Blessings Collegiate Invitational returns to Blessings Golf Club October 3-5, 2022

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. – Blessings Golf Club will host the third annual Blessings Collegiate Invitational presented by Tyson Foods this fall, announced today by tournament officials. Slated for October 3-5, the event is expected to feature 11 of the top men’s and women’s teams from across the country, including hosts and defending tournament champions, the Arkansas Razorbacks. The tournament will be broadcast live on GOLF Channel Monday, October 3 – Wednesday, October 5 from 3:30pm – 6:30pm CT each day.

“We are honored to welcome the collegiate level’s best players back to Northwest Arkansas and Blessings Golf Club for this year’s Blessings Collegiate Invitational,” stated John Tyson, Chairman of Tyson Foods, Inc. “The Blessings Collegiate Invitational provides an opportunity for student-athletes to display their games on a global stage, while also shining a spotlight on the Northwest Arkansas region and the world-class amenities here.”

The Blessings Collegiate Invitational is a 54-hole stroke play competition, with the men’s and women’s teams competing on the same course and in the same conditions throughout the week.  The comprehensive tournament field includes a lineup of distinguished programs from top conferences such as the AAC, ACC, Big 12, Mountain West, Pac-12 and Southeastern Conference. Participating schools include Arkansas (host), California, Central Florida, Clemson, Kansas, Louisville, Mississippi, Mississippi State, Texas A&M, UCLA and UNLV.

“We look forward to hosting a powerhouse lineup of collegiate programs at our home course this fall for another exciting edition of the Blessings Collegiate Invitational,” stated University of Arkansas men’s golf coach, Brad McMakin. “We encourage Razorback fans from across the region to mark their calendars to come out and support these talented student-athletes compete later this year,” added University of Arkansas women’s golf coach, Shauna Taylor. 

The second annual Blessings Collegiate Invitational presented by Tyson Foods was held in October 2021, featuring a dominant performance from the University of Arkansas men’s and women’s programs. The Razorbacks captured all six tournament titles including Women’s Medalist (Brooke Matthews), Men’s Medalist (Luke Long), Mixed Pairs Best Ball (Brooke Matthews and Mateo Fernandez de Oliveira), Women’s Team Title, Men’s Team Title and Overall College Champion.

Volunteer opportunities for the tournament will be announced in the coming months, with registration expected to open in July 2022. To stay up to date with event information and news, please visit BlessingsCollegiate.com or follow the event on Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram. 

Blessings Collegiate Invitational returns to Blessings Golf Club October 4-6, 2021

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. – Blessings Golf Club will host the second annual Blessings Collegiate Invitational presented by Tyson Foods this fall, announced today by tournament officials. Slated for October 4-6, the event is expected to feature ten of the top men’s and women’s teams from across the country, including programs from each of the Power 5 Conferences. The tournament will be broadcast live on GOLF Channel Monday, October 4 – Wednesday, October 6 from 3:30pm – 6:30pm CT each day.

“We look forward to building upon the success of last year’s tournament and hosting the top men and women collegiate golfers from around the country,” stated John Tyson, Chairman of Tyson Foods, Inc. “The Blessings Collegiate Invitational allows us to provide a challenging test for the participants while giving back to Northwest Arkansas and the surrounding communities.”

The Blessings Collegiate Invitational is a 54-hole stroke play competition, with the men’s and women’s teams competing on the same course and in the same conditions throughout the week.  The comprehensive tournament field includes a lineup of distinguished programs from each of the Power 5 Conferences as well as one American Athletic Conference team. Participating schools include Arizona, Arkansas (host), Houston, Illinois, Louisville, North Carolina, Ole Miss, Tennessee, Texas Tech and UCLA.

“We are thrilled to welcome a group of premier collegiate golf programs to the 2021 tournament field and look forward to testing our game against some of the top teams from across the country,” stated University of Arkansas women’s golf coach, Shauna Taylor. “Blessings Golf Club is truly a world class venue, and we are excited to showcase our home through this exciting collegiate event,” added University of Arkansas men’s golf coach, Brad McMakin. 

