April 7, 2011
LEXINGTON, Ky. – For the fourth consecutive year, the University of Kentucky men’s golf team will host the UK Bluegrass Invitational, beginning with two rounds of continuous play Saturday at 8:30 a.m. ET at the University Club of Kentucky. The final round will be played Sunday at 8 a.m. ET with staggered tee times.
The tournament will be played at the gorgeous University Club of Kentucky’s Big Blue Course. The course will play at par-71 with a yardage of 6,967. The University Club, which has 36-holes of championship golf, consists of the Big Blue Course and the Wildcat Course. Both courses were renovated by internationally renowned golf course architect Arthur Hills. Both courses are complimented by a dozen lakes and ponds, providing players with a beautiful and challenging round of golf.
Last year, Murray State took home the team title with a tournament-record score of 2-under-par 850. Auburn’s John Stembridge won the individual title with a score of 206. Kentucky finished fifth in the tournament last season, scoring a 2-over-par 854.
Kentucky claimed the 2009 UK Bluegrass Invitational team title in a field of 17 teams. UK won the title by 10 strokes over 2009 runner-up Western Carolina. The individual title was won by Erik Barnes of Austin Peay State University at 1-under-par.
This year, 18 teams will participate in the four-year tournament, including the host Wildcats. The field includes Akron, Auburn, Bowling Green State, Cincinnati, Dayton, Eastern Kentucky, Lipscomb, Loyola-Chicago, Marshall, Michigan State, Morehead State, Ohio, Toledo, Utah Valley, Valparaiso, Western Carolina and Western Kentucky. A total of 14 teams that are in the 2011 field participated in the 2010 tournament with Loyola-Chicago, Michigan State, Utah Valley and Valparaiso new to the event.
Kentucky will send a total of eight players out on the course this weekend with a five-man rotation and three individuals. The rotation consists of junior Mads Kristensen, sophomores Chase Parker and Seth Blann and freshmen Cody Martin and Stephen Powers. Senior Brian Belden, junior Chase Carpenter and freshman Matthew Anderson will play as individuals.
UK is coming off a 14th-place finish at the Hootie at Bulls Bay Intercollegiate. The Wildcats were led at the tournament by Martin, who finished in a tie for 24th with a season-low 54-hole score of 216.
For more information on the tournament, visit the tournament central page at UKathletics.com.
