STANFORD, Calif. - A new-look Stanford men's golf program, ranked no. 22 in the Bushnell/Golfweek Division I Coaches Poll, begins the new season in the Chicagoland area at the Fighting Illini Invitational at Olympia Fields Country Club, hosted by the University of Illinois.
THE COURSE » The Fighting Illini Invitational will once again take place at Olympia Fields Country Club's North Course, a par-70, 7,353-yard layout that has been ranked multiple times in the "Top 100 Greatest Courses" in America by Golf Digest.
The course has previously hosted several premier golf events, including the U.S. Amateur (2015), U.S. Open (1928, 2003), PGA Championship (1925, 1961), and BMW Championship (2020, 2023).
THE FIELD » The 2024 Fighting Illini Invitational welcomes some of the nation's most storied programs to the Windy City, with 14 of the 15 programs being ranked in the preseason polls.
The field consists of hosts Illinois, Alabama, Arizona State, Baylor, Florida, Georgia Tech, Michigan, North Carolina, Northwestern, Oklahoma State, Stanford, Texas, Texas A&M, and Texas Tech, with 11 of these programs reaching NCAA stroke play a season ago.
TOURNAMENT FORMAT » The 54-hole tournament will be played under the play five, keep four format over three days. Tee times for Rounds 1 and 2 will begin at 8 a.m. CT, while Sunday's final round tee times are set for 7:30 a.m. CT.
THE CARDINAL LINEUP » There will be plenty of new faces in Stanford's first lineup of the season, featuring three new freshmen, an incoming transfer, and one returner. Taking the first tee for the Cardinal will be T.K. Chantananuwat, Nathan Wang, Ethan Gao, Logan Kim, and Jay Leng.
STANFORD AT THE FIGHTING ILLINI INVITATIONAL » The Cardinal has historically found success at Olympia Fields, having the most individual medalists of any program in tournament history with six: Patrick Rodgers (2011-12), Cameron Wilson (2013), Maverick McNealy (2014-15), and Michael Thorbjornsen (2022).
Stanford has also brought home a pair of team titles in the event, winning the tournament in 2011 and 2022 as one of only three teams to win multiple Fighting Illini Invitational titles. Ethan Gao is the only player in the lineup with experience at Olympia Fields, finishing T-44th in last year's tournament with a 5-over 145 in a rain-shortened event.
LIVE SCORING » Live scoring for the OFCC/Fighting Illini Invitational will be available on Golfstat.com with live coverage of the event on Twitter and Instagram at @StanfordMGolf.
NATION'S TOP CLASS » Widely regarded as the top recruiting class of 2024, the Cardinal inked three exciting young golfers joining the program this season - T.K. Chantananuwat, Jay Leng Jr., and Logan Kim.
Chantananuwat, one of the world's best golf prospects, won the Trust Asian Mixed Cup at just 15 years of age to become the youngest player ever to win an event on a major professional tour. The Bangkok native has ranked as high as sixth in the World Amateur Golf Rankings and is the top Asian amateur golfer.
Leng is among California's elite in junior golf, ranked as the No. 1 recruit in the state according to Junior Golf Scoreboard. The San Diego native is a multiple AJGA Junior Tour champion and a two-time AJGA First-Team Rolex All-American.
Kim rounds out the 2024 class as yet another in-state commitment coming to The Farm. The San Jose native is the fourth-ranked recruit in the state of California according to Junior Golf Scoreboard, a Southern California Junior PGA Tour tournament winner, and has multiple top ten finishes on the AJGA Tour.
BOLSTERING THE STAFF » Stanford head coach Conrad Ray recently completed his staff ahead of the 2024-25 season, announcing the addition of Hong Seh Lim Assistant Men’s Golf Coach Alex Merrill on Monday afternoon.
Joining the staff in a newly-endowed role, Merrill comes to The Farm after a two-year tenure at Purdue as the Director of Administration & Performance for Golf, where he managed the operations and strength & conditioning for both the men's and women's golf programs. Under his guidance, the Boilermaker golf programs combined for six tournament wins and a pair of NCAA Championship appearances.
Previous stops for Merrill also includes Duke University, where he spent 12 seasons as a sports performance coach, as well as Attain Sports Performance in western Massachusetts.