Oct. 30, 2011
NOTRE DAME, Ind. – The University of Notre Dame men’s golf team will finish its fall docket when it tees off at the Royal Oaks Intercollegiate in Dallas, Texas, on Monday and Tuesday. The two-day tournament will take place at the Royal Oaks Country Club and will feature a 14-team field from across the nation.
The tournament, which is co-hosted by Baylor and SMU, will get underway Monday with 36 holes of play in a shotgun start format beginning at 8:30 a.m. (ET), while Tuesday’s final round will get underway at 8:30 a.m. with a split tee start off of holes one and 10.
“We’re looking forward to a return to Texas,” says Irish head coach Jim Kubinski. “It’s our first trip to the Lone Star state since our runner up finish at Briggs Ranch in San Antonio over last year’s Fall Break. I believe it’s also my first time taking an Irish team to Dallas. Certainly Royal Oaks is a course we’re very much looking forward to. Its reputation is one of a straight forward and challenging golf course that is always in great shape. Of course Baylor’s coach, Greg Priest, always puts on a first class event, so we’ll be treated to a great weekend.
IRISH LINEUP: As has been the case throughout the entirety of the fall slate, the Irish will send out a lineup that features three seniors, one junior and one sophomore. Max Scodro (Chicago, Ill.), Tom Usher (Baildon, England) and Chris Walker (The Woodlands, Texas) represent the senior contingent, while Paul McNamara III (Palos Verdes Estates, Calif.) is the junior representative and Niall Platt (Santa Barbara, Calif.) is the lone sophomore.
“Our lineup will be the same as we opened the year with in Minnesota, with three seniors, a junior and a sophomore,” states Kubinski. “We’re looking to get back to some of that strong play through the lineup that we showed on opening day in September. We’ve not had those four or five good scores that we had so often last season yet this fall. Our players have worked hard though and hold firm in their belief in themselves and in our upside. We’re a team capable of great things. I have a good feeling about Dallas. Good players don’t struggle forever. I think our guys will put together a break out performance this week, giving evidence of the team we can be moving forward. It’s a matter of staying positive, trusting the work we’ve done and making some putts to get momentum going. We’ll get it going. I believe in our guys and I believe in destiny. Dallas is as great a place to play like a champion as any.”
THE COURSE: The Royal Oaks Intercollegiate will take place at the Royal Oaks Country Club, which spreads out as a par-71, 7,068-yard course. The front nine spans 3,489 yards at a par 35, while the back nine is a par 36 that carries 3,579 yards.
THE FIELD: Along with the Irish, who enter the tournament as the 49th ranked team in the nation according to Golfstat, 13 other teams will participate in the tournament. The field includes (Golfstat rank included in parentheses): Army (240), Augusta State (70), Baylor (28), Duke (27), Houston (73), Iowa (25), Lamar (56), Missouri (66), New Mexico (14), Oklahoma (33), SMU (42), Texas A&M (29) and Tulsa (32).
THE FORMAT: The Royal Oaks Intercollegiate will feature a five-count-four format that will feature 54 holes of play over two days (Monday-Tuesday) of competition. The first and second rounds will be played Monday with the third and final round going off on Tuesday. Both rounds Monday will feature a shotgun start, while Tuesday’s round will go off of split tees on holes one and 10.
ROYAL OAKS INTERCOLLEGIATE HISTORY: This will mark the fourth installation of the Royal Oaks Intercollegiate. Texas A&M won the team title in each of the tournament’s first two years (2008, 2009), while Iowa won the crown last season in a weather-shortened, 36-hole event.
Individually, SMU’s James Kwon won medalist honors in both ’08 and ’09, while Vince India of Iowa took home the title last year. Kwon won in ’08 with a score of 212 (-1) and in ’09 with a 207 (-6). India fired an impressive 132 (-10) over the two rounds of play to claim the ’10 honors.
TRACKING THE TOURNAMENT: Live hole-by-hole scoring of the Royal Oaks Intercollegiate will be provided by golfstat.com. Complete recaps of the Irish at the tournament will be provided via und.com.
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