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Illinois Fighting Illini men’s golf tee times for National Championship

By Rees Woodcock

Mar 2, 2017; Mexico City, MEX; A ball hit by Rickie Fowler lays next to the on the 12th hole during the first round of the WGC - Mexico Championship golf tournament at Club de Golf Chapultepec. Mandatory Credit: Orlando Ramirez-USA TODAY Sports
Mar 2, 2017; Mexico City, MEX; A ball hit by Rickie Fowler lays next to the on the 12th hole during the first round of the WGC - Mexico Championship golf tournament at Club de Golf Chapultepec. Mandatory Credit: Orlando Ramirez-USA TODAY Sports /
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The Illinois Fighting Illini men’s golf team is set to tee off in the NCAA Championships on Friday.

Illinois is the second to last group to tee off with Michael Feagles starting at 1:00 pm CT. The Illini will be playing with the Oregon Ducks and the Kent State Golden Flashes. The Ducks and Illini actually have a history as well.

Last year, the Illini made the Final Four and went up against the Ducks in match play. Illinois ended up falling to, the eventual champion, Oregon 3-2.

The other tee times for the Illini are as follows; Giovanni Tadiotto – 1:11 pm CT, Dylan Meyer – 1:22 pm CT, Edoardo Lipparelli – 1:33 pm CT and Nick Hardy – 1:44 pm CT. They all tee off on hole number ten tomorrow as well.

Illinois is looking to do something that hasn’t been done too often. If they can get through the stroke play portion and advance to match play, it would be the fifth consecutive year they have made it to the Elite 8. That would be quite an accomplishment.

This isn’t unfamiliar grounds for three of the Illini golfers either. Dylan Meyer and Nick Hardy have both played in the last two national titles for Illinois and this will be their third. Edoardo Lipparelli also played in last year’s title run as well.

Meyer has played solid in the stroke play portion the last two seasons shooting +2 and +5, respectively. What trips him up is the match play portion. He is only 1-3 lifetime in the national title when playing match play.

Hardy has been consistent over the last two seasons. He shot +7 both years and is 2-2 in the match play portion. He will need to continue his strong play in the national championship. Look for Lipparelli to play well too. While he did shoot +17 last year, it was his first time and he has grown as a golfer since. That experience will translate over this time around. He also finished 1-1 in the match play as well.

Next: 2017-18 lineup without Jalen Coleman-Lands

Illinois is ready to take on the national title with this crew again. They have the talent to get back to the match play portion and win it all. It should be an interesting few days here this weekend.

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