Monday, April 26
Hutchinson, Kan.
Kansas State University
vs
Big 12 Championship
K-State Looks to Keep Rolling at Big 12 Championship
Apr 23, 2021 | Men's Golf
MANHATTAN, Kan. – After securing a share of the Husker Invitational title - its first team victory in two years - the Kansas State men's golf team will look to continue the momentum, as the Wildcats compete in the 2021 Big 12 Men's Golf Championship, Monday through Wednesday, at Prairie Dunes Country Club in Hutchinson, Kansas.
The Wildcats last competed within the state of Kansas four years ago when they finished seventh at the 2017 Big 12 Men's Golf Championship at Prairie Dunes. It is the 13th time in conference history that the Big 12 Men's Golf Championship will be in Hutchinson.
Unlike every other tournament this year, the Big 12 Men's Golf Championship will consist of a 72-hole format, with 36 holes being played on Monday followed by 18 holes each on Tuesday and Wednesday.
K-State holds the eighth seed in the event and is paired up with in-state rival and seventh-seeded Kansas. The Wildcats and Jayhawks will tee off for the first round at 9:07 a.m. from the 10th tee.
"We are looking forward to the Big 12 Championship this week," head coach Grant Robbins said. "It's a great opportunity for us to compete in the strongest conference in college golf on one of the best courses in the country, Prairie Dunes. It's going to be a tremendous challenge this week as the forecast calls for strong, southerly winds on Monday and Tuesday and then switch from the north on Wednesday. The course will play completely different when the wind direction changes like that."
Sophomore Tim Tillmanns will move back into the No. 1 slot for the Wildcats, as the Cologne, Germany product is coming off his best finish of his career, a tie for second at the Husker Invitational. Behind him is junior Will Hopkins, who notched his second top-five finish last time out. Hopkins was in the scoring lineup for the Cats during the 2019 Big 12 Men's Golf Championship.
Graduate student Jacob Eklund will fill the third slot. At the 2019 Big 12 Men's Golf Championship, the Carbondale, Illinois product tied for 23rd on his way to a 2019 NCAA Regional bid as an individual. Sophomore Riccardo Leo, who tied for 10th at the Husker Invitational, and freshman Luke O'Neill round out the rest of the scoring lineup. Sophomore Ryan Bender will also travel with the team as an alternate.
"It's a course that you can't overpower, so the key for us is to keep the ball in play, stay below the hole as much as possible, and be strong mentally as the conditions and difficulty of the course will definitely impact scoring," Robbins said.
All Big 12 squads are ranked in the top 87 of the Golfweek/Sagarin rankings, including top-ranked Oklahoma, which is one of four teams in the top 17. The Sooners are paired up with No. 3 Oklahoma State in the first grouping, with No. 7 Texas and No. 17 Texas Tech in the second, followed by Baylor and TCU, K-State and KU, with West Virginia and Iowa State rounding out the pairings.
Live scoring of the 2021 Big 12 Men's Golf Championship can be followed along at golfstat.com.
Big 12 Men's Golf Championship First Day Pairings
No. 1 Tee
8:00 a.m. – No. 1 Oklahoma, No. 2 Oklahoma State
8:45 a.m. – No. 3 Texas, No. 4 Texas Tech
9:30 a.m. – No. 9 West Virginia, No. 10 Iowa State
No. 10 Tee
8:22 a.m. – No. 5 Baylor, No. 6 TCU
9:07 a.m. – No. 7 Kansas, No. 8 Kansas State
The Wildcats last competed within the state of Kansas four years ago when they finished seventh at the 2017 Big 12 Men's Golf Championship at Prairie Dunes. It is the 13th time in conference history that the Big 12 Men's Golf Championship will be in Hutchinson.
Unlike every other tournament this year, the Big 12 Men's Golf Championship will consist of a 72-hole format, with 36 holes being played on Monday followed by 18 holes each on Tuesday and Wednesday.
K-State holds the eighth seed in the event and is paired up with in-state rival and seventh-seeded Kansas. The Wildcats and Jayhawks will tee off for the first round at 9:07 a.m. from the 10th tee.
"We are looking forward to the Big 12 Championship this week," head coach Grant Robbins said. "It's a great opportunity for us to compete in the strongest conference in college golf on one of the best courses in the country, Prairie Dunes. It's going to be a tremendous challenge this week as the forecast calls for strong, southerly winds on Monday and Tuesday and then switch from the north on Wednesday. The course will play completely different when the wind direction changes like that."
Sophomore Tim Tillmanns will move back into the No. 1 slot for the Wildcats, as the Cologne, Germany product is coming off his best finish of his career, a tie for second at the Husker Invitational. Behind him is junior Will Hopkins, who notched his second top-five finish last time out. Hopkins was in the scoring lineup for the Cats during the 2019 Big 12 Men's Golf Championship.
Graduate student Jacob Eklund will fill the third slot. At the 2019 Big 12 Men's Golf Championship, the Carbondale, Illinois product tied for 23rd on his way to a 2019 NCAA Regional bid as an individual. Sophomore Riccardo Leo, who tied for 10th at the Husker Invitational, and freshman Luke O'Neill round out the rest of the scoring lineup. Sophomore Ryan Bender will also travel with the team as an alternate.
"It's a course that you can't overpower, so the key for us is to keep the ball in play, stay below the hole as much as possible, and be strong mentally as the conditions and difficulty of the course will definitely impact scoring," Robbins said.
All Big 12 squads are ranked in the top 87 of the Golfweek/Sagarin rankings, including top-ranked Oklahoma, which is one of four teams in the top 17. The Sooners are paired up with No. 3 Oklahoma State in the first grouping, with No. 7 Texas and No. 17 Texas Tech in the second, followed by Baylor and TCU, K-State and KU, with West Virginia and Iowa State rounding out the pairings.
Live scoring of the 2021 Big 12 Men's Golf Championship can be followed along at golfstat.com.
Big 12 Men's Golf Championship First Day Pairings
No. 1 Tee
8:00 a.m. – No. 1 Oklahoma, No. 2 Oklahoma State
8:45 a.m. – No. 3 Texas, No. 4 Texas Tech
9:30 a.m. – No. 9 West Virginia, No. 10 Iowa State
No. 10 Tee
8:22 a.m. – No. 5 Baylor, No. 6 TCU
9:07 a.m. – No. 7 Kansas, No. 8 Kansas State
Players Mentioned
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