Feb. 11, 2009

All 11 men’s conference golf teams will begin their 2009 season at the Big Ten Match Play Championship scheduled for Feb. 13-14 in Coral Springs Fla, at the Heron Bay Golf Club.  The Big Ten Network will be on hand to televise the event, airing coverage on Sunday, March 1 at 6 p.m. ET.

On Friday, Feb. 13, teams will compete in the first round and quarterfinals action before contesting the semifinals and championship on Saturday.  The Big Ten will be the first conference to enact the new NCAA Golf Championship format.  This year’s NCAA Championships will begin with 54 holes of stroke play to narrow the field to eight teams. Those eight squads will then compete in match play format to determine the national champion.  Admission is free to all spectators with an opening ceremony on Thursday, Feb. 12 at 7 p.m. to kick off the event. 

The 2009 Big Ten Match Play Championship is the only nationally televised golf event in the country and marks the third national telecast of golf on the Big Ten Network. The Network previously televised the Big Ten/Pac-10 Challenge in the fall of 2007 and the Big Ten Championships in the spring of 2008.

Seven conference schools begin the 2009 spring season rated in the top 50.  Leading the charge is No. 8 Illinois and No. 12 Indiana.  Michigan State sits at No. 27 while No. 38 Michigan follows closely behind. No. 44 Ohio State, No. 45 Iowa and No. 49 Northwestern round out the Big Ten’s top-50 ranked squads.

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Big Ten Men's Golf

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