**UPDATE: Due to the coronavirus outbreak, the Callaway Golf Next-Gen 2020 Challenge has been postponed and will likely be moved into the fall.
ORIGINAL STORY
A unique and potentially groundbreaking new college golf event has been scheduled, which will take the concept of the team match in a new direction.
Today, Callaway Golf announced the inaugural Callaway Golf
Next-Gen 2020 Challenge, scheduled for Saturday, March 21st at Rolling Hills Country Club in
Rolling Hills Estates, Calif.
Callaway developed the concept and will produce the live stream broadcast for this one-of-a-kind competition, which pits the defending NCAA champion Stanford Cardinal against the
Illinois Fighting Illini in a unique format. Both teams will bring seven players. Five head-to-head
matches will be played, and the remaining two players on each team will be available to come
off the bench in certain situations to hit a shot for a teammate.
An additional wrinkle is the Coach’s Challenge: Each coach – Stanford’s Conrad Ray and Illinois’
Mike Small – can at any point during a match toss out a challenge flag, thereby challenging the
opposing coach to step in and hit the shot his player is about to play.
All five matches will be live-streamed here on AmateurGolf.com. Each match will be captured by a single
walking camera. Both coaches will accompany the opening match, and all players and coaches
will be mic’ed throughout the stream.
“We’re big supporters of college golf, and this is an opportunity to try something new with two
of the best collegiate teams in the nation,” said Jeff Neubarth, Callaway Director of Content &
Production. “That’s why we created this challenge to give fans complete inside-the-ropes
access from start to finish, and to do it in a way that is authentic, engaging, and fun for the fans
who live stream it.”
Established in 1965, Rolling Hills Country Club features a championship golf course designed by
world-renowned golf course architect David McClay Kidd, best known for designing Bandon
Dunes, the first course opened at Bandon Dunes Golf Resort; and a 70,000 sq. ft. clubhouse
designed by celebrated clubhouse architect Robert Altevers. Rolling Hills hosted the 2018 Men’s
PAC-12 Men’s Golf Championships.
