Illinois, led by junior Jackson Buchanan, tied for third in the 15-team field after 54 holes of golf concluded on Tuesday afternoon in West Lafayette, Indiana, at the Purdue Fall Invitational.
Hosted by Purdue University, the tournament featured some of the Big Ten’s most elite programs – Illinois, Purdue and Nebraska – with UNLV traveling from Las Vegas as the only West Coast school in the field. After a disappointing 10th-place finish, the Illini were able to bounce back in a respectable field of schools.
On the first day of the invitational, Illinois sat in the middle of the pack at seventh place, posting a team total score of 569, one stroke over par. The team was led by Buchanan and freshman Max Herendeen, who both had top-five scores on day one.
After a mediocre first day, Illinois looked to climb the leaderboard — which they did, posting a 284 even par, good enough to tie for third position with VCU. The Illini stayed consistent in the three rounds of golf, posting a 284-285-284 split for an 853 total, putting them one over par.
Despite staying consistent in the middle-to-top of the leaderboard, Illinois never excelled to a position to win the tournament. The team sat 11 strokes behind Purdue, the winners, and 10 strokes behind second-place Illinois State.
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Buchanan claimed a share of the individual title at the Ackerman-Allen Golf Course. Posting a 204-stroke total, nine strokes under par, Buchanan secured his second collegiate win in a 54-hole stroke-play event.
Buchanan won Missouri’s Tiger Collegiate Invitational in record-setting fashion last April before closing his sophomore campaign as the runner-up in stroke play at the NCAA championship in May.
Sophomore Ryan Voois helped lead the charge for the Illini, putting together an exceptional four-under-par, 209-stroke performance, good enough for a share of sixth place in the individual standings. Following a rough first round in which he posted a 72, Voois then settled in, posting a 68 and 69 in the final two rounds.
Fifth year Jerry Ji played a huge role in Illinois staying afloat throughout the tournament, logging a 71-70-71 split over the three rounds which was good enough to individually finish overall with a tie for 10th.
From Oct. 16-17, the Illini will continue their fall competition schedule when the team travels to Kettering, Ohio, to defend the team title at the Dayton Flyers Invitational at NCR Country Club’s South Course.
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