http://www.cstv.com/sports/w-golf/storie...07aap.html

U of L Opens Musselman Golf Facility
Indoor facility gives the Cardinals huge advantage in the BIG EAST
April 17, 2007

LOUISVILLE, Ky. - One of the final pieces in the Cardinals' rise to national prominence is in place for the University of Louisville men's and women's golf programs, as the Tom Musselman Golf Center officially opens on Tuesday, April 17 at the Cardinal Club. The facility is state-of-the-art and instrumental in making the Cardinals one of the top golf programs in the country.

The Musselman Golf Center, which was built at a cost of $600,000, is an indoor practice facility that will house both the U of L men's and women's golf programs. The 5,500 square foot golf center has three indoor hitting bays, video equipment with swing analysis capability, men's and women's locker rooms, an indoor putting green, and coaches offices and a players' lounge. There's also an 8,000-square foot outdoor putting green.

"We appreciate Tom Musselman and his family for what they have meant to the university and the community," said Vice President of Athletics Tom Jurich. "The success of our golf programs is synonymous with the Musselman family. Both of our golf programs will benefit greatly from this facility and we're excited to see the positive impact the golf center will have on our programs."

The men's team, under the direction of head coach Mark Crabtree is enjoying its best season in school history. The Cardinals are only one of two schools in the nation with six tournament wins. Louisville will host the 2007 BIG EAST Championships on Sunday, April 22-24 and is coming off another victory at the Robert Kepler Intercollegiate in Columbus, Ohio. Crabtree is also thankful to the Musselman family for their contributions and support.

"Tom is a close personal friend and a terrific individual," said head men's coach Mark Crabtree. "Tom played at U of L and is a member of the Louisville and the state of Kentucky Hall of Fame. He's the foundation of our program. It's certainly appropriate to put his name on this facility. We're fortunate to have Tom Musselman as part of our golf family."


Kelly Myers Rothberg is in her ninth season and is also having a great season with a pair of victories and three second-place finishes. She also very appreciative of the genorosity of the Musselman Family.

"We are excited about the opening of the Tom Musselman Practice Facility," said Myers Rothberg."It is a gorgeous facility that gives our athletes a place to call home. The facility will afford us the opportunity to become a stronger team with the extra practice time. It will definitely help us become a better team. We appreciate all the time and effort it took from the administration and donors to make this a reality."

About Tom Musselman: Tom Musselman*s accomplishments as a member of the men*s golf team from 1955-1959 earned him a spot in the University of Louisville Athletic Hall of Fame. Musselman has long been a supporter of the UofL golf programs and was instrumental in securing the Cardinal Club as a permanent fixture for the golf teams.

Today, Musselman is a successful entrepreneur and founder of Musselman Hotels. The hotel company owns several properties across Kentucky, including six in the Louisville area. He also is active in the community, having served on boards of a number of organizations including Dare to Care Food Bank, Metro Parks, Louisville Metro Sports Commission, UofL*s STAR autism program and the UofL Athletics Association.

A co-founder of the Musselman-Dunne Junior Golf Tour, he also is a member of the Kentucky Junior Golf Foundation.

In 2006, Musselman received the U of L Hickman-Camp Award, which recognizes an individual*s extraordinary support of the athletics department. Through his leadership and generosity, Musselman paved the way for this golf center to become a reality. Musselman and his wife, Anabel, live in Louisville. He has three children: Chester, Tom Jr. and Sharon Marcum.

Congrats UL another great facility!

I'm not a golfer but the course ranks 7th in the state in terms of it's difficulty. UofL has a grade A golf course and facility. No reason they shouldn't be in the top 10 yearly in both men's and women's golf.

That hole shown looks awesome. I wish UC would buy/build it's own golf course. And of course make it available to alumni at a severly discounted rate.

Funny this was posted cause my younger brother is an absolute stud golfer who is a junior in hs in wisconsin and I've been pushing him pretty hard to look at UofL. Seems like a great fit for him...UofL has class facilities and is currently a top 25 golf program.

The course is actually out in Shelby County, which is a neighboring county to Jefferson (UofL). It's a relatively quick and certainly easy drive though, as its right off I-64, as you head east towards Lexington.

Very beautiiful looking course that you can see right off the Interstate on the drive down I-64 from Louisville to Lexington.

Any idea on why Louisville's Home Course is so far from the main campus though? Was nothing available just south of the Fairgrounds/Airport Area?

MylesKnight Wrote:Very beautiiful looking course that you can see right off the Interstate on the drive down I-64 from Louisville to Lexington.

Any idea on why Louisville's Home Course is so far from the main campus though? Was nothing available just south of the Fairgrounds/Airport Area?

From an investment standpoint the university and the partners couldn't have chosen a better location.

MylesKnight Wrote:Very beautiiful looking course that you can see right off the Interstate on the drive down I-64 from Louisville to Lexington.

Any idea on why Louisville's Home Course is so far from the main campus though? Was nothing available just south of the Fairgrounds/Airport Area?

UofL is an urban university. There is no land available around the campus unless you build it in the papa johns parking lot, the infield of churchill downs or the land around the runways at the air port. The cost of buying enough land in Jefferson County for an 18 hole golf course would be insane. Oldam County is directly to the east and land prices are equally as high. So Shelby County makes the most sense and if you are on the expressway a drive to Shelby County from campus is much farther but not much longer than a much shorter commute in most larger cities. It would be the same as Cincy trying to build a golf course near their campus or anywhere else in hamilton County. They would probably build it across the river in Kentucky...which if you are not familiar sounds much farther but is actually as close as you can get.

I wish Cardinal Club was open to the public or at least alumni. I don't understand facilities for public universities not being open to the public (read: Cardinal Club and UK's University Club, at least most of the time).