Men’s Golf Returns to Action at General Hackler Collegiate
2017-18 Season Stats
LEXINGTON, Ky. – The Kentucky men’s golf team is set to embark on back-to-back weeks of competition. Up first is the General Hackler Collegiate in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, March 10-11. The two-day, 54-hole tournament is set to tee off on Saturday with the 15-team field playing 36 holes on the opening day of competition. A final 18 will determine a winner on Sunday.
Winners of three fall tournaments, Kentucky is slated to take part in its second event of the spring slate and will embark on The Dunes & Beach Club this week. The Cats have twice played the event before with their best finish coming a season ago when they placed seventh overall.
Two players, Lukas Euler and Fred Allen Meyer, both finished inside of the top 10 on the individual leaderboard a season ago to headline this week’s lineup for the Wildcats.
Of the 15 teams in the field, 13 of them are ranked inside of the top 100 of Golf Stat’s team rankings. No. 2 Texas A&M is the highest ranked team in the field. Kentucky is ranked No. 38 and is one of seven teams rated within the top 40.
Kentucky will take on the Schenkel Invitational in Statesboro, Georgia, March 16-18 in its second event in as many weeks.
Coach Craig’s Takeaway
“This spring break run of two events starts with the General Hackler at the Dunes Club in Myrtle Beach. It is a stellar field on a terrific golf course. We are ready to play. I can’t wait.”
Lineup Profiles
Lukas Euler: He had his most productive four-tournament stretch of his career with top-20 finishes in all four fall events. He leads the team with a 71.67 stroke average for the season and a low round of 67. His best finish came when he tied for second to conclude the fall season at the Steelwood Collegiate Invitational. Euler paced the Cats at their first spring event with a plus-7 overall score at the Puerto Rico Invitational.
Cooper Musselman: Earned his first career victory during the fall slate with a 6-under score at the Crooked Stick Invitational. For the season, he’s averaging a 72.53 stroke average and has eight par-or-better rounds of play. He opened the season by scoring a top-10 finish in each of UK’s three tournament victories in the fall.
Chip McDaniel: Garnered a top-20 finish in all four events to help lead UK to three tournament victories. He claimed the individual crown at the Bearcat Invitational behind a 12-under score for the tournament. He owns a 73.20 stroke average through 15 rounds of action this season.
Fred Allen Meyer: Meyer posted a top-15 finish for the first time this season at the Bearcat Invitational with a career-low tournament score of 208. He is shooting 73.58 for the season with four par-or-better rounds. He shot a career-low 68 during the second round of the Bearcat Invitational to help lead to an 11th-place showing. A season ago he placed in a tie for ninth at the General Hackler Collegiate.
Matt Liston: Will make his third-consecutive start and fifth on the season. He’s averaging a 74.17 stroke average which includes a tie for fifth at the Wolf Run Intercollegiate. He shot a combined 215 score at the Bearcat Invitational en route to helping guide UK to a win. He has two par-or-better rounds on the year, including a career-low 68 in the final round of the Bearcat.
Max Mehles*: Is appearing in his third collegiate event. Mehles has a 76.17 stroke average through six rounds of play. His best combined score was a 226 at the Puerto Rico Classic where he played as an individual. He’s charted one round under par, a 70 during the second round of the Wolf Run Intercollegiate.
The Tournament Setup
Teams: Coastal Carolina, East Carolina, ETSU, Georgia Tech, Kent State, Kentucky, Liberty, LSU, NC State, North Florida, Princeton, South Carolina, Texas A&M, Virginia, Virginia Tech
Course Details: This Robert Trent Jones signature course has a course rating of 76.1 and a slope rating of 148. Jones changed the original course design in 1976-77 with modifications to holes 3, 4, 11, 15, and 18. Each hole has its own descriptive name to give golfers an idea of what to expect before they tee off. “Waterloo”, hole 13, is the signature hole of the Dunes Course. Famous worldwide, it is a legendary hole where Lake Singleton comes into play. “Waterloo” has received every accolade and award as one of the greatest golf holes in the world.
Format: Par 72, 7,233 yards – Play five and count four scores
Schedule of Play: 54 total holes; 36 holes on Saturday and final 18 on Sunday
Saturday, March 10 – Rounds 1 and 2 (shotgun start)
Sunday, March 11 – Round 3
Live Look: Live stats are available via golfstat.com.
Forecast: Saturday (mostly sunny, high of 65), Sunday (100% chance of rain, high of 63),
History at the General Hackler Collegiate
Years Participated: 2009, 2017
Best Finish: 7th – 2009, 2017
Returning Player Finishes From 2017: Fred Allen Meyer (T9th), Lukas Euler (T9th), Cooper Musselman (T28th), Chip McDaniel (T40th), Matt Liston (T60th)
Noteworthy: Fred Allen Meyer shot even-par over the 36 holes of a rain-shortened event a season ago. He tied for ninth in the event, his second-best finish of the season. Lukas Euler was also even-par for the event and matched Meyer’s finish.
Upcoming Schedule
March 16-18 Schenkel Invitational Statesboro, Ga.
March 25-27 Hootie at Bulls Bay Intercollegiate Awendaw, S.C.
April 9-10 Gary Koch Invitational Gastonia, N.C.
Agate
Kentucky
1 – Lukas Euler
2 – Cooper Musselman
3 – Chip McDaniel
4 – Fred Allen Meyer
5 – Matt Liston
Individuals
Max Mehles
For the latest on the Kentucky men’s golf team, follow @UKMensGolf on Twitter and on the web at UKathletics.com.
