 Big Ten Men's Golf Championship. The Orange and Blue are in search of their eighth-consecutive conference title, their 13th in the last 14 league championships dating back to the 2008-09 season, and the 20th in program history.
FOLLOW THE #ILLINI
For more Fighting Illini men's golf news, stay tuned to FightingIllini.com and follow @IlliniMGolf on social media: Twitter | Instagram | Facebook.