The inaugural Blessings Collegiate Invitational presented by Tyson Foods was held in October 2020, featuring a showdown amongst all 14 Southeastern Conference men’s and women’s teams. The University of Arkansas delivered a dominant performance on their home course, capturing the titles for Women’s Medalist (Brooke Matthews), Mixed Pairs Best Ball (Brooke Matthews + Julian Perico), Women’s Team and Overall College Champion.

Event officials are working closely with the University of Arkansas and will follow health department guidelines to protect the well-being of participants, tournament staff and volunteers. Tournament officials expect to announce details regarding hosting fans and ticketing as the tournament approaches.

Volunteer opportunities for the tournament will be announced in the coming months, with registration expected to open in July 2021. To stay up to date with event information and news, please visit BlessingsCollegiate.com or follow the event on Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram. 

Golf Channel adds sixth collegiate event to its programming slate with newly-created Blessings Collegiate Invitational, Oct. 5-7, 2020

Blessings Golf Club (Fayetteville, Ark.) to Host Simultaneous Men’s & Women’s Competition in Celebration of College Golf’s Return, Airing Live on GOLF Channel

ORLANDO, Fla., (Sept. 1, 2020) – GOLF Channel announced today a multi-year partnership with Blessings Golf Club and Tyson Foods to create and televise the Blessings Collegiate Invitational presented by Tyson Foods, a new men’s and women’s college golf championship that will take place at Blessings Golf Club in Fayetteville, Ark., Monday-Wednesday, Oct. 5-7. Marking the first televised event for the 2020-‘21 college golf season, the announcement was made today by John Tyson, founder of Blessings Golf Club and Chairman of Tyson Foods, Inc., and Tom Knapp, GOLF Channel executive vice president of programming and partnerships.

The Blessings Collegiate Invitational will feature men’s and women’s teams competing in a 54-hole stroke play format for individual and team honors. GOLF Channel will deliver live tournament coverage all three days, complemented by news and digital coverage.

“Tyson Foods believes strongly in the power of college athletics to shape the leaders of tomorrow and to inspire our country today,” said Tyson. “Through the Blessings Collegiate Invitational, we are proud to give college golfers a platform to compete, and fans another chance to view these incredible athletes. In these challenging times, it’s important to show how our lives can continue by supporting athletic programs that contribute to the success and future of the sport in a safe and responsible way.”

“As we continue to expand our college golf platform, partnering with Mr. Tyson and the Blessings Golf Club to create a new collegiate event in Northwest Arkansas underscores GOLF Channel’s commitment to raising the profile of college golf,” said Knapp. “Our viewers saw this firsthand in 2019 with Arkansas’ Maria Fassi completing her college career by winning the individual national championship on her home course. We look forward to highlighting the sport’s future stars in October.”

Blessings Collegiate Invitational Airtimes on GOLF Channel (All Times EST):

Monday, Oct. 5           4:30-7:30 p.m. (Live)

Tuesday, Oct. 6           4:30-7:30 p.m. (Live)

Wednesday, Oct. 7      4:30-7:30 p.m. (Live)

The Blessings Collegiate Invitational is expected to feature some of college golf’s top-ranked individuals, including Pauline Roussin-Bouchard (South Carolina – No. 1 in World Amateur Golf Ranking) and Ingrid Lindblad (LSU – No. 4) in the women’s field, along with Ricky Castillo (Florida – No. 2) and Davis Thompson (Georgia – No. 4) on the men’s side. Five of the top-25 in the current PGA TOUR University ranking are expected to take part in the men’s competition, including: Thompson (No. 4), John Augenstein (Vanderbilt – No. 9) and Jovan Rebula (Auburn – No. 10).

In partnership with the University of Arkansas, Blessings Golf Club served as host for the NCAA Women’s and Men’s Division I Golf Championships in 2019, with both events televised live on GOLF Channel. Designed by Robert Trent Jones Jr., and refreshed by Kyle Phillips, the course originally opened in 2004, and previously hosted the men’s NCAA regional in 2013.

