Karsten Creek was designed by Tom Fazio and honored as the Best New Public Course in 1994 by Golf Digest. It stretches to over 7,400 yards with SR1020 bent-grass greens and zoysia fairways. All of the holes were carved from the native oak trees surrounding Lake Louise. Karsten Creek was so named to honor Karsten Solheim, the founder of Karsten Manufacturing, and Lake Louise honors his wife.

In the May 1998 edition of Golf Digest, Karsten Creek Golf Club was awarded its first five-star rating, making the course one of 10 in the nation to be so honored.

While other courses are located in resort areas or near the coasts, Karsten Creek’s surprising beauty is derived from an unsuspecting tract of land that is densely covered with black jack and pin oak trees and contains dramatic elevation changes that are not common to the heartland of America. As the course continues to mature, it steadily climbs all of the top 100 lists across the country and has been ranked as the best college course in the country by Travel & Leisure Golf magazine.

The golf course’s first college event was the Karsten Creek Collegiate in 1996, only two years after its opening. Karsten Creek then played host to the NCAA Central Regional in May of 2001 before serving as the host of the 2002 PING/Golfweek Preview. Each year, the top 15 teams in the country are invited to compete in the event, which is held at the site of the following spring’s NCAA Championship.

Karsten Creek Golf Club was named the Best New Public Course for 1994 by Golf Digest.

Karsten Creek was built to host championships and will undoubtedly bid for future events, promising that collegiate players will have an extraordinary venue in which to compete for a national championship.

The field for The PING Invitational will consist of 84 players (51 boys and 33 girls) who will compete in 54 holes of stroke play. Tournament invitations will be extended to the top 50 boys and top 32 girls in the AJGA Rankings as of August 18 (following the completion of the PING Phoenix Junior).

The PING Invitational is the last AJGA event prior to the naming of the 2006 Rolex Junior All-America teams. The 2006 teams will be structured differently than in the past. This year, 12 boys and 12 girls will be named first-team Rolex Junior All-Americans, while an additional 12 boys and 12 girls will receive second-team honors. There will also be 24 honorable mention boys and girls. The PING Invitational will be the last chance for juniors to better their standing in the AJGA Rankings.

The entry deadline for The PING Invitational is August 29. Don’t miss out on a great week at Karsten Creek!