By Jordan Zuniga
This weekend, the Iowa men’s golf team will travel to Baltimore to compete in the Big Ten Championships.
The three-day, 54-hole event will take place at the historic Baltimore Country Club, with the first 18 holes kicking off at 8 a.m. today. The tournament will continue at 8 a.m. Saturday and conclude at 9 a.m. April 30, all rounds starting from the first and 10th tees.The Hawkeyes hope to continue their success over the past two weekends after securing back-to-back top-three finishes at the Robert Kepler Invitational last weekend.
“The past two weeks have been really important for us,” senior Raymond Knoll said. “Not only finishing well compared to the field but everyone competing individually at a high level. We feel prepared for whatever Baltimore Country Club throws at us.”
Knoll has had an extremely consistent season this spring, posting the fifth-best single-season scoring average in Iowa men’s golf history with an average of 72.18.
Knoll’s senior teammate Carson Schaake has also been a big part in the team’s success over the past few weeks. Schaake followed up his fourth-place finish at the Hawkeye Invitational with a third-place finish last week at the Robert Kepler invitational, where he shot 5-over. He has a fond memory of the Big Ten Championships; he took home the individual title as a sophomore in 2015. Last year, he played some of his best golf at the Big Ten Championships but did not come out on top. Nevertheless, Schaake has a good feel for the tournament.
Another key contributor for the Hawkeyes over the past few weeks has been sophomore Matthew Walker. He has now posted three-straight top-15 finishes, shooting a combined score of 8-over. Walker and the Hawkeyes head into this weekend with a ton of confidence.
“We believe we can compete with anyone in the Big Ten,” Walker said. “We are a team that has had success at the Big Ten Championships the past few years, which gives us confidence that we can do it again.”
Last year the Hawkeyes were the runners-up in the championship, finishing with a score of 13-under. Unfortunately, they fell short to Illinois, which posted a score of 24-under.
The 14-team field will once again include No. 9 Illinois, which is coming off a great season and top finish at the Robert Kepler Invitational. The other top competition for the Hawkeyes will be No. 32 Northwestern, No. 38 Purdue, No. 61 Michigan State, No. 56 Michigan, No. 50 Penn State, and No. 60 Ohio State. The Hawkeyes are currently ranked No. 57 (all rankings Golfstat).
“The key for us this week is to enjoy the tournament,” Knoll said. “I’m excited not only for my last Big Ten Championship individually, but more so for our young guys. It’s an amazing experience, and they will gain so much from it. Considering what happened last year, I couldn’t be more excited to get out there and claim what was so close to being ours. I feel like we can pull off something special.”
