This week will be a busy week for Seminole Legacy Golf Club.
For the first time during the 2023 golf season, the club will be hosting home tournaments for both Florida State men’s and women’s golf.
The men’s tournament, the Seminole Intercollegiate, will kick off with the first and second rounds of the tournament Monday. The third and final round is set for Tuesday, with an award ceremony scheduled for 3:30 p.m.
Boston College, VCU, Indiana, Lipscomb, Ole Miss, Troy, UAB, Southern Illinois, Arkansas State, Florida Atlantic, Florida Gulf Coast, Jacksonville, Lamar and Northern Alabama are also set to participate.
Men’s head coach Trey Jones is excited about the opportunity to host.
“It’s going be a lot of fun. It is. It’s a long time coming,” Jones said. “We hosted a regional here, right after we opened but we have not had a men’s tournament for the last couple of years.
“I know our players are looking forward to having your families in town and getting ready to show off what we feel is one of the best collision courses in the country.”
The Seminoles are led by three all-American golfers in redshirt juniors Cole Anderson, Brett Roberts and Frederik Kjettrup.
Anderson had a career-best performance at the Maui Jim Intercollegiate, finishing second at the Mirabel Golf Club, while Kjettrup won the Watersound Invitational by shooting an FSU three-round record 18-under par (66-67-65) and Roberts tied for ninth at the Watersound Invitational, shooting a 7-under 209 (68-67-74).
“The game feels good, just a couple of mistakes away from a few really good wins,” Anderson said. “I think everyone is rounding into form here. The plan is to keep progressing and getting better with each event. Obviously, you want to peak at the end of the spring.”
Right after the men’s tournament wraps up, the women’s golf team will host the Florida State Match Up, starting Friday and running through Sunday.
While the men’s team has not hosted a tournament for a couple of years, the women also hosted the same tournament last season.
But this weekend will be the first opportunity to host one this season.
“It’s our only time all season we get to host something,” FSU women’s coach Amy Bond said. “The kids will get to sleep in their own bed, get to play in front of the home crowd.
“We’re pretty excited. Plus being here at Seminole Legacy, who can complain about this place? It’s a good test and we have a good field coming in.”
Florida State (15, Golfstat ranking from March 1) will host Kentucky (21), Kent State (35), Purdue (51), Oklahoma (56), Tulane (59), Notre Dame (81), Mercer (96), East Tennessee State (103), Coastal Carolina (128), Augusta (152) and Daytona State (2 – NJCAA) for the weekend.
The first of the three-round, 54-hole tournament kicks off Friday, with one round per day, with twelve teams teeing off in twosomes for the first two rounds and then in a final round shotgun in threesomes.
“I am really excited about it,” freshman Lottie Woad said. “This is my first year, so I haven’t played at home yet, so I am ready for it.”
The Seminoles have enjoyed success, finishing second at the IJGA Collegiate Invitational at the Guadalajara Country Club in Guadalajara, Mexico in early February.
They were playing in the Valspar Augusta Invitational at Forest Hills Golf Club in Augusta, Ga., last weekend.
Woad, along with junior Charlotte Heate are the leaders of the program.
“It’s been decent,” Heath said of the season so far. “There’s been some ups and downs. Some things have been achieved and some we’re still working on.
Golf course underwent a $10 million renovation
The university partnered with Nicklaus Design to redesign the 57-year-old course, located in southwest Tallahassee adjacent to Innovation Park. Legacy courses are designed by Nicklaus and his son Jack II.
While the course retained its name after Veller, the former FSU golf and football coach who passed away in 2006, it is also known as the Seminole Legacy Golf Club.
The renovation included a complete redesign of the golf course, with only one hole (the 18th) remaining from the original routing.
The university still owns the course, which is home to the Seminoles’ men’s and women’s golf teams. The facility hosted an NCAA Men’s Regional Championship in the spring of 2021.
“While this could not have been possible without the commitment and support from our university administration and generous donors, I truly believe we are not completely satisfied and we know the course will only continue to get better,” Jones said.
Originally designed by Bill Amick, the course opened in 1962.
It is currently operated by Troon, the world’s largest golf and golf-related hospitality management company, located in Scottsdale, Arizona.
Jim Henry of the Tallahassee Democrat contributed to this report.
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