Men’s Golf Set for Chicago Highlands Invitational

2025 HIGHLANDS INVITATIONAL
Date	Monday-Tuesday, Sept. 15-16, 2025
Info Hub	EMU Notes (pdf)
Venue	Chicago Highlands GC \| Westchester, Ill. \| Par: 72 \| Yards: 7,349
Live	Live Scoring (Scoreboard)
Social Media	EMU_Golf (X) \| Ea sternMichiganMensGolf (Instagram)

WESTCHESTER, Ill. (EMUEagles.com) — The Eastern Michigan University men's golf team will compete in the Highlands Invitational, Monday-Tuesday, Sept. 15-16, in Westchester, Ill., as one of 13 teams in the field. The tournament, which will be played at the par-72, 7,349-yard Chicago Highlands Golf Club, will see the teams play 36 holes, Sept. 15, before playing the final 18, Sept. 16.

THIS WEEK'S LINE UP
Here are the Eagles that will compete at the Highlands Invitational:
1. Charlie Box (Jr.) • 71.0 avg. | 2025 NJCAA DI Champion... T33rd at Whirlwind Collegiate
2. Rory McDonald-O'Brien (Sr.) • 70.7 avg. | 2025 MAC Runner-Up... T29th at Whirlwind Collegiate
3. Joshua Hess (Fr.) • 71.0 avg. | T33rd at the Whirlwind Collegiate in his college debut
4. Tim Chan (Sr.) • 70.3 avg. | Led the team at Whirlwind Collegiate by placing T24th
5. Carlos Fernández Mortera (Jr.) • 74.7 avg. | T64th at Whirlwind Collegiate, his debut tourney at EMU

CHIP INS
» Freshman Robby Turnbull has been invited to compete in a pair of international tournaments in October. He will represent Team New Zealand at the 2025 World Amateur Team Championships in Singapore (Oct. 8-11) and the 16th Asia-Pacific Amateur Championship (Oct. 23-26) in United Arab Emirates.
» The Eagles are slated to play in six events this fall with stops in four different time zones, including Eastern (Michigan and Florida), Central (Illinois), Mountain (Arizona and New Mexico), and Hawaiian. All told in 2025-26, EMU will play in 12 total events, including spring events in Alabama, California, Florida, Ohio, and Texas, before playing in the 2026 MAC Championships in Zionsville, Ind. (May 3-5).
» EMU's roster features seven players with two returning players in Tim Chan and Rory McDonald-O'Brien, the 2025 MAC runner-up. Both seniors are set for the final collegiate campaigns this year after averaging 72.8 (No. 12 in EMU history) and 73.3 (No. 21) strokes, respectively, last year.
» There are five newcomers to the roster this year, including three transfers and two freshmen. The transfers include senior Leo Mihaich (Argentina/Oklahoma Christian) and juniors Charlie Box (England/Hutchinson CC) and Carlos Fernández Mortera (Spain/Charleston). The two freshmen include Joshua Hess (Switzerland) and Robby Turnbull (New Zealand).
» Seven former Eagles are currently competing on professional tours, led by Brett White, who currently sits fourth on the Fortinet Cup standings with the top 10 finishers earning Korn Ferry Tour exemption for 2025-26. The others competing are Michael Blair, Beau Breault, Ty Celone, Cougar Collins, Cam Kellett, Zack Mason, and Eddie Maunder.

TOURNAMENT INFO: THE FACTS
Chicago Highlands Golf Course will play host to the Highlands Invitational with East Tennessee State serving as the host school for the two-day, three-round tournament. The course will play to 7,349 yards (par 72) with the first tee times both days starting at 7 a.m. CT (8 a.m. ET). The 13 teams will play 36 holes Monday, Sept. 15, before playing 18 holes Tuesday, Sept. 16.

TOURNAMENT INFO: THE FIELD
Along the Eagles and host Buccaneers of ETSU, the remaining 11 teams in the field include Coastal Carolina, Davidson, DePaul, Iowa, Louisiana, Louisiana Tech, Loyola Chicago, UT San Antonio, VCU, Wake Forest, and Yale.

