Live Scoring / Season Stats
WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. - The Purdue men's golf team swings into high gear this weekend, facing a host of top-50 squads at the loaded Puerto Rico Classic at the Rio Mar Resort's River Course in Rio Grande, Puerto Rico.
Action begins Sunday morning and the 15 teams will play 18 holes each day, wrapping up play Tuesday.
Consistently one of the collegiate golf events of the year, this year's competition marks the 25th annual edition of a tournament that has featured professional golfers such as Stewart Cink, Ben Curtis, Rickie Fowler, Lucas Glover, Matt Kuchar, Justin Leonard, Bubba Watson and Luke Donald. Cink, Kuchar, Donald and Glover have all won this event previously.
This year's field is no different as nine top-50 squads are slated to compete. The field includes Georgia (13th), Mississippi (19th), Clemson (23rd), North Carolina (24th), Georgia Tech (28th), Purdue (34th), Northwestern (37th), Kentucky (45th), Alabama (47th), North Carolina State (54th), Middle Tennessee State (57th), Ohio State (60th), Virginia Tech (69th), Maryland (81st) and UNC Greensboro (99th).
Clemson and Georgia Tech have appeared in every Puerto Rico Classic, while Mississippi and Middle Tennessee State are making their first appearance. Alabama has won the tournament six times, Georgia Tech five times and Georgia (and Florida) have won four times. Alabama has also produced six medalists, including three of the last five event winners.
Purdue has never won the event, but has placed in the top six in three of the last five events. The Boilermakers' highest finish is third during the 2002 and 2012 events, while finishing fifth in 2015. Purdue's best individual finish was by Lee Williamson in 2002, placing second at 9-under par. Purdue individuals have placed in the top 10 a total of eight times, including a seventh-place showing by Austin Eoff a year ago.
Following this tournament, Purdue heads west to the Desert Mountain Intercollegiate in Scottsdale, Arizona, on March 4 and 5.
#BoilerNotes
- Purdue faced a challenging fall slate and enters the spring with the 35th-toughest schedule in America … the Boilermakers are 2-12-2 against top-25 teams having defeated No. 2-ranked Illinois at the Tavistock Invitational and No. 8-ranked Baylor at the Olympia Fields Invitational … Purdue owns a 39-25-2 (.606) head-to-head record overall.
- With its first round of stroke play this weekend, Purdue golfers will have met the minimum rounds played requirement to rank on the single-season stroke average list … Austin Eoff (72.14), Brian Carlson (72.71), Timmy Hildebrand (73.21) and Fernando Barco (73.64) all would currently rank on the chart.
- Purdue has produced four of its all-time top 23, 54-hole scores at the Puerto Rico Classic.
- A Purdue golfer has finished in the top 10 in three straight Puerto Rico Classic events … Adam Schenk placed third in 2014, Stuart Macdonald was 10th in 2015 and Austin Eoff was seventh last year.
- Seven of the best 14, 18-hole team scores in school history have come during the Rob Bradley era.
- Purdue's current 18-hole team stroke average of 289.79 would be the second-best average in program history (288.19 in 2001-02).
- Eoff has finished in the top 20 in 24-of-45 career tournaments ... he also owns 15 top-10 finishes, the fourth most in school history … Eoff is looking to become the second Purdue golfer in Puerto Rico Classic history with two top-10 finishes
