Feb. 8, 2012
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. -
The Penn State men's golf team will travel south to compete at the Big Ten Match Play Championship at the 7,474-yard, par-72 Concession Golf Club in Bradenton, Fla., Feb 10-11.
The match play event was founded four years ago by the conference coaches in response to the reformatting of the NCAA championship. The Big Ten Conference was the first golf conference to begin a tournament, which gives golfers an opportunity to compete in an additional match-play format event.
The event will mark Penn State's comeback tournament after a three-month break in their schedule. Over the winter months, the Nittany Lions have utilized multiple on-campus facilities to sharpen their game and condition their bodies. The new Tombros Varsity Clubhouse has provided golfers with unprecedented technology to improve their game even during the cold winter months.
The Nittany Lion lineup will consist of senior Tommy McDonagh (East Norwalk. Conn), juniors Ernesto Marin (Miami, Fla.) and Jay Woodward (Bridgeport, W.Va.), sophomore Shane Stewart (Dublin, Ohio) and freshmen Xander McDonald-Smith (Rockaway Park, N.Y.) and Jens Talbert (Little Rock, Ark.), who will be making his collegiate debut.
In its first matchup, 10th-ranked Penn State will meet with seventh-ranked Northwestern. The winner will move on to play No. 2 Iowa, while the loser will move on to the consolation bracket to face the loser of the Minnesota-Michigan matchup.
This is the first season the championship will be contested at the acclaimed Concession Golf Club. The course, which was designed by Jack Nicklaus in association with Tony Jacklin, was named "Best Private Course of 2006" by Golf Digest. Big Ten golfers will be offered a challenge on the course that presents one of the highest possible slope ratings from the championship tees in the United States.
The event will feature a six-man lineup for each Big Ten team. With the addition of Nebraska to the conference, this year's field will showcase the largest lineup in the four-year history of the championship. Matchups for the event have been arranged according to end-of-fall season rankings, placing the teams as follows: Illinois (No. 1), Iowa (No. 2), Indiana (No. 3), Purdue (No. 4), Michigan State (No. 5), Ohio State (No. 6), Northwestern (No. 7), Minnesota (No. 8), Michigan (No. 9), Penn State (No. 10), Wisconsin (No. 11) and Nebraska (No. 12).
Practice rounds are scheduled for Thursday, Feb.9, at 10:00 a.m. Matches are set to commence Friday, Feb. 10, at 7:30 a.m. Live scoring for the event will be available at the American Junior Golf Association website. The Big Ten Network will also provide taped-delayed coverage to be aired Sunday, March 11, at noon E.T.
Big Ten Schools in Golfstat Rankings:
23. Illinois
30. Iowa
31. Indiana
49. Purdue
69. Michigan State
72. Ohio State
77. Northwestern
83. Minnesota
89. Michigan
162. Penn State
163. Wisconsin
181. Nebraska