Men’s Golf Sets Updated 2021 Spring Schedule
LEXINGTON, Ky. – Adhering to COVID-19 safety guidelines from university and health officials and the Southeastern Conference, the Kentucky men’s golf team has amended its 2021 schedule for the spring slate of the 2020-21 season.
Kentucky will compete in five events beginning Feb. 14 before embarking on the postseason which begins with the SEC Championship April 21-25.
Like the fall slate, the Wildcats will compete in regional-based events with a large portion of the field being represented by league teams.
Details regarding each course and event are below:
Kiawah Island Invitational | Oak Point Golf Club | Feb. 14-16
Kentucky opens the 2021 spring schedule with a three-day, 54-hole event at Oak Point Golf Club in Kiawah Island, South Carolina. The Kiawah Invitational is hosted by the College of Charleston. It will mark the first time the Wildcats have participated in the event since September 2003 when the Wildcats claimed the team title.
Oak Point delivers superior playing surface with its regressing in paspalum. The refreshed design provides a greater strategic challenge. Originally crafted by Clyden Johnson, it lies along the Kiawah River and Haulover Creek which is surrounded by maritime forest. The greens embody subtle breaks which are hard to read along with undulating fairways. The course plays at a par of 72 over 6,701 yards.
LSU Invitational | University Club | Feb. 26-28
LSU will play host to a spring tournament for the first time since 2017. The Tigers will welcome a field to the University Club, Feb. 26-28 for a three-day event. This marks the first appearance by the Wildcats in this event.
The course was designed and opened in 1998 by Jim Lipe. It was later redesigned by former LSU All-American and PGA winner David Toms. The redesign took advantage of the natural topography with the wetlands surrounding the course in mind. It plays at 7,700 yards at a par score of 72.
Schenkel Invitational | Forest Heights Country Club | March 19-21
Kentucky will be among the field at the Schenkel Invitational for the 15th-consecutive season after last season’s event was canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The Wildcats have finished among the top five in each of the last five competitions. Zach Norris was among the field when UK finished fifth overall in 2019.
Forest Heights is recognized as one of the finest in the Southeast. The course measures out to 6,962 yards from the championship tees. Although the tee shots are relatively forgiving, the players face their biggest challenges when they reach the undulating greens. The greens feature subtle breaks that make it difficult to read and making scoring low a tough task.
Hootie at Bulls Bay Intercollegiate | Bulls Bay Golf Club | March 28-30
This 7,220-yard course, just minutes from Charleston, is stimulating and offers two par fives that are more than 600 yards long. This tournament annually features some of the best collegiate programs in the nation. It lies along the tidal salt marshes to the north of Charleston and is known for its bold and somewhat idiosyncratic style. Taking into account the ever-changing coastal wind conditions, fairways are wide and green sites generously proportioned to offer the players a wide variety of approach play.
Kentucky will be making its 17th straight appearance in the event in 2021.
Shoal Creek Invitational | Shoal Creek Golf and Country Club | April 5-7
UK will close out the regular season at the Shoal Creek Invitational in Birmingham, Alabama. Designed by the legendary Jack Nicklaus in 1975, Shoal Creek – at 7,400 yards, par 72 – recently hosted the 2018 U.S. Women’s Open in addition to the 1984 and 1990 PGA Championships. It is rated as one of the top courses in the state and is considered one of the country’s best.
Craig’s squad placed fourth in the event in 2019 with Allen Hamilton, Jacob Cook and Norris all seeing action. Hamilton and Cook both scored top-40 individual finishes.
SEC Championship | Seaside Course at Sea Island Golf Club | April 21-25
The Seaside Course at the stellar Sea Island Golf Club in St. Simons Island, Georgia, will host the SEC Championship for the 20th time. Since 1927, the Sea Island Golf Club has enjoyed a legacy as one of America’s premier golf clubs. Rated No. 1 in the U.S. among the “World’s 50 Best Golf Resorts” by Golf Digest, Sea Island offers three exceptional 18-hole championship courses. The Seaside Course, updated by Tom Fazio in 1999 and home to the PGA Tour’s McGladrey Classic, is a links course graced by majestic ocean vistas in the tradition of St. Andrews. Sea Island is also the only resort in the world to receive four Forbes Five-Stars nine years in a row.
UK tied for third during the stroke play portion of the SEC Championship and advanced all the way to the match play semifinals in 2019. It marked the first time since the inception of match play to determine a league champion that UK advanced to Saturday’s action. Kentucky defeated Tennessee by a 4-1-0 margin before falling to Auburn, 3-2-0, for a chance at a crown.
NCAA Regional | TBD | May 17-19
Kentucky has advanced to the NCAA Regional in each of its last four eligible seasons, which is the longest stretch of appearances since the team also went four straight years from 2003-06.
The six hosts for the 2021 NCAA Regional rounds are: Ball State, Florida State New Mexico, Oklahoma State, Vanderbilt and Washington.
NCAA Championship | Grayhawk Golf Club| May 28-June 2
The 2021 NCAA Championships will be held from May 28-June 2 at Grayhawk Golf Club in Scottsdale, Arizona.
The Tom Fazio-designed Raptor course offers thrilling challenges that commands a player’s respect through a high-stakes game of risk and reward. Stretching 7,090 yards from the back tees, the par-72 course unfolds over the gentle hills and across shaded natural arroyos found in the Sonoran Desert. Most of Raptor’s fairways are generous and the greens are large with sweeping undulations. Misses tend to find deep greenside bunkers and tightly mown grass collection areas, making the scramble to get up and down a true test of the short game.
It is listed among the best public golf courses by Golfweek and Golf Magazine. It is one of only two Scottsdale golf courses to hose a PGA Tour event – the Frys.com Open 2007-09.
For the latest on the Kentucky men’s golf team, follow @UKMensGolf on Twitter and on the web at UKathletics.com.
