Kent State University
Bank of Tennessee Intercollegiate
No. 17 Men's Golf ready for return to Bank of Tennessee Intercollegiate
10/11/2017 3:18:00 PM | Men's Golf
KENT, Ohio – Kent State will be one of four teams ranked in the top 50 to tee it up at Blackthorn Club at the Ridges on Friday for the 20th Annual Bank of Tennessee Intercollegiate.
In addition to the 17th-ranked Golden Flashes, the three-day, three-round event will feature No. 5 Missouri, No. 11 Tennessee, and No. 46 Louisville. Also in the 15-team field is Coastal Carolina, tournament host East Tennessee, East Carolina, Furman, Kansas State, Penn State, UNCW, Virginia Commonwealth, Villanova, Virginia Tech, and Virginia.
"Obviously the Bank of Tennessee Intercollegiate is a very prestigious tournament with another great and challenging field of top-ranked teams," said Kent State head coach Herb Page. "We always love going down to East Tennessee.. It's a classy, well-run tournament, and along with the great field, it's played on a great course."
Blackthorn Club at the Ridges features a 7,147-yard, par-72 layout designed by Arthur Hills – a two-time Golf Digest "Architect of the Year."
"The course is exceptionally good," said Page. "It's a little bit different than what we are used to playing on in that it's very hilly. There's a lot of up and down to it. We'll also be playing Bermuda rough, which we haven't been challenged with since way back in the spring. But from an experience standpoint, we really love the golf course.
"All five of our players have been there, and in the case of Chase Johnson and Ian Holt, this will be their fourth trip to the golf course. I think there is a psychological advantage to having played the course and played it well. We've had some decent success there. We've won the tournament in the past, and we've been on the edge of winning it."
The Flashes won the event in Jonesborough, Tenn. in 2011. They finished third last year, posting a 15-under-par total that was bettered only by Virginia and runner-up Missouri.
Kent State will start seniors Holt and Johnson along with juniors Bjarki Petursson and Gisli Sveinbergsson and sophomore Chris Doody. Freshman Josh Gilkison will also compete as an individual.
"We will be going in with the mindset that if we play up to our abilities and we are prepared, which we will be, we'll be in the hunt for a championship on Sunday," said Page.
The first round will start at 8:30 a.m. EDT. Kent State tees off in the 10:10 a.m. group that includes Tennessee and East Tennessee.
Players Mentioned
