Men’s Golf Set to Open 2018-19 Season at Cardinals Challenge
Live Stats
LEXINGTON, Ky. – The University of Kentucky men’s golf team is set to make its 2018-19 debut at the Louisville Cardinals Challenge beginning on Friday. The 16-team field will play 18 holes Friday-Saturday-Sunday at the UofL Golf Club in Simpsonville, Kentucky.
The course is set up as a par-72, 7,101-yard event. The field is comprised of two teams in the top 20 in the preseason Golfstat.com rankings. Six programs are rated among the top 50.
“It is a new year and we are excited to get started,” UK head coach Brian Craig said. “The Cardinals Challenge has a really solid field and is also the sight of an NCAA Regional this spring.
“We have had very productive practices and qualifying leading into this week,” Craig said. “Now, it is time to relax and play. It is going to be a superb year with a terrific group of young men.”
The Wildcats are coming off one of their most impressive seasons in recent memory with four regular-season tournament titles and a top-25 finish at the NCAA Championships. Two of UK’s starters from last season’s postseason run in seniors Fred Allen Meyer and Max Mehles will be among this week’s starting five.
Meyer posted a career-low stroke average of 73.39 in 11 appearances in 2017-18. He also put together career-bests marks in round (68) and tournament score (208) with a top-10 finish at the Gary Koch Invitational.
Mehles exploded with a solid spring season where he averaged a 72.79 stroke average and generated three top-10 finishes a season ago.
Junior Allen Hamilton qualified for UK’s top spot in the starting lineup. He enjoyed a successful summer of preparation and will begin the season as one of UK’s top players. Hamilton, a Louisville native, has appeared in four events during his career and charted a career-low round of 71 as a freshman.
Senior Fadhli Soetarso, winner of the 104th Kentucky State Amateur this summer, will make his first career start. He fired three rounds of 1-under par to capture the state amateur event littered with UK ties. Soetarso had a top-10 finish at the Puerto Rico Classic Individual Tournament and enjoyed a career-low round in the opening round of the Gary Koch Invitational.
Junior Matt Liston will make his seventh career start for the Cats on his home turf in Louisville. He boasted a top-five finish at the Wolf Run Invitational to begin his sophomore season and also had career-lows in round (68) and tournament score (215).
Sophomore Jacob Cook will compete as an individual. He appeared in four tournaments a season ago and finished with a top-25 finish at the Steelwood Invitational for his best action in his freshman campaign.
Play begins at 9 a.m. ET on Friday. Tee times for Sunday will begin at 8:30 a.m. ET. Live stats are available via Golfstat.com.
Senior Lukas Euler, also a starter on last season’s postseason run, is playing in the KLM Open on the European Tour after qualifying as an amateur with a win at the Dutch Amateur this summer. He capped his opening round of play at 4-over par.
This marks the first of four fall events for the Wildcats and the only one that will be played over a three-day format.
For the latest on the Kentucky men’s golf team, follow @UKMensGolf on Twitter and on the web at UKathletics.com.
