NORMAL, Ill. - Illinois State head men's golf coach Ray Kralis has announced his program's 2018-19 schedule on Monday morning.
Among the 12 matches and one exhibition, the Redbirds will compete in eight different states with five events in the fall season and seven tournaments and an exhibition in the spring.
"I am really excited about this year's schedule and believe the teams and competition sites we'll see will make us stronger as the season progresses," said Kralis. "We have a couple great new additions for the spring which strengthen our schedule, and we are excited about the opportunities and challenges in front of us."
The season opens for the Redbirds on Sept. 9-11 when the team travels north to Madison, Wisconsin, to compete in the Badger Invitational at University Ridge Golf Course. This year marks the fifth consecutive season that Illinois State has competed in the event. The following weekend the 'Birds travel to Fort Collins Country Club in Fort Collins, Colorado, and will compete in the Ram Master's Invitational, hosted by Colorado State University.
For the eighth time over the last nine seasons, the Redbirds will compete in the Firestone Invitational, hosted at Firestone Country Club and hosted by the University of Akron on Oct. 1 and 2. The fall season ends with back-to-back return tournaments including the Dayton Invitational, hosted at NCR South Country Club on Oct.15 and 16; and the Little Rock Intercollegiate at Chenal Country Club in Little Rock, Arkansas on Oct. 22 and 23.
The annual Tinervin Cup with Illinois unofficially opens the spring portion of the schedule, as the two teams will play an exhibition match with alumni on Jan. 26, at Coral Creek Club in Placida, Florida.
The spring season officially begins on Feb. 11-12 with the Mobile Bay Intercollegiate, an event that the Redbirds have participated in during each of the last 10 seasons. The team returns to the Gulf region two weeks later to compete at the Seminole Intercollegiate on Feb. 23-24, the sixth straight year Illinois State has competed in the event.
The second week of March brings the first new event of the season for Illinois State, as the 'Birds travel again to the Gulf region to compete at the USF Invitational on Mar. 11 and 12. That following weekend - the end of the Illinois State spring break week - the squad will compete in the Mission Inn Spring Spectacular in Howey-in-the-Hills, Florida on Mar. 16-17.
For the third consecutive season the Redbirds travel to Columbia, Missouri, to compete in the Tiger Invitational, hosted on April 8 and 9. A week later Illinois State travels east to compete in the Boilermaker Invitational, hosted by Purdue University on Apr. 13-14.
A week later, the Redbirds had back to Missouri, to compete in the Missouri Valley Conference Championships, hosted at The Club at Porto Cima in Lake of the Ozarks, Missouri on Apr. 22 and 23.
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