Illinois PGA set to tee off on Medinah's No. 1 course

Long in the shadows of its more famous, more sinister big brother, Medinah No. 1 gets its chance to step into the spotlight beginning Monday when it plays host to the 86th Illinois PGA Championship.

Medinah's No. 1 course may not be the monster that is No. 3 - host to three U.S. Opens, three Western Opens, a pair of PGA Championships and the 2012 Ryder Cup - but anyone who has played the 6,713-yard beauty knows it's certainly no pushover.

"The members at Medinah - and anyone else who happens to play it - absolutely love the No. 1 course," said club president John Potts. "It's great fun and very challenging but not quite as challenging as No. 3, which can overwhelm you."

A field of 156 Illinois PGA Professionals will get their chance on No. 1 beginning Monday morning at 7:40 a.m., and the low 60 scores plus ties will make it to Wednesday's final round of the 54-hole event. The tournament offers a record purse of approximately $85,000.

Heading the field will be defending champion Mike Small, who defeated Roy Biancalana by 3 strokes last year to win his fifth consecutive Illinois PGA title and his sixth in the past seven years.

Also competing in the field will be four-time Illinois PGA champion Gary Groh, and past champions Gary Groh, Doug Bauman, Steve Benson, Dino Lucchesi, David Prange and Jim Sobb.