Story Links
Facility Master Plan Home
The Murray State Athletics Facility Master Plan is being advanced for Racer men’s golf both on campus and at their home venue, Miller Memorial Golf Course.
Today we take a look at the vision for the future of men’s golf facilities at Murray State. One that will maximize player development and recruiting to keep the Racers at the top of the Ohio Valley Conference.
Since 1983, the Frances E. Miller Memorial Golf Course has been home to the Racers and now a plan is in place to make the MMGC better. A more functional 300-yard driving range will be built with indoor hitting bays in a building on the driving range. The practice area will be reconfigured for better functionality. The Racers already enjoy a great locker room at the Miller Memorial clubhouse.
Another part of that plan is already being utilized by the current team.
On August 28 at Roy Stewart Stadium, the grand opening of the Racer Golf Training Facility was held. Through several donors, the $150,000 project gives both MSU teams a handy indoor facility on campus. It provides a pathway for student-athletes to maximize their golf skills. The Foresight Sports system, the most complete all-in-one virtual golf practice set up in the game is now part of the MSU program. A putting green and a putting lab will help the players shave strokes. With an indoor facility on campus, the Racers escape the cold and wet weather that used to put a halt on practice when playing on the Miller Memorial Golf Course was the only option.
“We are all very excited to add the indoor facility and the planned enhancements at Miller,” said Coach Daniel DeLuca. “All of these improvements at Miller Memorial and campus is only going to take our program to the next level.”
“I’ve been thankful to have that kind of indoor swing analysis in my hometown,” said current Racer sophomore, Walker Beck. “Now we have it here and I think it’s going to help our team reach the goal of winning an OVC championship. In golf, it’s the little things that can help you improve and this facility is going to help us all get better.”
The enhancement plan has also caught the attention of former Racers, including Preston French, who played from 2012-16.
“The biggest part of the year for me was that period of time between the end of the fall schedule in October and the start of the spring season in late February,” said French, who is now part of the staff at the PGA Tour’s Performance Center at the TPC at Sawgrass in Ponte Vedra, Florida. “The spring is championship season and you want to be as ready to go as you can. This indoor facility is a game changer I think, it’s going to be a huge plus in recruiting future Racers.”
The centerpiece of the MSU Athletics Facility Master Plan includes the construction of an Athletic performance center. Every team locker room, coaches’ office and all staff currently working from Stewart Stadium move into this beautiful new building, including Racer Golf. The athletics performance center will have new athletic training space, weight room and team locker rooms. The athletic performance center, which will become the heartbeat of the athletics’ department.
About The MSU Athletics Facility Master Plan
Shared to Racer Nation in August of 2021, the facility master plan provides clarity and sets the Racers up for a great future. The 14-month evaluation process was meticulous and thorough and it provides a vision for a pathway to accomplish the largest advancement of athletics facilities in the history of Murray State University. An in-depth study of each athletic facility was done in consultation with university leadership, architects, engineers and construction professionals to determine the current viability, create a needs assessment and outline scope of work for each venue. The plan is part of the larger capital campaign for Murray State University. The athletics venues that will be touched include the CFSB Center, Roy Stewart Stadium, Bennie Purcell Courts, Pat Spurgin Range, Cutchin Field, Johnny Reagan Field, Marshall Gage Track, Miller Memorial Golf Course, Racer Arena and Racer Field. A new Athletics Performance Center is included in the plan.
Source link