Sunday, April 21
The Shoals at RTJ - Muscle Shoals, Ala.
UT Martin
vs
OVC Championships
SKYHAWKS READY FOR 2024 OHIO VALLEY CONFERENCE GOLF CHAMPIONSHIPS IN ALABAMA
4/19/2024 10:34:00 AM | Golf
MARTIN, Tenn. – The University of Tennessee at Martin golf program goes for its third league title in the last four years when the 2024 Ohio Valley Conference Championships takes place in Muscle Shoals, Ala. this Sunday, April 21 through Wednesday, April 24.
The OVC tournament returns to the Fighting Joe Course at The Shoals on the Robert Trent Jones Trail for the first time since 2021 and ninth time overall (all since 2009). The course is a par-72 challenge that will run between 7,147 and 7,260 yards for this event. The Skyhawks have won two of their three OVC championships at the Fighting Joe, topping the field with an 861 (-3) in 2021 and an 879 (+15) in 2016.
The OVC has since implemented match play for the top four teams in the stroke play standings after 54 holes. UT Martin's third conference title in school history came in 2022 as the Skyhawks finished second in stroke play (898, +34) before beating Morehead State and Tennessee Tech by 3-2 margins in match play at Dalhousie Golf Club in Cape Girardeau, Mo.
The Skyhawks will participate in a practice round at noon on Saturday, April 20 before teeing off on Hole No. 1 between 10:20-11:00 a.m. alongside Little Rock and SIUE during Sunday's first round. A banquet with an All-OVC postseason awards presentation will take place on Sunday night at 7 p.m. UT Martin's tee times for Monday and Tuesday of stroke play will be set following the conclusion of the previous round. The semifinals round of match play starts at 8 a.m. on Wednesday with the championship match to follow at approximately 1 p.m.
The weather conditions call for 7-10 mile-per-hour winds on all four days of the OVC Championships. The opening round forecast includes a 40 percent chance of rain showers in the morning with a high of 59 degrees. Round 2 and 3 are projected for sunny skies with highs of 68 and 75 degrees, respectively. The forecast for Wednesday's match play calls for partly cloudy conditions and a high of 76 degrees.
Head coach Austin Swafford has set a lineup that includes Dax Isbell at the No. 1 slot, Jonathan Xoinis at No. 2, Jacob Uehlein at No. 3, Luke Caldwell at No. 4 and Grant Phillips at No. 5. Ethan Ray will serve as the team's alternate and will be eligible to substitute in the scoring lineup.
Isbell will be making his second OVC Championship appearance as he finished 12th last season (220, +4) as a freshman. The Cumming, Ga. native ranks seventh in the OVC with a 72.2 stroke average and additionally boasts team-highs in par/even rounds (14), top-10 finishes (five) and top-20 finishes (six) in 2023-24.
A redshirt junior from Chattanooga, Tenn., Xoinis will appear in his third career OVC Championship. He is responsible for a 74.2 scoring average and a team-high two top-five placements this season.
Uehlein is set for the fourth OVC Championship appearance of his career as his best finish in the individual standings was 10th place (224, +8) in 2022). The graduate out of Tullahoma, Tenn. – who is the only Skyhawk to play the Fighting Joe Course in an official capacity (17th-place showing at the 2021 OVC Championships) – has posted a 74.7 stroke average with one top-five finish in 2023-24.
Caldwell and Phillips will both be making their OVC Championship debuts on Sunday. A sophomore from Cookeville, Tenn., Caldwell has pieced together a 75.3 scoring average while Phillips – who hails from Marietta, Ga. – managed a 74.6 stroke average during his freshman campaign.
A redshirt junior out of Collierville, Tenn., Ray participated in his first OVC Championship last season and produced a pair of countable scores. He has tallied a 74.8 season scoring average in 2023-24.
For full information on the 2024 OVC Championships, including a link to live scoring, click on the Championship Central webpage above.
The OVC tournament returns to the Fighting Joe Course at The Shoals on the Robert Trent Jones Trail for the first time since 2021 and ninth time overall (all since 2009). The course is a par-72 challenge that will run between 7,147 and 7,260 yards for this event. The Skyhawks have won two of their three OVC championships at the Fighting Joe, topping the field with an 861 (-3) in 2021 and an 879 (+15) in 2016.
The OVC has since implemented match play for the top four teams in the stroke play standings after 54 holes. UT Martin's third conference title in school history came in 2022 as the Skyhawks finished second in stroke play (898, +34) before beating Morehead State and Tennessee Tech by 3-2 margins in match play at Dalhousie Golf Club in Cape Girardeau, Mo.
The Skyhawks will participate in a practice round at noon on Saturday, April 20 before teeing off on Hole No. 1 between 10:20-11:00 a.m. alongside Little Rock and SIUE during Sunday's first round. A banquet with an All-OVC postseason awards presentation will take place on Sunday night at 7 p.m. UT Martin's tee times for Monday and Tuesday of stroke play will be set following the conclusion of the previous round. The semifinals round of match play starts at 8 a.m. on Wednesday with the championship match to follow at approximately 1 p.m.
The weather conditions call for 7-10 mile-per-hour winds on all four days of the OVC Championships. The opening round forecast includes a 40 percent chance of rain showers in the morning with a high of 59 degrees. Round 2 and 3 are projected for sunny skies with highs of 68 and 75 degrees, respectively. The forecast for Wednesday's match play calls for partly cloudy conditions and a high of 76 degrees.
Head coach Austin Swafford has set a lineup that includes Dax Isbell at the No. 1 slot, Jonathan Xoinis at No. 2, Jacob Uehlein at No. 3, Luke Caldwell at No. 4 and Grant Phillips at No. 5. Ethan Ray will serve as the team's alternate and will be eligible to substitute in the scoring lineup.
Isbell will be making his second OVC Championship appearance as he finished 12th last season (220, +4) as a freshman. The Cumming, Ga. native ranks seventh in the OVC with a 72.2 stroke average and additionally boasts team-highs in par/even rounds (14), top-10 finishes (five) and top-20 finishes (six) in 2023-24.
A redshirt junior from Chattanooga, Tenn., Xoinis will appear in his third career OVC Championship. He is responsible for a 74.2 scoring average and a team-high two top-five placements this season.
Uehlein is set for the fourth OVC Championship appearance of his career as his best finish in the individual standings was 10th place (224, +8) in 2022). The graduate out of Tullahoma, Tenn. – who is the only Skyhawk to play the Fighting Joe Course in an official capacity (17th-place showing at the 2021 OVC Championships) – has posted a 74.7 stroke average with one top-five finish in 2023-24.
Caldwell and Phillips will both be making their OVC Championship debuts on Sunday. A sophomore from Cookeville, Tenn., Caldwell has pieced together a 75.3 scoring average while Phillips – who hails from Marietta, Ga. – managed a 74.6 stroke average during his freshman campaign.
A redshirt junior out of Collierville, Tenn., Ray participated in his first OVC Championship last season and produced a pair of countable scores. He has tallied a 74.8 season scoring average in 2023-24.
For full information on the 2024 OVC Championships, including a link to live scoring, click on the Championship Central webpage above.
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