Big Ten women's tourney leads off local golf events
Chicago's golf tournament season gets off to an unusual start this week.
The first big event has never been held locally before and, most likely, won't be again if plans by Big Ten men's and women's coaches pan out.
Northwestern will host the 72-hole Big Ten women's championship at Lakeshore CC in Glencoe beginning Friday. With no course on campus the NU women never got to host the event. They're getting the chance to do it this time, the last year the tourney will rotate between conference schools.
“Northwestern has never hosted the event. That alone makes it a big deal,” said Emily Fletcher, the NU women's coach. “Now we have all the more reason to make it a premier event.”
The following three years the Big Ten will stage its men's and women's championships at French Lick Resort in Indiana. It provides the tourney with a home base in a warmer climate than that enjoyed on most Big Ten campuses.
The women will play on French Lick's Donald Ross course, home of the PGA Championship in 1924 and the LPGA Championship in 1959 and 1960. The men will play at the new Pete Dye course, but all that is for 2012.
Purdue, last year's Big Ten and NCAA champion, is a heavy favorite to win at Lakeshore. Ranked No. 4 nationally, Purdue already has won at Lakeshore, taking the Lady Northern in the fall with the Wildcats finishing second thanks to a record 8-under par that gave NU's Lauren Weaver medalist honors.
No. 18 Michigan State, , looms as a top challenger and Illinois' Hailey Koschmann is a threat for individual honors. Her father Bob is the head professional at Lakeshore.
In addition to Weaver, NU will have two area hopefuls in its lineup — Alex and Rebecca Lederhausen of Hinsdale Central. The event will include electronic scoreboards, on-course standard-bearers and Big Ten Network coverage.
Sprucing up:While many golf facilities are cutting back in these tough economic times, one suburban course has gotten a facelift. The Poplar Creek layout in Hoffman Estates underwent a 15-hole renovation that involved eight new bridges, four of which are adorned with tributes to Bobby Jones, Chick Evans, Samuel Ryder and Babe Zaharias.Lohman Golf Designs has also installed a 50-station lighted driving range, and the facility has been renamed The Bridges at Poplar Creek.#376; The private Hillcrest Country Club in Long Grove is also receiving a name change, this one due to a change in ownership. It's now The Royal Club of Long Grove.Off and running: Mistwood's Visanu Tongwarin and Chris Ioriatta finished at 8-under-par to win the Illinois PGA's first event of the season, the pro-assistants tourney at Itasca.The IPGA's first major is the 60th Match Play Championship May 16-19 at Kemper Lakes in Kildeer, and the IPGA is also planning to give the Radix Cup matches, on June 8 at Oak Park, a special focus. It's the 50th anniversary of that team competition between the top pros and an amateur team lined up by the Chicago District Golf Association. The CDGA begins its season on Monday with a qualifier at the Village Greens of Woodridge for its Illinois State Mid-Amateur Championship. There also are qualifiers Tuesday for this event at Balmoral Woods and Ironhorse GC.Faces in places: There's only one new head pro at area courses this season. Dan Massello, former Butterfield assistant, is in charge at Valley Lo in Glenview.There are three new superintendents. Scott Pavalko will take over the duties at Cog Hill's Dubsdread course, while Elliott Dowling is now the man at Cress Creek Country Club in Naperville and Mark Kesbab at Sportsman's Country Club in Northbrook. Dowling worked at Ivanhoe and Kesbab at Cantigny.Pavalko will work with Ken Lapp, who has worked at Jemsek-owned courses for 61 years and now will focus on Cog's other three 18-holers. Pavalko, 31, was an assistant at Ohio's Muirfield Village course, the site of the PGA Tour's annual Memorial tournament.#376; Len Ziehm's column will appear each Wednesday in the Daily Herald and online at dailyherald.com. 600902Northwestern University golfer Lauren Weaver will lead the Wildcats against heavily favored Purdue and the rest of the Big Ten Conference this weekend.Photo by Stephen Carrera for Northwestern Athletic 18982468Alex Lederhausen of Northwestern was a star golfer at Hinsdale Central.Photo by Mike Muszynski for Northwestern Athletics 600902Rebecca Lederhausen of Northwestern was a star golfer at Hinsdale Central.Photo by Stephen Carrera for Northwestern Athletic