Baylor
Fighting Illini Invitational
Baylor Men’s Golf Travels to Illinois for Fighting Illini Invitational
9/17/2026 3:01:00 PM | Men's Golf
Bears set to face one of the strongest fields of the season
OLYMPIA FIELDS, Ill. – Baylor men's golf will be one of 15 teams competing this week at Olympia Fields Country Club for the Fighting Illini Invitational, beginning Friday.Â
The field features 14 programs from Power Four conferences, along with reigning Mountain West Conference champion UNLV. Olympia Fields Country Club, a historic venue that has hosted multiple major championships and numerous USGA events, has two courses on site. This year marks the 20th edition of the Fighting Illini Invitational, however for the first time in the tournament history the South Course will play host, as the North Course is being renovated. Â
This week will mark Baylor's 13th appearance in the Fighting Illini Invitational, highlighted by the Bears tournament sweep in 2019 with the Bears winning the team tournament and Cooper Dossey earning medalist honors. Â
Baylor will use the same five-player lineup from its season opener in Arizona. Seniors Jonas Appel, Davis Ovard and Alex Heard bring experience to the top of the lineup, while sophomore Tyler Sanford and freshman Chase Yenser round out the starting five.Â
In Arizona, Appel led the Bears in their opening event of the season, finishing tied for 11th at 11-under at the Bombs Darts Birds Collegiate. Baylor finished tied for seventh as a team at 32-under.Â
The Fighting Illini Invitational is set to begin Friday with tee times off Nos. 1 and 10 beginning at 7:30 a.m. CT each day of the three-day event. Yenser will be the first Bear off the tee Friday, starting at 8:30 a.m. from No. 10 as Baylor is paired with Pepperdine and LSU. Tee times and live scoring for the event can be found on Scoreboard By Clippd throughout the weekend.Â
For more information on Baylor Men's Golf, follow @BaylorMGolf on X, Instagram and Facebook. Want to support the team? You can do so by giving to the Chip-in Club. Â
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