Cullowhee, N.C. – Western Carolina men's golf opens its 2022-23 season this weekend, traveling to Verona, Wis., for the 2022 Badger Invitational, hosted by the University of Wisconsin at the par-72, 7,259-yard University Ridge Golf Course.
The three-round, 54-hole event includes a single round each day, Sunday through Tuesday. Live scoring of each round is available online through GolfStat.com
In addition to the Catamounts and the host Badgers, the 18-team field includes golfers from Augusta, Campbell, Cincinnati, Illinois State, Marquette, Maryland, Nebraska, Northern Illinois, Purdue, Ole Miss, South Carolina, South Dakota State, South Florida, Texas A&M, UAB, and Western Kentucky.
Three members of WCU's scoring five are newcomers to the program this fall. Transfer
Ryan Thomas (Indian Hills CC) will pace the Catamount scoring side in his WCU debut, with fifth-year senior
Louis Theys playing in the No. 2 slot. Theys was fourth on the squad in seasonal scoring average a year ago and was the second-best finisher at the conference championship. Missouri Valley College transfer in redshirt junior
Pablo Hernandez will play third with graduate transfer
Adam Hooker (High Point), who is coming off an appearance in the 2022 U.S. Amateur Championship. Returning WCU senior
Magnus Pedersen rounds out the lineup for the season opener.
This year marks the second visit to Wisconsin for the WCU men's golf team as the Catamounts trekked to the Midwest back in the fall of 2015, also playing on the same course. The University Ridge Golf Course was ranked No. 2 in the nation among the best collegiate golf courses by GolfPass.
Following the season-opening tournament, WCU returns home to host the JT Poston Invitational on Sept. 26-27 at the beautiful Country Club of Sapphire Valley.
Keep track of everything related to Catamount men's golf and WCU Athletics through its social media outlets on Facebook (fb.com/catamountsports), Instagram (@wcu_catamounts), and Twitter (@catamounts, @CatamountMGolf).
