Coach Mike Small’s University of Illinois men’s team, scheduled to host one of six NCAA regional tournaments, will find out the other schools in the field on Wednesday’s Selection Show on The Golf Channel.
The Illini, ranked No. 13 in the collegiate polls, will join other hopefuls for the NCAA finals from May 12-14 at Atkins Golf Club in Urbana.
Illinois will be going into another NCAA appearance coming off a rare season in which they did not rule the Big Ten tournament. Small’s teams had won 13 of the previous 15 league titles but came up short last weekend at Baltimore Country Club, losing by a stroke to UCLA.
The Illini had a six-stroke lead entering Sunday’s final round and were eight ahead of UCLA.
“We just didn’t grab ahold of it and close it out, and that’s what happens sometimes,’’ said Small. “Come-from-behind wins happen frequently in college golf, especially with tough conditions coupled with young teams. Strong teams hold their ground at the end. We didn’t, and UCLA took advantage of it. When adversity hit we didn’t hold our ground with our short games and our putters.’’
Freshman Jake Birdwell,playing in the last group of the day in his first tournament of the season in the Illini scoring lineup, gave his team a chance. He made birdie on the 17th hole to keep Illinois’ title hopes alive and his birdie try on the final hole would have put the Illini in a tie for the lead. That putt missed to the left, leaving the Illini in the runner-up spot.
Birdwell, though, tied for third as an individual with a 3-under-par 207 for 54 holes. The Illini have advanced to the NCAA finals 17 times in Small’s 25 seasons as head coach and won eight regional titles in the last 11 years.
The Illinois women’s team is also in NCAA regional play and is the No. 8 seed in the Ohio State Regional, which runs May 13-17. The Northwestern women are the No. 2 seed in the Oklahoma Regional.
HERE AND THERE: A day after the Big Ten tourney ended Mike Small was competing in the first event of the new Illinois PGA Open Series at White Eagle, in Naperville. Starting in the last group off the tee, he finished in an eight-way tie for third place. Anthony Albano, of Park Ridge, was the only player under par among the 96 competitors, making five birdies en route to a 1-under 71. Joey Ranieri, of Zionsville, Ind., was one stroke back.
Matthew Rion, of Vernon Hills; Paul Schlimm, of Chicago; and Callan Fahey of Wheaton were among the survivors of the first of three U.S. Open local qualifiers conducted by the Chicago District Golf Assn. The other two are May 5, at Briar Ridge in Schererville, Ind., and May 12 at Illini Country Club in Springfield. Survivors of the locals advance to sectional play.
Two Northwestern alums, David Lipsky and Dylan Wu, tied for fourth in last week’s PGA Tour stop – the Zurich Classic of New Orleans. They were three strokes behind winners Andrew Novak and Ben Griffin and three ahead of the celebrity pairing of Rory McIlroy and Shane Lowry.