By Mike Lehman, TTU Sports Information
COOKEVILLE, Tenn. – Just under one month separates the Tennessee Tech women's golf team from the start of the 2016-17 season and the fall slate of events for the newest year of Golden Eagle golf will take on a different look than from year's past.
"This fall's schedule is going to look drastically different than it has in the past," head coach Polk Brown said, "with just one tournament that we're going back to from last year. That will be the GolfWeek Program Challenge in Myrtle Beach and at Caledonia. It's just an immaculate golf course and I know our team is excited to go back and play in it again."
Tech will kick off its newest season Sept. 11 in the three-day event in South Carolina, with GolfWeek playing host to the Golden Eagles for the second straight year. The 54-hole tournament will once again take place at the Caledonia Golf & Fish Club in Myrtle Beach, a course that saw the Tech squad tie for 10th in a field of 18 last year.
Following one week away from the links, Tech will return for four straight weeks of action, all at new venues from the past few seasons. The different look to the fall will begin Sept. 25 with a three-day, 54-hole appearance at Jacksonville State's Chris Bannister Fall Classic on Silver Lakes Golf Course in Gadsden, Ala.
"The last time we went down to Silver Lakes and Gadsden was my first year on the job," Brown recalled. "I'm looking forward to taking our team back. It's a good golf course and will present a great test. It's always a strong measuring stick for us when we compete against our OVC rivals, especially in their events. Jacksonville State is good year after year and this will give us a solid idea where we stack up in the league early in the year."
A completely new look will await the Golden Eagles Oct. 3-4, as the purple and gold makes its way east to Starmount Forest Country Club in Greensboro, N.C. for the Starmount Fall Classic hosted by UNC Greensboro.
"We've never been to UNC Greensboro's event, which means a new venue, new host and new everything for us," Brown explained. "We haven't been that far east down I-40 in my time here. I've heard some very good things about Starmount and it should be plenty of fun to go out there the week before fall break and take in all those new experiences."
A familiar venue at a new time of the year awaits Tech from Oct. 10-11. The Golden Eagles will head south for Southern Miss' Golden Eagle Jam at Hattiesburg Country Club in Hattiesburg, Miss.
"We played in Southern Miss' spring tournament a few years back, so to go there in the fall will be a nice change of pace for us. Heading that far south during our fall break, especially when the weather should still be very nice, will be a plus for us. The course should still be in pretty good shape at that time and we're looking forward to returning there."
Tech's fourth event in as many weeks features an in-state trek to Germantown, Tenn. and Ridgeway Country Club for the Memphis Intercollegiate. The two-day event runs from Oct. 17-18 and represents a strong challenge to close out the season.
"We'll wrap things up in Memphis at Ridgeway Country Club," Brown said. "As far as I know, none of our players have played that course before, so it'll be a nice new challenge. It's a lot like the course in Hattiesburg, with a lot of tree-lined holes and doglegs. The field looks really good and it'll be a good way to close out the semester.
"We've got our opening tournament and follow that up with a week off before returning for four consecutive weeks on the road. It will be a solid little stretch from the end of September to the end of October for us. We don't typically end our season as early as this year, but we still have five events that should be challenging and fun.
"I'm looking forward to seeing what happens. The women are excited to get here and we're excited to have them back. We'll get it after it right away and see who'll be making the trip to Myrtle Beach."
