MSU Linksters Return To Florida For Irish Invitational
STARKVILLE, Miss. ?€“ Mississippi State men's golf returns to tournament competition on Monday, March 7, at the inaugural Irish Invitational in Howey-in-the-Hills, Fla., co-hosted by the University of Notre Dame and the Central Florida Sports Commission. The 54-hole event will be played at Mission Inn Resort's El Campeón Course.
State opened the 2005 portion of the season in the state of Florida, placing ninth in the University of Central Florida/Rio Pinar Intercollegiate. Bulldog senior Joe Deraney came up a stroke short on a playoff hole of capturing the first tournament title of his career. The Statesboro, Ga., product ranks sixth in the Southeastern Conference in scoring with a 71.46 average.
Head coach Clay Homan will start Deraney, Tim Satow, Josh Oller , Jake Lambert and freshman Michael Knight from Calgary, Alberta, Canada. Lambert posted an 18th-place finish in the spring opener in Orlando, Fla.
"In order for us to be successful, we need someone besides Joe (Deraney) to step up and get the job done. Last week, Jake did that, said MSU head coach Clay Homan. For us to have a chance to win, it is going to take a total team effort.
The El Campeón Course is ranked as one of the top-10 golf courses in Florida. The par-72, 6,923-yard course opened in 1926 and was designed by Charles E. Clarke of Troon, Scotland.
The 13-team field includes Ball State, Bowling Green, Cleveland State, Colorado State, Eastern Kentucky, Notre Dame, Penn State, Richmond, Rollins College, San Diego State, Washington State and Wichita State.
The tournament will get underway with a shotgun start on Monday morning, followed up by the second round in the afternoon.