BUIES CREEK, N.C. – Campbell continues a busy schedule in preparation for the Big South Championship Monday and Tuesday with the Golfweek Spring Invitational at True Blue Golf Course in Pawley's Island, S.C.
 
Coach John Crooks' team will compete on a True Blue layout that is quite familiar terrain.  Not only has Campbell competed in seven of the last eight Golfweek Program Challenges at True Blue, but a half dozen Camel players participated in last September's Golfweek True Blue Amateur.
 
Pontus Nyholm, Josh Hetherington and Henrik Lilja played in the 2018 Golfweek Program Challenge (that the Camels won by 34 strokes) at the Mike Strantz design.  The trio were joined by teammates Edwin Blomander and Romain Lanteri in last September's Golfweek True Blue Amateur at the par-72, 6926 yard layout.
 
Campbell will compete in the 10-team, 54-hole event beginning Monday along with fellow Big South members Radford, USC Upstate and Winthrop.  The Colonial Athletic Association will be represented by Delaware and William & Mary  while one member each from Conference USA (Old Dominion), the Ohio Valley (Tennessee Tech), Southland (Stephen F. Austin) and Summit (North Dakota State) leagues fill the tee sheets.
 
The Camels are coming off a runner-up showing at the Tar Heel Intercollegiate (286-289-279—854), where only host and 17th-ranked North Carolina finished in front of CU.
 
Golfweek Spring Invitational
True Blue GC / Pawley's Island, S.C.
Par 72, 6926 Yards / Apr. 5-6, 2021
 
Live Scoring: Golfstat.com
 
Format: 54 holes (36-18). Shotgun start Monday; double tee times Tuesday.
 
The Field (Golfstat ranking): Campbell (81), Delaware (213), North Dakota State (181), Old Dominion (160), Radford (197), USC Upstate (211), Stephen F. Austin (212), Tennessee Tech (199), William & Mary (186), Winthrop (176).
 
The Course – True Blue GC (Par 72, 6926 yards): True Blue Golf Club, Mike Strantz's fourth signature golf course, opened in February 1998. Strantz also designed the award-winning Caledonia Golf & Fish Club, which opened in 1994, on land adjacent to True Blue Golf Club. For his efforts at True Blue Golf Club and Caledonia Golf & Fish Club, Strantz was named "Architect of the Year" by Golf World in 1998. Strantz crafted True Blue Golf Club to echo many of the characteristics of Pine Valley and Pinehurst #2, with an emphasis on maintaining a natural feel to the course.  The par-72 course can stretch to 7,126 and features six sets of tee boxes. Emphasizing the natural beauty of the area and surprising elevation changes, True Blue Golf Club incorporates native grasses and vegetation to maintain much of the character of the property.
 
"True Blue is a big boy's golf course," said Crooks.  "It has a lot of length and a lot of different shots to hit, but it's a place where we're comfortable.
 
The Coach: John Crooks is in his 31st year in charge of the Campbell men's golf program and 30th as head coach of the CU women.  Crooks has been named league coach of the year 22 times in his tenure.  His teams have combined to earn 31 NCAA post-season trips, including four-straight on the men's side and eight in a row for the women.  His teams have won 148 tournaments and with 89 career tournament titles, Crooks trails only Dan Brooks of Duke on the active all-time coaching victories list among Division I women's coaches.  He has guided his teams to 23 league titles, including 16 on the women's side and seven in men's competition.
 
The Lineup:
Senior Pontus Nyholm (Gavle, Sweden) is ranked No. 36 in the PGA TOUR University standings and No. 36 nationally by Golfstat, while standing No. 79 in the World Amateur Golf Rankings.  He already owns lowest career stroke average (71.4) in school history with 18 top-10 individual finishes (4th).  In 34 career events at Campbell, Nyholm has collected two wins – earlier this month at the Southern Invitational (73-70-64—207) and at the 2019 Intercollegiate at Innisbrook – plus five runner-up individual finishes.  Nyholm is coming off a runner-up finish in the Tar Heel Intercollegiate (70-69-66—205) and owns a 70.4 stroke average, tops among Big South Conference golfers.  Last fall, he won the Golfweek True Blue Amateur (64-71-66—201) and T8 (67-72-71—210) at the 2018 Golfweek Program Challenge at True Blue.  He has been named Big South golfer of the week twice this season (Mar. 4, Apr. 1).
 
Junior Henrik Lilja (Gothenburg, Sweden) is coming off a collegiate career-best finish (T6) at the Tar Heel Intercollegiate, where he finished 5-under par (71-70-70—211).  His 73.67 stroke average is 12th among Big South golfers and he has a pair of top-20 individual showings the year, including a T19 (71-75-71—217).  He finished T11 (71-70-71—212) last fall at the Golfweek True Blue Amateur.  In his collegiate debut during the fall of 2018, Lilja finished T15 (72-71-70—213) at True Blue in the Golfweek Program Challenge.
 
Red-shirt freshman Romain Lanteri (Reunion Island, France) is also coming off his best collegiate finish (T20) at the Tar Heel Intercollegiate (74-73-71—218).  Last month at the Southern Invitational, he shot 79-72-69—220 and logged his lowest round on the collegiate level.  A two-time Big South freshman of the week, Lanteri owns a 73.44 stroke average, 10th in the Big South Conference.  He finished T36 last fall at the Golfweek True Blue Amateur (72-69-78—219).
 
