Opening Tee

JOHN A. BURNS INTERCOLLEGIATE Feb. 15-17 | All Day | Lihu'e Kauai Wailua Golf Course Tee Times Live Scoring Host: University of Hawaii No. of Teams: 18

The No. 25 Kennesaw State men's golf team begins its spring schedule on Wednesday (Feb. 15) when it opens play at the 41st John A. Burns Intercollegiate.
 
The tournament format calls for 54 holes to be played over three days at the par-72, 6,991-yard Wailua Golf Course in Lihu'e, Kaua'i. The event commences with an 18-hole shotgun start on Wednesday beginning at 1:30 p.m. (ET), and continues with 18 holes on Thursday (Feb. 16) and Friday (Feb. 17). The Owls will be grouped with California and Utah and begin play on the holes 10-12.
 
The Field
The 18-team field includes Arizona, Brigham Young (46), California, Grand Canyon, Hawaii, Hawaii-Hilo, Kennesaw State (25), New Mexico (45), North Dakota State, Northern Colorado, Santa Clara, Texas A&M (18), UNLV (23), Utah, UTEP, Virginia (4), Washington (41) and Washington State. Seven of the 18 teams are ranked in the current Golfstat Top 50.

Lineup
1. Jake Fendt
2. Pablo Rodriguez-Tabernero Torres
3. Teremoana Beaucousin
4. Chris Guglielmo
5. Paul Doig
 
Odom on John A. Burns Intercollegiate
"We are anxious to begin our spring season and fortunate as a program to compete in Hawaii.  This is a strong field and builds upon our highly ranked schedule. As a result of playing in this tournament last year, we can prepare for the tournament a little differently and focus more on the holes and shots that may help us improve in this year's event. Although we enter the spring with a high ranking following a successful fall, it is important that we continue to focus day-to-day on the little things that will make us better individually and as a team."

The Rankings    
The Owls begin the spring season ranked No. 23 by Golfweek and No. 25 by Golfstat. Kennesaw concluded the fall No. 23 in the Bushnell Golfweek Coaches Poll.
 
Fall Recap
The fall season included several team and individual highlights, and the following is a list of some of Kennesaw State's top accomplishments.
 
Team Accomplishments
* Five top 10 finishes in five events
* Runner-up showings at the Franklin American Intercollegiate and Wolfpack Intercollegiate
* Team titles at the Pinetree Intercollegiate and Steelwood Intercollegiate
* Program record-low 54-hole total (837) on par-72 course at Steelwood Intercollegiate
* First-round 10-under par 278 at Steelwood Intercollegiate is the third-best score on par-72 course
* Won back-to-back tournament titles for first time in program history 

Individual Accomplishments
* Senior Christopher and freshman Connor Coffee named ASUN Conference Golfer of the Week
* Connor Coffee captured individual medalist honors at Steelwood Intercollegiate. His 12-under par 204 total is the third-lowest 54-hole score on a par-72 course in program history
* Six individuals recorded top 10 finishes, including four with runner-up showings
* Six players recorded at least one round in the 60s
* Junior Wyatt Larkin (70.8) and Connor Coffee (71.5) recorded sub-72.0 scoring averages
* Wyatt Larkin (13) and Pablo Rodriguez-Tabernero Torres (25) listed in Fall Arnold Palmer Cup Ranking 

ASUIN Golfer of the Week Honors
Chris Guglielmo (Oct. 6)
Connor Coffee (Nov. 3)
 
Arnold Palmer Cup Rankings
Junior Wyatt Larkin and sophomore Pablo Rodriguez-Tabernero Torres appear in the first of three spring Arnold Palmer Cup Rankings that were released on Feb. 9.  Additional rankings will be released Feb. 23 and March 9.
 
The 10 person teams for both Europe and the United States will be announced March 16 during the first round of the Arnold Palmer Invitational pre­sented by MasterCard. Larkin is No. 11 among United States players and Torres is No. 24 among European players.
 
The Arnold Palmer Cup Ranking automatically qualifies the top six players for both sides and uses Golfstat's NCAA Player Ranking as a base. The ranking awards bonus points for wins and high finishes, penalty for poor finishes, and contains a strength of schedule component. The remaining four players for the United States will be selected using three committee picks and one coaches pick. One of the U.S. committee picks must be a non-Division I golfer. The final four spots on Team Europe shall consist of the champion of The R&A Foundation Scholars Tournament, held in early April, two committee picks and one coaches pick.  
 
Top Owls
* Junior Wyatt Larkin leads the Owls with a 70.8 stroke average. Limited to two events due to an injury, Larkin posted a pair of top-10 finishes.
* Freshman Connor Coffee made an immediate impact, competing in all five fall events and recording a 71.5 scoring average and posting a three top five finishes, including individual medalist honors at the Steelwood Intercollegiate.
 
The 2016-17 Roster
* Head coach Bryant Odom 2016-17 roster includes four the five players who helped the Owls claim the 2016 ASUN Conference championship and advance to the NCAA Franklin Regional. The KSU roster includes two seniors (Teremoana Beaucousin, Christopher Guglielmo),, three juniors (Wyatt Larkin, Buster Bruton, Paul Doig), one sophomore (Jake Fendt) and two talented freshmen (Walker Bottomley, Connor Coffee).
 
Guglielmo Qualifies for U.S. Amateur Championship
* Senior Christopher Guglielmo qualified the 2016 U.S. Amateur Championship that was held at Oakland Hills Country Club in Bloomfield Township, Mich., in August. It marked the second straight year that Guglielmo qualified for world's most prestigious amateur championship.
 
Kennesaw State Men's Golf
The Kennesaw State men's golf program has established itself at the national level in recent years as it has made six consecutive NCAA Regional appearances and advanced to the NCAA Championships on two occasions. The Owls finished the 2015-16 season ranked No. 45 by Golfstat and No. 49 by Golfweek.
 
Next Up
Following the John A. Burns Intercollegiate, the Owls will have nearly three weeks off before beginning a busy March schedule. The month opens with KSU competing at the Tiger Invitational hosted by Auburn at the Grand National Lakes Golf Club in Opelika, Ala.

Keep up with Owls men's golf by following KSU on Twitter @KSUOwlNation and @KSUOwlsMGolf or by liking Kennesaw State Owls on Facebook.
   
 

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