NICK WATNEY INVITATIONAL
Dates: Oct. 2-3, 2017 (Monday-Tuesday)
Location: Sunnyside Country Club - Fresno, Calif.
Par/Yardage: Par 71, 6,921 yards
Host: Fresno State
Live Scoring: Golfstat.com
 
IRVINE, Calif. - The UC Irvine men's golf team is set to open the 2017-18 season at the Nick Watney Invitational in Fresno, Oct. 2-3. The two-day, 54-hole tournament will be held at Sunnyside Country Club.
 
The first two rounds will be contested on Monday with a shotgun start beginning at 8:30 a.m. The players will then be regrouped based on scores for the final round on Tuesday, and will tee off every 10 minutes from holes No. 1 and No. 10.
 
UCI is part of a 16-team field that also features BYU, Saint Mary's Sacramento State, UC Santa Barbara, UC Riverside, Loyola Marymount, San Francisco, Seattle University, Utah, Gonzaga, Pacific, Cal Poly, CSUN, San Diego and host Fresno State.
 
THE COURSE
Sunnyside Country Club will play at par 71, 6,921 yards for the Nick Watney Invitational. Sunnyside Country Club, which is located on the southeast side of Fresno, is known for its tree-lined fairways, beautiful bunkering and challenging bentgrass greens.
 
THE LINEUP
UC Irvine's lineup for the season-opening tournament will consist of David Kim, Jonathan Young, Jonathan Kang, Ramiz Jamal and Ryan O'Connor.
 
LIVE SCORING
Live scoring for the Nick Watney Invitational can be found at www.Golfstat.com.
 
BACK TO WORK
Head coach Paul Smolinski, who is entering his 20th year at the helm of the UCI men's golf program, once again has a veteran squad with eight returners, including four seniors.
 
Senior David Kim looks to lead the way as he is coming off an impressive 2016-17 campaign where he earned an NCAA Regional berth and was named the Big West Player of the Year. Kim was also tops on the team with a 71.28 average and placed among the top-10 in eight tournaments. Seniors Ryan O'Connor (74.03) and Jonathan Young (74.23), and sophomore Jonathan Kang (75.46) each added a top-10 finish last year.
 
Also back for the Anteaters are senior Johnny Hyun (76.60), and juniors Ramiz Jamal (73.67), Jefferson Kao (76.67) and Chris Parkinson (75.67).
 
TOURNAMENT REWIND
This is the second year in a row the 'Eaters will travel to Fresno for the Nick Watney Invitational. In 2016, UC Irvine shot a 54-hole total of 861 to finish fifth among 15 teams at San Joaquin Country Club. David Kim was also fifth in the individual standings with a three-round score of 2-under 211. Jonathan Young was 10th (213), while Ramiz Jamal (217) and Ryan O'Connor (220) were 20th and 26th, respectively. BYU won the tournament with a 1-over-par 853.  
 
UP NEXT
UC Irvine continues its fall season at the Bill Cullum Invitational, Oct. 16-17. The tournament, which is hosted by CSUN, will be held at Wood Ranch Golf Club in Simi Valley.