Marquette University Athletics
Golfers to Play in Final Regular-Season Tourney
4/12/2002 12:00:00 AM | Men's Golf
April 12, 2002
The Marquette men's golf team plays in its final tournament before the conference meet this weekend when it travels to Madison, Ill. for the Billiken Invitational, hosted by Saint Louis University. The Conference USA tournament is April 22-24 in Navarre, Fla., and is hosted by the University of South Florida.
Tournament Format and Field
Three 18-hole rounds will complete the 2002 Billiken Invitational. Two18-hole rounds will be played on Monday, April 15 and the final 18 holes will be contested on Tuesday, April, 16.
Among those teams joining Marquette in this year's 15-team field are: defending champion Evansville, Cincinnati, DePaul and UW-Green Bay. Teams will field five golfers and count the four best scores of each round towards the final team score.
Gateway National Golf Links
The Gateway National Golf Links will be the tournament site this weekend. The par-71 course, which opened in 1998, was designed by renowned golf course architect, Keith Foster, and developed by Tim Crowley and Denny Walters, Gateway National is located just five minutes form the world famous St. Louis Gateway Arch.
This 18-hole course is very typical of a traditional links-style facility. The greens are mildly undulating and large, and the fairways are also spacious. Water comes into play on a dozen holes in the form of ponds, lakes and creeks. The signature hole is no.10, a 317-yard, par 4, which offers a spectacular view of St. Louis.
Last Time at the Billiken Invitational
Evansville walked away with the team title and Eric Steinback claimed the individual title for the Purple Aces at the 2001 Billiken Invitational. Evansville's team score of 595 (+27) was 10 strokes better than second place Missouri Baptist and Steinback shot an even par 71 in the final round to claim medalist honors.
Marquette, defending its title from 2000, shot a 36-hole 611 (+43) to finish sixth, 16 shots off first-place Evansville. Matt Hilton carded a 157 (+15) and is MU's top returning scorer from the meet.
Last Time Out
Marquette struggled in its last tournament, shooting scores well above its season average. Marquette finished 25th with a three-round score of 938 (+74) and was led by Matt Hilton who tied for 28th at 221 (+5). Hilton shot a 72-75-74 for the three rounds.
MU's Nathan Colson shot an 11-over 227 for the three rounds to finish 75th. Mike Everson finished in 122nd with a 246. However, he shot his first sub-80 round of the tournament with a 78 in the final 18 holes.
The Lineup
Participating for MU are Nate Colson (freshman, Plymouth, Wis.), Matt Hilton (junior, Muskego, Wis.), Jason Gaare (freshman, Elmhurst, Ill.), Mike Everson (junior, Muskego, Wis.) and Justin Christensen (freshman, Sioux Falls, S.D.).
Colson leads Marquette in scoring average with a 74.5 and has been the top finisher for the Golden Eagles in all of but two of their tournaments this season.
