April 14, 2009
THIS WEEK — The University of Iowa men’s golf team will travel to West Lafayette, IN, this weekend to compete in the Boilermaker Invitational, hosted by Purdue University. The first 36 holes of golf will begin Saturday morning, followed by the final round Sunday.
THE COURSE — The invitational will be held on the Kampen Course of the Birck Boilermaker Golf Complex. The course is a par-72, 7,220-yard course for rounds one and two. For the final round, golfers will compete from different tee boxes to lengthen the par-72 to 7,465 yards.
THE COMPETITION — The 18-team field includes Bowling Green State, Cleveland State, Columbia, Eastern Michigan, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa State, IUPUI, Loyola, Miami, Michigan State, Northern Illinois, Penn State, Purdue, Temple, Toledo, and Wisconsin.
LAST MEET — Last weekend, Iowa finished in a tie for seventh place out of 13 teams at the Robert Kepler Invitational in Columbus, OH. The Hawkeyes were led by sophomore Vince India, who carded a 54-hole total of 224 (+11) to finish in a tie for eleventh.
HEAD COACH Mark Hankins — Hankins is in his second year as Iowa’s head men’s golf coach. He was named Big Ten Coach of the Year, at Michigan State, in 2005 and 2007. He led the Spartans to Big Ten Championships those years. Hankins also led the Spartans to five NCAA tournament appearances in his seven years as head coach. He is a native of Mt. Pleasant, IA, and a graduate of Iowa State.
QUOTING COACH HANKINS — “The guys really showed some desire and gritty play the final day at Ohio State. We are playing good golf right now, with all five guys contributing. It’s exciting to see the progress from week to week with our team. A top-five finish this week is our short term team goal.”