Huskers Focused for Big Ten Championship

The Nebraska men’s golf team turns its attention to the postseason when the Huskers travel to Columbus, Ohio for the 2024 Big Ten Championship presented by Old National Bank.

 

Action in the three-day event at the renowned Scioto Country Club begins on Friday, April 26 with first-round tee times at 8 a.m. (CT). Saturday’s second round also gets underway at 8 a.m. (CT), before Sunday’s final round begins at 7 a.m. (CT).

 

The 14-team Big Ten Championship field features five top-50 teams, led by No. 18 Illinois, No. 28 Purdue, No. 37 Ohio State, No. 44 Northwestern and No. 46 Indiana.

 

No. 74 Michigan State, No. 84 Michigan, No. 88 Rutgers, No. 89 Wisconsin and No. 98 Minnesota put 10 top-100 teams in the field, along with Iowa, Penn State, Nebraska and Maryland.

 

The teams will face a par-70, 7,240-yard layout at the Scioto Country Club, while warm temperatures in the 70s and 80s are forecast for the weekend along with chances of afternoon showers Friday and Saturday. 

Juniors Harry Crockett and Hamish Murray continue to lead the Huskers on the course.

 

Crockett is coming off his best performance as a Husker with a runner-up finish and a career-best 203 (-10) at the Hawkeye Invitational in Iowa City (April 13-14). Crockett is the only Husker to play all 29 rounds in the Nebraska lineup this season and owns a 72.24 stroke average on the year.

 

Murray, who owns a team-best 72.15 stroke average over 26 rounds on the season, has produced five top-20 finishes, including a season-best tie for ninth at the Bearcat Invitational (Sept. 18-19). 

Senior Gentry Scheve, who was Nebraska’s No. 2 individual finisher in Iowa with a tie for 32nd, carries a 73.00 stroke average on the season.

 

Fifth-year golfer Will Marshall, who led the Huskers with a 29th-place finish at the Calusa Cup (April 7-9) and was NU’s No. 2 finisher in the lineup at the Hawkeye Invite (April 13-14), will also look to make a strong tournament showing in Ohio.

 

Live updates and scoring for the Hawkeye Invitational can be found at HuskersGolf on Instagram and X, and Golfstat.com. Complete coverage will be available on Huskers.com. 

 

 

Schedule
Friday, April 26 (Round 1) - 8 a.m. CT (Tee Times)
Saturday, April 27 (Round 2) - 8 a.m. CT (Tee Times)
Sunday, April 28 (Round 3) - 7 a.m. CT (Tee Times)

 

 

Participating Teams (14)
Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Maryland, Michigan, Michigan State, Minnesota, Nebraska, Northwestern, Ohio State, Penn State, Purdue, Rutgers, Wisconsin

 

Nebraska Lineup
1. Harry Crockett, Jr., Oxted, England
2. Will Marshall, 5th, Elburn, Illinois
3. Gentry Scheve, Sr., Emporia, Kansas
4. Davis Johnson, So., Chaska, Minnesota
5. Hamish Murray, Jr., Sydney, Australia
SUB - Quinn Yost, So., Farmington, New Mexico

 

Hamish Murray has provided Nebraska with its most consistent presence this season, posting eight consecutive top-35 individual finishes before tying for 51st at the Hawkeye Invitational to close the regular season. The junior from Sydney, Australia, opened with three straight top-20 finishes, including a season-best tie for ninth in his Husker debut at the Bearcat Invitational (Sept. 18-19). He closed with a three-round score of 211 (-2) on a par-71, 7,279-yard layout at the Coldstream Country Club in Cincinnati.

 

Murray produced a tie for 19th with a 215 (-1) at the Badger Invitational in Wisconsin (Oct. 1-3), before tying for 17th at Purdue with a 214 (+1).

 

Murray closed the fall with a tie for 33rd with an even-par 216 at the Everett Buick GMC Classic in Little Rock, Ark., Oct. 16-17. 

 

He added his fourth top-20 effort by tying for 19th at 146 (73-73) in the rain-shortened Battle at Briar’s Creek in South Carolina (Feb. 5-6). He added another tie for 19th with a 214 (-2) with Husker teammate Evan Myers to lead NU at The Johnnie-O at Sea Island (March 11-12).

 

Through 26 rounds, Murray carries Nebraska’s best stroke average at 72.15.

 

Murray was ranked among the top 50 golfers in NCAA Division II by Golfstat in 2022-23 and was the Cameron Athlete of the Year across all sports.

 

Harry Crockett closed the regular season by producing the best performance of his Nebraska career with a second-place finish and a career-best 203 (67-68-68) at the Hawkeye Invitational in Iowa City (April 13-14). Crockett’s 10-under-par effort on a par-71, 7,197-yard layout at Finkbine Golf Course shattered his previous career best of 209 and was three shots better than his previous career-best to par (-7) at the Everett Buick GMC Classic in Little Rock, Ark. (Oct. 16-17, 2023), when Crockett tied for third. 

 

Crockett’s performance in Arkansas also included back-to-back rounds of 68 (-4) to produce Nebraska’s lone top-five individual finish of the fall.

 

Crockett also led Nebraska to its top team finish of the fall by producing a team-best tie for 12th with an even-par 213 at the Purdue Fall Invitational (Oct. 9-10). Crockett’s performance helped Nebraska to a fifth-place team finish in a 15-team field at Purdue. 

