NORMAN, Okla. Fresh faces highlight the roster as the defending Big 12 champion Oklahoma men’s golf team tees off its fall season Sept. 24-25 with the Fighting Illini Invitational at Olympia Fields Country Club in Olympia Fields, Ill.

Phillip Bryan will be the lone returning member from last year’s Big 12 champion squad who will compete in the event.  The tournament will mark the first collegiate start for freshmen Ben Blundell, Eric Durbin and Jesse Schutte, while senior J.J. Wood will be making his first appearance with the Sooners after transferring from Pepperdine.

"I am really looking forward to getting the season started off," said Jim Ragan, OU men's golf coach. "We are playing a great course that has hosted numerous major tournaments over the years and will be a strong test for our team."

The tournament, hosted by the University of Illinois, will feature a field of 12 teams, including Arizona State, Georgia Tech and Oklahoma State, all preseason top-10 teams in the Golfweek rankings.

"We have a really young team that is going to get some experience quickly," said Ragan. "This is a really great field that we are going against and we look forward to the challenge."

The Fighting Illini Invitational is a 54-hole tournament, with 36 holes played on Sunday, Sept. 24, and the final 18 on Monday. The North Course at Olympia Fields, site of this year’s tournament, was the host of the 2003 U.S. Open won by Jim Furyk. The course is a 7,205 yard, par-70 layout.

Fans can follow live tournament results at: http://www.golfstatresults.com/public/index.cfm?tournament_id=795