The 2020 Blessings Collegiate Invitational will be contested without spectators. Event officials are working closely with Blessings Golf Club and other health-related resources to carefully monitor the COVID-19 pandemic. Organizers will implement increased health and sanitation procedures in effort to protect the health and safety of the players, coaches, officials, staff and production personnel on-site.

The Blessings Collegiate Invitational becomes one of six college golf championships televised on GOLF Channel, which includes the NCAA Women’s and Men’s Division I Golf National Championships, taking place in May of 2021 at Grayhawk Golf Club in Scottsdale, Ariz.

GOLF Channel is the television home for college golf. Following its announcement in 2013 as the exclusive television provider of the NCAA Golf Championships, GOLF Channel has provided live coverage of the men’s NCAA championships since 2014 and the women’s NCAA championships since 2015, which now are hosted at the same venue in consecutive weeks.

Throughout the collegiate golf season, GOLF Channel will deploy its comprehensive portfolio of news, digital and social media coverage year-round in covering collegiate golf, including specials for regional and national qualifying, on-site and wraparound news from golf’s biggest college events, and year-end award shows for the Haskins and ANNIKA Awards presented by Stifel.

Inaugural Blessings Collegiate Invitational presented by Tyson Foods to make its debut at Blessings Golf Club October 5-7, 2020

Men’s and women’s collegiate golf returns to NW Arkansas for Southeastern Conference showdown

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. – A men’s and women’s collegiate tournament will make its debut at Blessings Golf Club October 5-7, announced today by tournament officials. Unveiled as the Blessings Collegiate Invitational presented by Tyson Foods, the event is expected to feature all 14 Southeastern Conferences men’s and women’s teams. The tournament will be broadcast live on the Golf Channel Monday, October 5 – Wednesday, October 7 from 3:30pm – 6:30pm CT each day.

“We are committed to the support of college athletics, one of the many ways we contribute to our communities and celebrate NW Arkansas as a great place to live and work,” stated John Tyson, Chairman of Tyson Foods, Inc. “The inauguration of the Blessings Collegiate Invitational allows us to showcase the vibrant and growing NW Arkansas community while allowing student golf athletes to compete at a world class venue.” 

The Blessings Collegiate Invitational is a 54-hole stroke play competition, with the men’s and women’s teams competing on the same course and in the same conditions throughout the week.  There will be awards for men’s and women’s team and individual competitions, as well as awards for the school with the best overall combined men’s and women’s individual and team scores.

“With the cancellation of our 2020 spring season, our student-athletes are thrilled to have the opportunity to compete once again,” stated University of Arkansas women’s golf coach, Shauna Taylor. “We encourage Razorback fans and community supporters to tune-in to Golf Channel in October for this exciting collegiate event,” added University of Arkansas men’s golf coach, Brad McMakin. 

In partnership with the University of Arkansas, Blessings Golf Club hosted the Men’s and Women’s NCAA Championships in May 2019. 

“We are proud to showcase NW Arkansas and Blessings Golf Club to a global audience through the Blessings Collegiate Invitational,” said Richard Cromwell, Blessings Golf Club General Manager. “We are confident this men’s and women’s event will provide an exciting television viewing experience while also highlighting the incredible quality of young talent within the sport. We look forward to welcoming the SEC teams to Blessings Golf Club in October for this premier collegiate event.”   

Event officials are working closely with the University of Arkansas and will follow health department guidelines to protect the well-being of participants and staff.   Spectators will not be permitted to attend the tournament but are encouraged to view the event’s Golf Channel television broadcast. Organizers plan to implement protective health and sanitation procedures onsite, in efforts to safeguard participants and volunteers throughout the tournament in October.

Volunteer opportunities for the tournament will be announced in the coming weeks. To stay up to date with event information and news, please visit BlessingsCollegiate.com or follow the event on Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram.