Golf looks to defend title at Windon Memorial Classic

MILWAUKEE – The Marquette University men's golf team looks to defend its title at Northwestern's Windon Memorial Classic on Sept. 16-17 at Conway Farms Golf Club in Lake Forest Illinois.

The par-71 course will play at 7,233 yards and a practice round is scheduled for Sunday with tee times beginning at 1:30 p.m.

The Golden Eagles won the event last season at The Knollwood Club, led by then-senior Oliver Farrell's third-place finish at 7-under par.

THE EVENT
The 14-team field includes ETSU, Indiana, Iowa State, Kansas, Michigan, Northern Illinois, Notre Dame, Ole Miss, Purdue, South Florida, UC Davis and UNLV in addition to Marquette and the host Wildcats. The group includes eight teams that competed in the event last year and a Purdue squad that MU finished one stroke ahead of on Sept. 9 at the Gopher Invitational.

Conway Farms has previously hosted the event on two occasions, in both 1999 and 2004.

The event, which has been played on a nearly annual basis since 1993, features 36 holes on Monday with the final 18 holes set for Tuesday, Sept. 17. Tee times begin with a shotgun start at 8:30 a.m. on Monday and Tuesday's third round will get underway at 8 a.m.

Live results are available courtesy of Golfstat.

MARQUETTE'S LINEUP
Lineup: Hunter Eichhorn, Tyler Leach, Matt Murlick, Bhoom Sima-Aree, Josh Robinson
Individual: Matthew Bachmann

Reigning BIG EAST Conference Male Golfer of the Week Hunter Eichhorn leads the Golden Eagles into the event after placing eighth at the Gopher Invitational to open the season. Eichhorn carded a final-round 1-under-par 70 to finish in a tie for eighth place with 213 strokes (72-71-70) at the Gopher Invitational. It was the ninth top-10 finish of his career and the ninth time he has paced the Golden Eagles over 54 holes.
Tyler Leach got out to a hot start to his sophomore campaign, shooting a 4-under-par 67 in his opening round at the Gopher Invitational and sat in a tie for third following the second at 5-under.
Senior Matt Murlick grew up in Winnetka, Illinois, which is just 14 miles south of Conway Farms down the shore of Lake Michigan. He shot a 2-under-par 69 in the second round at Windsong Farms and tied for 30th at the Gopher Invitational (6-over 219).
Bhoom Sima-Aree, a freshman from Thailand, made his NCAA debut in Minnesota and posted the lone eagle of the tournament for the Golden Eagles in the first round on the par-5 12th hole.

WHAT THEY ARE SAYING
"The event has a rich history of past champions and and alternates among some of the top golf courses in the Midwest. Our team is fortunate to play a venue like Conway Farms, where many memorable tournaments and moments have taken place." - Marquette head coach Steve Bailey

"I'm really looking forward to Northwestern's tournament again at Conway Farms. It's traditionally a very, very nice course and I like those north shore courses where they're kind of tree-lined, faster greens and you have to hit it in the fairway. With it being so close to home, a lot of my family will be able to come out and support me, which is nice." – senior Matt Murlick

LAST YEAR AT THE WINDON
Four birdies and an eagle from Marquette's lineup on the Par 5 16th hole at The Knollwood Club, combined with a birdie on the Par 4 18th from then-freshman Tyler Leach, lifted the Golden Eagles to their second straight win with a 4-under-par 860 at the Windon Memorial Classic.

Oliver Farrell's 7-under-par tournament score (69-69-71—209) was good for a third place finish, while Leach finished in a tie 12th with an even par 216 (70-75-71). Hunter Eichhorn, finished tied for 20th at 2-over-par (77-73-68—218) and Matt Murlick tied for 24th at 3-over (75-68-76—219).

The victory was Marquette's second in three events to begin 2018 and its first in the 22 years of Northwestern's annual fall event. The Golden Eagles used back-to-back sub par team rounds to finish the tournament (291-285-284) and claim a two-stroke victory over Michigan State.

UP NEXT
Marquette heads to Trinity Forest Golf Club, the site of the AT&T Byron Nelson Classic in Dallas, Texas, on Sept. 22-24 for the Trinity Forest Invitational.

Keep up with the Marquette men's golf program through social media by following on Twitter (@MarquetteMGolf) and Instagram (@MarquetteMGolf) and 'liking' on Facebook (/MarquetteMGolf).