Senior Josh Hetherington (Melbourne, Australia) claimed his best-ever collegiate finish (T4) by matching his low round in a Camel uniform in the final round of the Sea Best Invitational (75-70-68—213) at TPC Sawgrass Dye's Valley.  He owns a 73.33 stroke average, second-best on the team and eighth among Big South golfers.  Hetherington finished T43 (77-72-71—220) at the 2018 Golfweek Program Challenge.  Last fall, he placed T36 in the Golfweek True Blue Amateur (73-72-74—219).
 
Junior Edwin Blomander (Eksjo, Sweden) returns to the lineup for the first time since the season-opening Sea Best Invitational, where he finished T41 (77-76-75—228) at TPC Sawgrass Dye's Valley.  He joined the Camels last fall after playing his first two seasons at Division II Rogers State (Okla.) University, where he earned PING All-Central Region honors last year.  Last September, Blomander placed T16 (71-69-73—213) in the Golfweek True Blue Amateur.
 
Campbell Men's Golf Top Performances at True Blue GC
Team Finish | Golfweek Program Challenge (Par 72)
1st (2018)
1st (2011)
2nd (2016)
6th (2015)
 
Individual Finish
1st – Jesper Svensson (2018) 65-70-65—200 (-16)
2nd – Andrew Gai (2011) 64-69-70—203 (-13)
2nd – Ray Kraivixien (2018) 67-70-67—204 (-12)
3rd – Max Theodorakis (2018) 70-63-72—205 (-11)
4th – Ray Kraivixien (2016) 69-68-69—206 (-10)
T4th – Brett McLamb (2018) 66-70-71—207 (-9)
T7th – Thomas LaMorte (2016) 66-68-74—208 (-8)
8th – Craig Hornberger (2014) 71-66-71—208 (-8)
T8th – Pontus Nyholm (2018) 67-72-71—210 (-6)
 
Team Low Round
269 (Sept. 9, 2018)
272 (Sept. 11, 2016)
273 (Sept. 11, 2018)
274 (Sept. 10, 2018)
277 (Sept. 11, 2011)
277 (Sept. 12, 2016)
278 (3X, last Sept. 8, 2014)
 
Individual Low Round
63 Max Theodorakis (Sept. 10, 2018)
64 Andrew Gai (Sept. 11, 2011)
65 Jesper Svensson (Sept. 9, 2018)
65 Jesper Svensson (Sept. 11, 2018)
66 Mikko Lehtovuori, Craig Hornberger (Sept. 8, 2014)
66 Thomas LaMorte (Sept. 11, 2016)
66 Craig Hornberger (Sept. 12, 2016)
66 Brett McLamb (Sept. 9, 2018)*
 
Team Low 36-hole Total
543 (269-274) (Sept. 9-10, 2018)
555 (277-278) (Sept. 11-12, 2011)
559 (272-287) (Sept. 11-12, 2016)
562 (284-278) (Sept. 7-8, 2014)
 
Individual Low 36-hole Total
133 (64-69) Andrew Gai (Sept. 11-12, 2011)
133 (70-63) Max Theodorakis (Sept. 9-10, 2018)
134 (66-68) Thomas LaMorte (Sept. 11-12, 2016)
135 (65-70) Jesper Svensson (Sept. 9-10, 2018)
136 (66-70) Brett McLamb (Sept. 9-10, 2018)
137 (68-69) Grant Houser (Sept. 9-10, 2012)
137 (69-68) Ray Kraivixien (Sept. 11-12, 2016)
137 (67-70) Ray Kraivixien (Sept. 9-10, 2018)
 
Team Low 54-hole Total
816 (269-274-273) (Sept. 9-11, 2018) (School Record)
833 (277-278-278) (Sept. 11-13, 2011)
836 (272-287-277) (Sept. 11-13, 2016)
852 (284-278-290) (Sept. 7-9, 2014)
 
Individual Low 54-hole Total
200 (65-70-67) Jesper Svensson (Sept. 9-11, 2018)
203 (64-69-70) Andrew Gai (Sept. 11-13, 2011)
204 (67-70-67) Ray Kraivixien (Sept. 9-11, 2018)
205 (70-63-72) Max Theodorakis (Sept. 9-11, 2018)
206 (69-68-69) Ray Kraivixien (Sept. 11-13, 2016)
207 (66-70-71) Brett McLamb (Sept. 9-11, 2018)*
208 (71-66-71) Craig Hornberger (Sept. 7-9, 2014)
208 (66-68-74) Thomas LaMorte (Sept. 11-13, 2016)
 
Campbell University in the Golfweek Program Challenge
2011
T1st overall (1716 strokes) (won in one-hole playoff with East Carolina)
Men 1st (277-278-278—883); Women 3rd (292-295-296—883)
2012
1st overall (1738 strokes) (2nd place Central Arkansas 1762)
Men 8th (282-290-306—878); Women 1st (286-288-286—860)
2013
1st overall (+25) (2nd place Jacksonville State +26)
Men T9th (297-291-291—879); Women 1st (290-288-284—862)
2014
2nd overall (+15) (1st place Old Dominion +9)
Men 7th (284-278-290—852); Women 2nd (289-293-297—879)
2015
1st overall (+9) (2nd place Old Dominion +14)
Men 6th (288-286-282—856); Women 1st (294-287-828—869)
2016
1st overall (-14) (2nd place Jacksonville +11)
Men 2nd (272-287-277—836; Women 2nd (290-285-291—866)
2017 – Cancelled / Hurricane Irma
2018
1st overall (-66) (2nd place Jacksonville State +25)
Men 1st (269-274-273—816; Women 1st (283-277-274—834)