Evansville North is back to defend its title in a field of 21 teams at the IHSAA Boys Golf State Finals Wednesday and Thursday (June 13-14) at the Legends of Indiana in Franklin.

It’s the first year the tournament will be conducted at the Legends of Indiana, following a 14-year run at Prestwick Country Club in Avon. Previous sites, all in Indianapolis, were South Grove (1931), Speedway (1932-41), Coffin (1946-69), and Old Oakland (1970-86).

Designed by Jim Fazio and opened in 1992, the Legends of Indiana has hosted three United States Golf Association qualifiers and several of Indiana’s major golf championships. That includes both the men’s and women’s state amateur tournaments and the Indiana PGA. Under the direction of head professional Ted Bishop, the course has previously hosted IHSAA sectional and regional championships for girls and boys.

The IHSAA Boys Golf State Finals will be played on the Middle Nine and the Road Nine at the Legends of Indiana, which is a 27-hole facility. The complex also includes The Niblick, an 18-hole par-three course, and a superior practice facility that includes the largest grass hitting area in Indiana. The tournament will be played from the blue tees, which measure a challenging 6,736 yards with a course rating of 72.6 and a slope of 131.

Seymour and Yorktown shared honors for the lowest team score in last week’s regional competition at 294. Seymour posted its score while winning on its home course, Seymour Elks. Yorktown’s effort came at the Anderson Regional played at Edgewood C.C.

The other regional champions were Zionsville at Center Grove, Owen Valley at Heritage Hills, Warsaw at Homestead, West Lafayette at Lafayette Jefferson and Mishawaka Marian at LaPorte.

In the final coaches association poll prior to sectional play, Yorktown was ranked No.1. The Tigers were followed by Zionsville, Lafayette Jefferson, Bloomington South and Floyd Central.

Individually, senior Jeff Overton of Evansville North and Brandon Smart of Pendleton Heights shot the best scores among the regional competitors at 69. Overton, who finished 16^th in the 2000 state finals, was the medalist of the Heritage Hills Regional played at Christmas Lake G.C. in Santa Claus. Smart carded his 69 in the Anderson Regional at Edgewood C.C.

Overton was the only non-senior on Evansville North’s 2000 state championship team. This trip, he’s joined by seniors Dan Neumann and Adam Gann, along with sophomores Blair Hanni and Alex Abbott for the unranked Huskies. Evansville North finished second to Owen Valley by one stroke at the Heritage Hills Regional.

The other regional champions were John Baker of North Central (Indianapolis) at Center Grove, Heath Peters of Garrett at Homestead, Brock Miller of Kokomo at Lafayette Jefferson, Jason Buffone of Lake Central at LaPorte and Ben Moore of Seymour at Seymour.

At the 2000 IHSAA Boys Golf State Finals, Evansville North (608) won by nine strokes over Carmel (617). Those teams were followed by Zionsville (624) and Marion (626). Seven of the top 10 teams in 2000 will return, including Carmel, Zionsville, Lafayette Jefferson, Culver Military, Floyd Central and Bloomington South. In all, 13 of the 21 teams in the 2001 field are back from 2000.

A new individual champion will be crowned as 2000 state champion Mike Schumaker of Columbia City graduated after firing a 73-71-144 to win by three strokes over senior Jason Jones of Evansville North. Of the top 10 finishers from the 2000, only junior Kyle Bush of Carmel and senior Chad Cooper of Lafayette Jefferson return.

First Round Tee Times

8 a.m. each day. For the first round, players will start on the No. 1 and No. 10 tees.

No charge.

Media Credentials

The 2000-01 IHSAA media pass will be honored.

Competing teams

Andrean

Bloomington South

Carmel

Culver Military

Evansville North

Floyd Central

Goshen

Indianapolis Cathedral

Kokomo

Lafayette Jefferson

LaPorte

Mishawaka Marian

Owen Valley

Richmond

Roncalli

Seymour

Southridge

Warsaw

West Lafayette

Yorktown

Zionsville

Team: The top nine teams, and any team within 20 strokes of the lead, will advance.

Individuals: The top nine players, excluding those whose teams advance to Round 2, plus any player within six strokes of the leader, will advance.

317-736-8186.

Will be located adjacent to the pro shop in the cart barn. There will be working space with power and a pool phone. Long distance access will be available for credit card and 800 calls for media representatives.

Final scores for individuals and teams will be posted on the IHSAA website under Boys Golf/2001 State Finals Results as they become available.

Proceed south on I-65 to Franklin exit (mile marker 90). Turn right on to Indiana 44 and proceed 1 mile to Eastview Drive. Turn right on Eastview and proceed 1 mile to flasher stoplight at junction of Hurricane Road and Arvin Road. Turn right on Hurricane Road and proceed 1.3 miles to The Legends of Indiana. Entrance is on the right.

Proceed north on I-65 to Franklin exit (mile marker 90). Turn left on to Indiana 44 and proceed 1 mile to Eastview Drive. Turn right on Eastview and proceed 1 mile to flasher stoplight at junction of Hurricane Road and Arvin Road. Turn right on Hurricane Road and proceed 1.3 miles to The Legends of Indiana. Entrance is on the right.

Enter Franklin on Indiana 144 or Indiana 44. Proceed north on U.S. 31, 2.8 miles to Earlywood Road. Turn right and go to third stoplight sign, which is 2 miles. Turn right on 350 E and proceed 0.7 miles to The Legends of Indiana. Entrance on the left.

Enter Franklin on Indiana 44, cross under I-65 and proceed 0.9 miles to Eastview Drive. Turn right on Eastview Drive and proceed 1 mile to the flasher stoplight at junction of Hurricane Road and Arvin Road. Turn right on Hurricane Road and proceed 1.3 miles to The Legends of Indiana. Entrance on the right.

One session: $7.

Two sessions: $10 (good for any semifinals site and all championship games).

10:30 a.m. -- Madison Shawe (30-4) vs. Triton (22-10).

12:45 p.m. (approximate) -- Adams Central (19-12) vs. Tecumseh (20-11).

5 p.m. -- Leo (17-11) vs. Northfield (26-5).

7:15 p.m. (approximate) -- Speedway (22-8) vs. Eastern (Pekin) (26-6).

3 p.m. -- Evansville Memorial (25-7) vs. Indianapolis Cathedral (23-6).

5:15 p.m. (approximate) – Griffith (26-6) vs. Columbia City (13-15).

7:15 p.m. (approximate) -- Perry Meridian (29-4) vs. Castle (26-7).

Class 3A -- 30 minutes following presentation of awards for Class A game; approximately 12 p.m.

Class 2A -- 30 minutes following presentation of awards for Class 3A game; approximately 2:30 p.m.

Class 4A -- 30 minutes following presentation of awards for Class 2A game; approximately 5 p.m.