 

Crockett was the only Husker to compete in all 15 fall rounds, before opening the spring with a tie for 53rd at 153 (78-75) in the Battle at Briar’s Creek (Feb. 5-6). 

 

He followed with three consecutive top-35 finishes at The Gator (T35th), The Johnnie-O Classic at Sea Island (34th) and the Calusa Cup (33rd) before heading to the Hawkeye Invitational.

 

Crockett, who is ranked No. 398 in the NCAA Division I Scoreboard rankings, carries a 72.24 stroke average as the only Husker to compete in all 29 rounds this season.

 

While the Huskers were competing at the Calusa Cup earlier this week, four Nebraska individuals also performed well at the Stampede at the Creek in Omaha (April 8-9).

 

Davis Johnson led the Big Red contingent by playing his way to the tournament title with a career-best three-round total of 215 (-1) on the 7,627-yard layout at Indian Creek Golf Course. 

 

Johnson’s win came in a 48-golfer field and included a career-best opening-round 69 (-3).  He was also one of three Huskers to record an eagle in the tournament on the 533-yard, par-5 11th hole in the third round.

 

Johnson outlasted teammate Quinn Yost, who tied for second with an even-par 216 that included an opening-round 71 (-1) and a final-round 70 (-2).

 

Reed Malleck tied for 11th at 223, including a career-best matching 69 (-3) in the final round with his own eagle on No. 11.

 

Omahan Grant Jabenis took 24th at 226, closing with an even-par 72 in the final round that included an eagle on No. 11.

 

Yost, Johnson Show Gains As Nebraska Sophomores
Quinn Yost and Davis Johnson have made major improvements on the course in their second seasons as Huskers in 2023-24.

 

Yost, a sophomore from Farmington, N.M., has slashed 2.62 strokes per round off his freshman average. Yost owns a 73.38 stroke average over 21 rounds in 2023-24, after posting a 76.00 average in 17 rounds as a freshman.

 

Yost made the most of his season debut for the Huskers at the Badger Invitational by carding a career-best 212 (-4) over three rounds (Oct. 1-3).

 

He smashed his previous collegiate best by 10 strokes on his way to his first career top-10 finish with a tie for ninth in a 90-golfer field.

 

Yost opened the Badger Invitational by matching his then-career best with a 69 (-3) on the par-72, 7,271-yard layout at the University Ridge Golf Club. He added an even-par 72 in the second round, before closing with a 71 (-1) in the final round. Yost helped the Huskers to a sixth-place finish in an 18-team field in Wisconsin.

 

He continued his strong play with a second consecutive top-20 finish by tying teammate Hamish Murray for 17th at the Purdue Fall Invitational (Oct. 9-10). Playing out of the top spot in the Husker lineup, Yost followed an opening-round 74 with a career-best 68 (-3) in the second round. He finished with a three-round score of 214 (+1) to help the Huskers to a season-best fifth-place finish in a strong 15-team field.

Johnson, a sophomore from Chaska, Minn., has trimmed 2.08 strokes off his average, posting a 73.92 over 12 rounds in 2023-24, after producing a 76.00 average over 11 rounds a year ago.

 

He captured his first collegiate title with a career-best 215 (-1) while playing as an individual at the Stampede at the Creek in Omaha (April 8-9). Johnson, who was Nebraska’s No. 4 finisher at the 2023 Big Ten Championship, was also NU’s No. 4 finisher at the Johnnie-O at Sea Island (March 11-12) in his first lineup appearance for the Big Red this season. He added a tie for 69th in his second lineup appearance of the year at the Hawkeye Invitational (April 13-14), before earning a spot in the Big Red lineup for the Big Ten Championship.

 

Gentry Scheve, Will Marshall and Harry Crockett represented Nebraska among the 2023-24 Big Ten Preseason Men’s Golfers to Watch. 

 

Nebraska’s most experienced returning golfer, Will Marshall (Elburn, Ill.) is back for his fifth season as a Husker. Marshall led Nebraska with five top-25 finishes and a 73.68 stroke average last season.

 

Marshall competed in Nebraska’s first three tournaments to open 2023-24. He did not compete at the Purdue Fall Invitational, but returned to the lineup for the Huskers at the Everett Buick GMC Classic with a three-round total of 218 (+2).

 

Marshall carries a 73.95 stroke average over 20 rounds this season.

 

Junior Harry Crockett set a school record with a 71.82 stroke average over 11 fall rounds in 2022-23. Crockett, a two-time NJCAA All-American at Hutchinson (Kan.) Community College, did not compete for the Huskers during the spring.

 

Crockett has earned a lineup spot in every round for the Huskers this season and carries a 72.24 stroke average over 29 rounds. He led the Huskers with a tie for third individually at the Everett Buick GMC Classic in Little Rock, Ark. (Oct. 16-17), before his season-best second-place finish at the Hawkeye Invitational (April 13-14).

 

Scheve finished 2022-23 as Nebraska’s hottest golfer and continued to build momentum in the summer of 2023 by qualifying for the U.S. Amateur Championship. He added Nebraska’s best performance at the season-opening Visit Knoxville Collegiate (Sept. 8-10).

 

Through 21 rounds this season, Scheve owns a 73.00 stroke average. He led Nebraska with a tie for 12th at the season-opening Visit Knoxville Collegiate (Sept. 8-10), before adding a second top-25 finish with a tie for 21st at the Purdue Fall Invitational (Oct. 9-10).