For the first time ever, the Valparaiso University men’s golf team will host a warm-weather tournament this coming week as the Beacons make their way to Marana, Ariz. as the host institution for the Dove Mountain Intercollegiate at The Golf Club at Dove Mountain.

“This continues to be an exciting time for our golf program,” head coach Dave Gring said. “For the first time in our team’s history, we are going to host a home tournament at a destination golf course. Assistant coach Ron Gring and I have been researching golf courses in the Southwest and matching that with dates that would work well with the spring schedules for us and other teams. This has taken us a few years to put together, and we are blessed and honored to host our spring tournament at The Golf Club at Dove Mountain, just outside of Tucson. For six years (2009-2014), the golf club was the annual host of the World Golf Championships-Accenture Match Play on the PGA Tour.”

After the practice round on Sunday, Feb. 27, the two-day event will start with 36 holes on Monday, Feb. 28, beginning with tee times at 8 a.m. Mountain Time / 9 a.m. Central. The final 18 holes will start with tee times at that same time on Tuesday, March 1. Live scoring throughout the tournament will be available via GolfStat with the link posted on ValpoAthletics.com.

Participating teams include North Dakota State, Bradley, UNI, Chicago State, Arizona State (individuals only), Arizona (individuals only) and host Valpo. The teams will play the Saguaro and Tortolita 9s on the par-72, 7291-yard course.

“While we will be playing the tournament at 7,300 yards, the golf course holds the distinction of being the longest venue in PGA Tour history at 7,849 yards,” Gring said. “It’s kind of cool to play the golf course at the distance we have setup and still look back to see another set of tees. Everyone is going to get a little extra carry of the ball since we are playing at an elevation of 2,600 feet above sea level. There are 27 holes at the golf club, and we will be playing the Saguaro-Tortolita rotation.”

Valpo received its highest Missouri Valley Conference preseason ranking since joining the league as the Beacons are projected second of nine, behind only Illinois State. Junior Caleb VanArragon, already a two-time all-conference performer, again leads the squad in scoring average this season at 71.37 through 19 rounds. Freshman Anthony Delisanti (Sanborn, N.Y. / Niagara Wheatfield) is second on the team at 73.42, followed closely by fellow newcomer Yianni Kostouros (Crown Point, Ind. / Crown Point [Ball State]), who owns a 73.80 scoring average.

Senior Garrett Willis (Fort Wayne, Ind. / Homestead) possesses two of the top eight single-season scoring averages in program history and entered this season with the program’s second-best career scoring average in the modern era, behind only VanArragon. VanArragon’s first two collegiate campaigns represent the first and second-best single-season scoring averages in modern program history.

“The Jack Nicklaus design will be an excellent test for all of the teams,” Gring said. “Over the past couple weeks, we have been working diligently on our ball-striking, especially off the tee. There will be a premium of hitting the fairway and not having to hit from the desert. Also, the greens are extremely challenging with a lot of slope. We have been working on our speed and distance control with our putting. Lastly, we are going to have to be precise with our irons and make sure that when we miss shots, they are not on the short side of the green.”