STANFORD, Calif. -- The Fighting Illini men's golf team - rated No. 18 in the latest NCAA Division I team rankings - tees off Monday at Stanford Golf Course to begin three days of competition at the 2024 NCAA Stanford Regional hosted by Stanford University. The Orange and Blue are making their 16th consecutive NCAA Regional appearance and are also looking to advance to the NCAA Championship round for the 15th time in the last 16 seasons.
THE SETTING
The 2024 NCAA Stanford Regional is hosted by the Stanford Cardinal at their own Stanford Golf Course in Stanford, Calif. Located in the foothills above the Stanford University Campus, the Stanford Golf Course is consistently rated one of the finest courses in the world. Throughout the years, it has hosted many intercollegiate and non-collegiate events, including U.S. Open Qualifying, Women's NCAA Championships, NCAA Regionals, Pac-12 Championships and the USGA Junior Amateur Qualifying. The course was ranked No. 88 in the world in 1993 by Golf Magazine. In a poll of college golf coaches in 2009, the course was ranked No. 3 in the nation.
Stanford Golf Course opened in 1930 and was designed by famed architects George C. Thomas and Billy Bell Jr. It underwent a renovation by John Harbottle in 2008 and in 2018, all bunkers were rebuilt, and several holes were modified. The sprawling, championship layout (Par 70 / 6,727 yards) is flanked by majestic oak trees and meandering San Francisquito Creek, the latter coming into play on nearly half the course. Each hole offers stunning views of the surrounding mountains, and San Francisco, about 30 miles north, can be seen from the elevated 18th tee.
TOURNAMENT FORMAT
The 54-hole tournament will be played over three days, Monday-Wednesday, with 18 holes slated for each day. The low four scores will count towards the team score in each round, with the top five teams, and the low individual not on one of those teams, advancing to the NCAA Championship.
THE FIELD
The Fighting Illini enter the postseason as the No. 3 seed at the Stanford Regional in a strong field that includes 10 of 14 programs ranked inside the top-60 of the latest NCAA Division I team rankings. In addition to the No. 18-ranked and third-seeded Illini, the field will feature No. 6 Florida State, No. 7 Ole Miss, No. 19 Texas A&M and host and No. 27 Stanford to round out the top-five seeds. UCLA (31), SMU (42), Missouri (43), Fresno State (55) and UNLV (56) are seeded sixth through 10th, respectively, followed by Augusta (75), Liberty (84), Sacramento State (167) and Siena (224) to round out the 15-team field vying for five bids to the NCAA Championship, May 24-29 in Carlsbad, Calif., at Omni La Costa Resort & Spa.
The 10 Individual qualifiers are: Enrique Dimayuga (63), Nevada; Ben Warian (148), Minnesota; Jakob Melin (155), San Francisco; Cole Rueck (445), Boise State; and Joe Sykes (975), Idaho.
FIGHTING ILLINI LINEUP
No. 1: Jackson Buchanan
No. 2: Max Herendeen
No. 3: Ryan Voois
No. 4: Tyler Goecke
No. 5: Piercen Hunt
Alt: Ethan Wilson
THE SETTING
The 2024 NCAA Stanford Regional is hosted by the Stanford Cardinal at their own Stanford Golf Course in Stanford, Calif. Located in the foothills above the Stanford University Campus, the Stanford Golf Course is consistently rated one of the finest courses in the world. Throughout the years, it has hosted many intercollegiate and non-collegiate events, including U.S. Open Qualifying, Women's NCAA Championships, NCAA Regionals, Pac-12 Championships and the USGA Junior Amateur Qualifying. The course was ranked No. 88 in the world in 1993 by Golf Magazine. In a poll of college golf coaches in 2009, the course was ranked No. 3 in the nation.
Stanford Golf Course opened in 1930 and was designed by famed architects George C. Thomas and Billy Bell Jr. It underwent a renovation by John Harbottle in 2008 and in 2018, all bunkers were rebuilt, and several holes were modified. The sprawling, championship layout (Par 70 / 6,727 yards) is flanked by majestic oak trees and meandering San Francisquito Creek, the latter coming into play on nearly half the course. Each hole offers stunning views of the surrounding mountains, and San Francisco, about 30 miles north, can be seen from the elevated 18th tee.
TOURNAMENT FORMAT
The 54-hole tournament will be played over three days, Monday-Wednesday, with 18 holes slated for each day. The low four scores will count towards the team score in each round, with the top five teams, and the low individual not on one of those teams, advancing to the NCAA Championship.
THE FIELD
The Fighting Illini enter the postseason as the No. 3 seed at the Stanford Regional in a strong field that includes 10 of 14 programs ranked inside the top-60 of the latest NCAA Division I team rankings. In addition to the No. 18-ranked and third-seeded Illini, the field will feature No. 6 Florida State, No. 7 Ole Miss, No. 19 Texas A&M and host and No. 27 Stanford to round out the top-five seeds. UCLA (31), SMU (42), Missouri (43), Fresno State (55) and UNLV (56) are seeded sixth through 10th, respectively, followed by Augusta (75), Liberty (84), Sacramento State (167) and Siena (224) to round out the 15-team field vying for five bids to the NCAA Championship, May 24-29 in Carlsbad, Calif., at Omni La Costa Resort & Spa.
The 10 Individual qualifiers are: Enrique Dimayuga (63), Nevada; Ben Warian (148), Minnesota; Jakob Melin (155), San Francisco; Cole Rueck (445), Boise State; and Joe Sykes (975), Idaho.
FIGHTING ILLINI LINEUP
No. 1: Jackson Buchanan
No. 2: Max Herendeen
No. 3: Ryan Voois
No. 4: Tyler Goecke
No. 5: Piercen Hunt
Alt: Ethan Wilson
