Sept. 24, 2009
- Iowa and the Big Ten Network
- Big Ten Network: Free Hawkeye Video
- 24 Hawkeyes to Watch (2009-10 season)
THIS WEEK — The University of Iowa men’s golf team continues its fall competition Sept. 28-29, as it travels to Manakin-Sabot, VA to compete in the Virginia Commonwealth Shootout. The tournament will be held on the Manakin Course at the Hermitage Country Club. Competition will consist of 54 holes. Teams will play 36 holes Monday and conclude with the final 18 holes Tuesday.
MANAKIN COURSE — The Manakin Course was redesigned in 2005 by Keith Foster and recieved the 2006 award by Golf Digest as the #5 Best New Remodel in the country. The course is a 6,947 yard, 18-hole par 72 layout and the site where Arnold Palmer won his last golf tournament in 1988.
THE COMPETITION — This week’s 14-team field, including Iowa, will consist of UNC-Charlotte, East Carolina, Maryland, Mercer, UNC-Greensboro, UNC-Wilmington, Penn State, Richmond, VCU, Virginia, Virginia Tech, Wake Forest and Wichita State.
FAMILIAR TERRITORY — The VCU Shootout will mark the third of four well-known courses for the Hawkeyes this fall. They placed seventh out of 15 teams in the 2008 VCU Shootout. With five more familiar courses on the spring schedule, the Hawkeyes will have a total of nine courses in 2009-10 which they competed on in the 2008-09 season.
HEAD COACH Mark Hankins — Hankins is in his third year as Iowa’s head men’s golf coach after spending seven years as the head coach at Michigan State University. Under Hankins, the Black and Gold won their first tournament title (2008 Landfall Tradition) since 2004 and placed sixth in the 2009 Big Ten Championships, their best finish in eight years. Iowa made its first NCAA Regionals and NCAA Championships appearance since 1995. The Hawkeyes advanced through regional play a year ago and placed 17th in the nation at the NCAA Championships. Additionally, the Hawkeyes have improved their Golfweek ranking from 155th to 54th with Hankins at the helm. He is a native of Mt. Pleasant, IA, and a graduate of Iowa State.
IOWA IN TOP 20 — Iowa advanced to the NCAA Regionals a year ago, placing fifth at the regional to earn a trip to the NCAA Championships for the first time since 1995. The Hawkeyes continued to play well at the championship meet, earning a 17th place finish with just one senior in the line-up. With no seniors on the 2009-10 roster, the Hawkeyes have continued their success this fall with a second place finish in Golfweek’s Conference Challenge, followed by a fifth place finish in the Golden Gopher Invitational.
LOOKING AHEAD — The Hawkeyes will travel to the Fighting Irish Golf Classic in South Bend, IN, Oct. 5-6. The Black and Gold competed in South Bend during the 2008 fall season, where they tied for seventh in the 16-team field.