University of Illinois
OFCC / Fighting Illini Invitational
No. 9 Illinois Hosts Elite Field at 17th OFCC/Fighting Illini Invitational
September 14, 2023 | Men's Golf
PREVIEW
| Illinois at OFCC/Fighting Illini Invitational | |
|---|---|
| Tournament | OFCC/Fighting Illini Invitational (Tournament Info/Records) |
| Date | Sept. 15-17 |
| Location | Olympia Fields, Ill. |
| Course | Olympia Fields Country Club - North Course (Par 70 / 7,310 Yards) |
| Live Scoring | GolfStat |
| Illinois | Roster | Schedule | Season Statistics |
| Shop | Fighting Illini Store |
| Social Media | Twitter | Instagram | Facebook |
OLYMPIA FIELDS, Ill. – The No. 9-ranked Fighting Illini men's golf team, fresh of a season-opening victory at the Sahalee Players Championship, continues action this weekend as the host team for the 17th annual OFCC/Fighting Illini Invitational at Olympia Fields Country Club, Friday-Sunday.
THE SETTING
The OFCC/Fighting Illini Invitational will be contested on the North Course at Olympia Fields Country Club, once again providing a demanding but fair test for a field that includes some of the nation's best players and programs. The course will feature a Par 70, 7,310-yard layout.
Over the years, the famed club has been home to several premier events, having hosted the U.S. Amateur (2015), two U.S. Opens (1928, 2003), two PGA Championships (1925, 1961), a U.S. Senior Open (1997), plus five Western Opens (1920, 1927, 1933, 1968, 1971) and the BMW Championship in 2020 and 2023.
TOURNAMENT FORMAT
The 54-hole tournament will be played over three days with 18 holes slated for each day of competition. Tee times for Rounds 1 and 2, on Friday and Saturday, respectively, begin at 8 a.m. CT. Sunday's final round tee times are set for 7:30 a.m. CT.
THE FIELD
The 2023 OFCC/Fighting Illini Invitational field is made up of many of the nation's most successful collegiate golf programs:
- 14 of 15 teams are ranked or receiving votes in the first GCAA Coaches Poll of the season
- Programs in the 2023 tournament field have combined to account for 17 of 24 spots in the 12 NCAA Championship match play finals since the current format began in 2009
- Each of the last five programs to win the NCAA Championship will be represented: Florida (2023), Texas (2022), Pepperdine (2021), Stanford (2019), and Oklahoma State (2018)
- All 15 of the programs in the field competed in the 2023 NCAA Regionals
- 11 of the 15 teams advanced to the 2023 NCAA Championship stroke play
- The field includes 7 of the 8 teams that made up match play at the 2023 NCAA Championship: quarterfinalists Arizona State, Illinois, and Pepperdine; semifinalists Florida State and North Carolina; and finalists Florida and Georgia Tech
FIGHTING ILLINI LINEUP
No. 1: Max Herendeen
No. 2: Jackson Buchanan
No. 3: Tyler Goecke
No. 4: Ryan Voois
No. 5: Timmy Crawford
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Individual: Piercen Hunt
Individual: Jerry Ji
Individual: Ethan Wilson
ILLINI AT THE OFCC/FIGHTING ILLINI INVITATIONAL
The Orange and Blue have taken home the team title at the OFCC/Fighting Illini Invitational a record three times (2008, 2014 and 2016). Two Illini golfers have also captured medalist honors in the event, with Zach Barlow and Dylan Meyer each tying for top honors in 2008 and 2014, respectively.
Junior Jackson Buchanan is the only member of the Illini's five-man lineup to have previously competed at the OFCC/Fighting Illini Invitational. Buchanan tied for 73rd in the event as an individual competitor as a freshman in 2021, followed by a T50 finish to open his sophomore campaign last fall.
Fifth-year senior Jerry Ji and senior Piercen Hunt will each return to Olympia Fields as individual competitors this weekend. Ji will make his fourth-career start in the event, having finished T54 as a freshman in 2019, leading the team with a 10th-place finish in 2021, and tying for 68th as an individual competitor in 2022. Hunt will tee off as an indy for the first time in the tournament after previously tying for 31st in 2021 and grabbing a share of 43rd in 2022, as a member of the Illini lineup.
MORE OFCC/FIGHTING ILLINI INVITATIONAL HISTORY
Aside from Illinois' three team titles, defending champion Stanford (2011 and 2022) and Oklahoma State (2007 and 2018) are the only other programs to have won multiple OFCC/Fighting Illini Invitational championships. Other 2023 participants to have previously won the event are: Arizona State (2009), Florida (2010), Alabama (2013), Florida State (2015), Baylor and Georgia Tech (2019 co-champions), and North Carolina (2021).
Stanford has produced a tournament-record six medalist finishes from four golfers: Patrick Rodgers (2011 and 2012), Cameron Wilson (2013), Maverick McNealy (2014 and 2015), and Michael Thorbjornsen (2022). Oklahoma State golfers have taken home four individual titles: Rickie Fowler (2007), Trent Whitekiller (2009), Peter Uihlein (2010) and Matthew Wolff (2018). Alabama is tied with Illinois with two medalists: Robby Shelton (2013) and Davis Riley (2017). Other medalists from programs participating in the 2023 event are: Arizona State's Niklas Lemke (2006), Baylor's Cooper Dossey (2019), and North Carolina's Austin Greaser (2021).
LIVE SCORING
Live scoring for the OFCC/Fighting Illini Invitational will be available on Golfstat.com. A Recap and results will be posted on FightingIllini.com following each day of play.
UP NEXT
The Illini remain in the Midwest, making the short trip to nearby West Lafayette, Ind., to play in the Purdue Fall Classic at the Boilermaker's Ackerman-Allen Golf Course, Oct. 9-10.
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.
