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THIS WEEK
The University of Iowa men’s golf team travels to the north side of Chicago for the Windon Memorial Classic hosted by Northwestern on Sept. 25-26.
TOURNAMENT SCHEDULE
Sunday, Sept. 25 — 36 holes, tee times starting at 7:30 off tees one and ten
Monday, Sept. 26 — 18 holes, tee times starting at 8:00 off tees one and ten
FOLLOW THE ACTION
Fans can follow this weekend’s action by visiting golfstat.com for live scoring. Links can be found on the men’s golf schedule page on hawkeyesports.com
LINK UP WITH THE HAWKEYES
For an inside look at the Iowa men’s golf program and to access exclusive coverage, “like” Hawkeye men’s golf on Facebook and follow @IowaHawkeyeGolf on Twitter and Instagram.
THE FIELD
Iowa is joined by an elite field including, Northwestern, Florida, Marquette, Michigan, Purdue, Wisconsin, Indiana, Rutgers, UC Davis, Princeton, Northern Illinois, Eastern Michigan, and DePaul. Florida is ranked 6th in the GCAA Coaches Poll.
THE COURSE
Set up for the Windon Memorial Classic, playing as a par-72, stretching 7,103 yards, North Shore Country Club is located in Glenview, Illinois. Tim O’Neal is the Head Golf Professional.
LAST TIME OUT
Iowa finished seventh making its first tournament appearence of the fall at the Gopher Invitational. Senior Raymond Knoll led the Hawkeyes finishing fourth overall, highlighted with a three-under-par 68 in the second round of the tournament.
QUOTING COACH STITH
“North Shore looks like it has a very traditional, midwestern layout. I think Finkbine is a really good place to practice and get ready for the challenges of North Shore. The course is fairly tree lined. Making the right club selection off each hole and being able to execute tee shots is important, because once you get the ball in play the course is extremely scoreable.”
3 HAWKEYES ON B1G PLAYERS TO WATCH LIST
Seniors Raymond Knoll and Carson Schaake, and sophomore Matthew Walker were named to the 2016 Big Ten Men’s Golf Preseason Watch List.
Knoll competed in every tournament for the Hawkeyes last year, averaging 73 strokes per round. He led Iowa with 10 rounds of at or below par golf in the spring. Knoll finished in the top 20 in four events in the spring, including a fifth place finish at the Big Ten Championships.
Schaake also played in every event his junior year, averaging 72.97 strokes per round. He finished at or below par in eight rounds and was Iowa’s top finisher in each of the last three spring events.
Walker competed in every tournament last season, becoming the first true freshman to do so since 1992 (Sean McCarty). Walker averaged 73.33 strokes-per-round in the spring and shot at or below par in eight rounds.
HAWKEYE NEWCOMERS
Iowa’s adds four freshmen to the its 2016-17 roster. Ryoto Furuya (Georgia), Alex Schaake (Nebraska), Jack Simpson (Ontario), and Benton Weinberg (Maryland).
FRESHMEN DEBUTS
Three freshmen made their collegiate debuts last week. Ryoto Furuya and Jack Simpson finished within one stroke of each other at the Gopher Invitational, while Benton Weinberg competed as an individual, tying for 22nd, with a three-day total of 230.
LEADING THE CHARGE
Carson Schaake and Raymond Knoll are the lone seniors leading the Hawkeyes this season. Knoll is the defending individual medalist from the 2015 GolfWeek Conference Challenge, with a 54 hole total of 205 (-11; 66, 67, 72) — the lowest three-round total in program history. Schaake won the individual Big Ten Championship title as a sophomore in 2015, becoming the third Hawkeye in program history to win a Big Ten Title.
WALKER MAKES HISTORY
Sophomore Matthew Walker competed in every event for the Hawkeyes as a freshman, and was the first true freshman to compete in every fall tournament for the Hawkeyes since Cole Peevler in 2005.
KNOLL LEADS IOWA AT GOPHER INVITE
Raymond Knoll finished fourth at the Gopher Invitational to open the fall season. The senior fired a three-under-par 68 during the second round. Knoll finished the tournament with a 213 total. Sophomore Matthew Walker finished two strokes behind Knoll at 215.
2015-16 RECAP
The Hawkeyes ended the spring season at the NCAA Regionals in Albuquerque, New Mexico, the program’s eight straight NCAA Regional appearance. The spring season was highlighted by a second place finish at the Big Ten Championships, in Newburgh, Indiana, marking the third straight year that Iowa has placed third or better at the event.
The highlight of the fall came at Iowa’s own GolfWeek Conference Challenge, where the Hawkeyes claimed the team title and junior Raymond Knoll earned co-medalist honors. As a team, the Hawkeyes averaged 75.25 strokes per round in the fall and tallied 15 rounds of at or below par golf. Junior Carson Schaake led the team with five, including a fourth place finish at the David Toms Intercollegiate.
8 STRAIGHT NCAA APPEARANCES
Iowa has advanced to NCAA competition in each of the last eight seasons, joining Illinois as the only Big Ten teams selected to NCAA Regional competition in each of the last eight seasons. Iowa has advanced to the NCAA Championship finals three times in the last seven years (2009, 2011, 2012).
A PROGRAM ON THE RISE
Iowa has won 12 tournaments since 2008 and has had 15 individual medalists since 2009, including Carson Schaake, who was crowned individual co-champion at the 2015 Big Ten Championships and Raymond Knoll who won last year’s GolfWeek Conference Challenge. The Hawkeyes have also had three All-Americans since 2008.
LOOKING AHEAD
Following the Windon Memorial Classic, the Hawkeyes will host the GolfWeek Conference Challenge at Spirit Hallow Golf Course in Burlington, Iowa, Sept. 30-Oct. 2.
