Missouri men’s golf is getting ready to host its only home tournament of the season, the Tiger Invitational at The Club at Old Hawthorne in Columbia from April 10-11.
Since the beginning of the season in August, the team has competed in eight different tournaments, all away from Columbia. This has involved a significant amount of travel time, which has a major effect on a tournament weekend’s progression and the practice rounds that accompany it.
For multiple reasons, the team is especially excited to take part and host in its only home tournament of the 2016-17 season.
“I know we are all excited to sleep in our own beds for once and show off just how good Old Hawthorne is to the rest of the country,” assistant coach Grant Milner said.
Despite not needing to make travel plans, there’s a lot more to think about for Milner and the rest of the Tigers staff. Missouri is responsible for the planning and execution of the weekend-long tournament.
“We basically run the tournament, from setting up the golf course, to providing meals and lodging for the teams coming to Columbia,” Milner said. “As the tournament director along with the help of the Missouri golf association, we hope to put on one of the best college tournaments in the country.”
Putting together a college golf tournament is no easy process, and the Tigers staff will have some assistance from the Missouri Golf Association, a nonprofit organization whose purpose is to “promote the best interests and true spirit of the game of golf throughout the State of Missouri,” according to its website.
“It takes a lot to make that happen, and we are very grateful to have the MGA as well as the staff at Old Hawthorne on our side,” Milner said. “You never realize just how much goes into putting on a college golf tournament until you actually do it, so I’m fortunate to have such great people to work alongside and make my job as easy as possible.”
Every NCAA team is allowed to host one tournament a year. Last year, Missouri did not host a tournament.
“Playing at home is different than most tournaments because you only host once a year,” Milner said. “In fact, we haven’t played a tournament at Old Hawthorne since 2014. So, I’m sure it will feel a bit funny at first, but nothing our guys won’t overcome.”
That 2014 tournament was the NCAA Columbia Regional, in which the Tigers finished third out of 14 teams. Senior Euan Walker is the only starter from that tournament who is still on the team.
Playing at home is something junior Hayden Buckley has never done. It will be very freeing and give him a chance to trust everything the team has been working on, he said.
“Mizzou has been my home for the past two and a half years now,” Buckley said. “I’ve created so many relationships that have impacted me as a person as well as a player. Getting to play for those people that mean so much to me, letting them see all the hard work we’ve been putting in, will definitely make it all so worth it.”
The 2016-17 season has been a successful campaign, highlighted by a tournament win at the Turning Stone-Tiger Intercollegiate in September. The Tigers’ success has helped them climb all the way to No. 26 in the Golfstatresults.com relative rankings.
Next week, fans are encouraged to take part in that success. They’ll have the opportunity to experience it all first-hand, as the Tigers take on some of the country’s finest competition.
“People don’t realize the role they play in bringing us comfort and helping us play our best,” Buckley added. “Most of the time people only see results. Now they have a chance to be there and experience something that we’ve put so much into.”
_Edited by Eli Lederman | elederman@themaneater.com_