Oral Roberts selected for new Golfweek National Golf Invitational Championship
Tulsa, Okla. – The Oral Roberts men’s golf team has accepted an invitation to participate in the inaugural Golfweek National Golf Invitational Championship, it was announced Thursday.
The exclusive invitation to play in the NGI is based on the team’s combined season-long performance, overall Golfweek/Golfstat rankings and head-to-head record. It is the first championship of this kind in college golf. The event will be held May 18-21 at Ak-Chin Southern Dunes Golf Club in Maricopa, Arizona.
“It is an honor to be able to participate in the inaugural Golfweek National Golf Invitational Championship,” ORU Head Coach Lance Watson said. “The guys have worked hard all season long and this is a great opportunity for them to be able to continue to compete together.”
The scoring format will be like a traditional college team event with each team starting 5 players and counting the 4 best scores. Substitutions will be allowed as in NCAA play. Individual and team champions will be determined after 54 holes. There will be a playoff for team and/or individual competition if needed.
ORU participated in 11 regular season tournaments throughout the fall and spring along with the Summit League Championship for a total of 12 events. The Golden Eagles had seven top five finishes along with six top three finishes. The team had six consecutive tournaments concluding in the top five and won back-to-back team championships in March at the Bash at the Beach (Myrtle Beach, S.C.) and the Missouri State Intercollegiate (Springfield, Mo.).
In October, ORU’s Brandon Hoff won the individual championship at The Clerico hosted by Oral Roberts University and won an exemption to the Compliance Solutions Championship, a Korn Ferry Tour event, June 19-25 in Norman, Oklahoma. Hoff followed that event with another individual championship at the Baylor Brawl in Waco, Texas.
The team’s participation to the Golfweek National Golf Invitational Championship will be the first postseason competition for the ORU program since 2010.