Men's Golf Set For B1G Championships in Pacific NorthwestMen's Golf Set For B1G Championships in Pacific Northwest
Mark Selders

Men's Golf Set For B1G Championships in Pacific Northwest

NORTH PLAINS, Oregon – The Penn State men's golf team travels to the Big Ten Championships this weekend at Pumpkin Ridge Golf Club in North Plains, Oregon. This marks the first time the championships will be held in Oregon after taking place in Baltimore last year.

The Nittany Lions finished 16th last year led by then-senior Jake Griffin and Alex Creamean who each finished the week 8-over, 218, and in a tie for 32nd.

The format of the championship is a standard 54 holes and is scored by a play five count four with the top four scores from each round counting toward the team total. Each round will feature split tees with tee times beginning at 9:30 a.m. all three days.

All 18 Big Ten universities will be represented this week with UCLA looking to retain its 2025 Championship as the Ducks finished one shot clear of Illinois to claim the title.

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THE COURSE

  • Pumpkin Ridge was established in 1992 and received the unprecedented honor of being named the host site for the United States Golf Association's (USGA) 1996 U.S. Amateur Championship won by Tiger Woods, his third consecutive US Am championship.
  • Many golf observers consider the 36-hole final, between Tiger Woods and Steve Scott, to be the greatest match-play confrontation in the last half of the 20th century.
  • Considered among the nation's best classic-style courses, Bob Cupp designed the par-72, 7,017-yard Witch Hollow course to blend harmoniously with its natural surroundings in the shadows of the Cascade Mountains. Woven through a tapestry of fir, maple, oak and ash trees with dramatic views of the Tualatin Hills, the course's undulating fairways, wide manicured greens, numerous wetland areas and variety of ponds, lakes and streams add to the layout's mystical allure and beauty.
  • Witch Hollow was named by Golf Digest the "#2 Best New Private Course in the U.S." when it opened in 1992, and continues to garner national acclaim thanks to its imaginative design and superb conditioning.
  • The course will play as a Par-72 at 7,015 yards with five Par 3’s, five par 5’s and eight par 4’s.

Live scoring for the duration of the tournament will be available HERE.

THE TEAM

  • Of the Nittany Lions competing this weekend, three participated in the B1G Championships last year led by Creamean while Andres Barraza looks to stay hot after winning the Rutherford Intercollegiate a few weeks ago and Will Preston remains in the starting lineup after a top-20 finish at the Rutherford.
  • Tim Peters and Nick Werner round out the starting five while Zach Smith will serve as the substitute for the weekend.
  • Creamean leads the team with a 70.92 stroke average over 26 rounds having competed in all nine events this season carding three top-10’s and a pair of top-5 finishes while Barraza lowered his stroke average to 72.73 following his individual medalist honor at the Rutherford.
  • As a team the Nittany Lions are averaging 288.04 per 18 hole round and are coming off their first win of the season at their home invitational, The Rutherford Intercollegiate, two weeks ago.