IN THE RANKINGS • TEAMS
According to the final 2024-25 Scoreboard/Clippd rankings, nine of the 13 teams in the field finished last season ranked in the national 150, including the Eagles, who were No. 143. The teams appearing in the final release of the rankings include No. 36 Wake Forest, No. 69 Louisiana, No. 85 ETSU, No. 89 Coastal Carolina, No. 95 Iowa, No. 128 Louisiana Tech, No. 134 UTSA, and No. 150 Davidson.

INTERNATIONAL DUTY
Robby Turnbull has been selected to represent Team New Zealand in a pair of international tournaments in October with one in Singapore and one in the United Arab Emirates. First, Turnbull and TNZ will take part in the 2025 World Amateur Team Championship, Oct. 8-11, on the Tampines Course at Tanaha Merah Country Club in Singapore where the teams will compete for the Eisenhower Trophy. Later in the month, Turnbull will compete in the 16th Asia-Pacific Amateur Championship, Oct. 23-26, on the Majlis Course of the Emirates Golf Club in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. Turnbull competed in the event in 2024, tying for 49th in Japan.

RECAP: SEASON-OPENER
The Eagles opened their 2025-26 season with a trip to the Valley of the Sun where Eastern placed seventh at the Whirlwind Collegiate Invitational at Whirlwind Golf Course in Chandler, Ariz. The Eagles shot 19-under 845 with Tim Chan leading the way as he tied for 24th at 5-under 211. As a team, the first round 276 tied for the eighth-lowest in program history while the three-round score of 845 ranked fifth all-time in program history.

BACK FOR MORE
Two players are returning from the 2024-25 season in Tim Chan and Rory McDonald-O'Brien. Chan led the team with a 72.8 stroke average last year, which was good enough to tie for the 12th-lowest in program history as he broke the school record with a round of 63 at the White Sands Bahamas Invitational, bettering the 64 recorded by five others on six occasions. McDonald-O'Brien, the MAC runner-up, averaged 73.3 strokes, the 21st-best in EMU history as his 211 at the conference event ranked as the lowest recorded by an Eagle in the 54-hole era.

WELCOME TO YPSILANTI!
The five newcomers hail from all around the globe, including three transfers and two freshmen. The transfers include Charlie Box from England (Hutchinson CC), Carlos Fernández Mortera from Spain (Charleston), and Leo Mihaich from Argentina (Oklahoma Christian) while the rookies include Joshua Hess from Switzerland and Robby Turnbull from New Zealand.

NOTING THE NEWBIES
» Charlie Box • No. 354 WAGR... 2025 NJCAA Champion and No. 2 ranked player... Finalist for the 2025 Gary Player International Golfer of the Year award and recipient of the 2025 NJCAA Arnold Palmer Golfer of the Year award.
» Carlos Fernández Mortera • No. 727 WAGR... Twice competed at the NCAA Division II Championships with Charleston... Placed 17th at the 2025 event.
» Leo Mihaich • No. 407 WAGR... Twice finished in the top 20 at the NCAA Division II Championships... 2024 NCAA Division II Jack Nicklaus Award winner and 2024 Gary Player International Golfer of the Year Award winner.
» Joshua Hess • No. 418 WAGR... 2024 Notah Begay III Junior Golf National Champion... Represented Switzerland at the 2025 European Amateur Team Championships where they placed ninth by winning the Flight B title.
» Robby Turnbull • No. 278 WAGR... Posted 13 wins over a three-year span before coming to EMU... Played for Team New Zealand at the Toyota Junior Golf World Cup in Toyota, Japan.

LOGGING MILES
The Eagles will once again spread their wings and play in tournaments in 11 different states in 2025-26, including five of the six time zones across the United States. In the fall, Eastern is set to play in tournaments in Arizona, Florida, Hawaii, Illinois, Michigan, and New Mexico before taking part in events in Alabama, California, Florida, Indiana, Ohio, and Texas during the spring season.

ON THE HORIZON
It will be a quick turnaround for the Eagles this week as they are slated to compete in The Tucker Intercollegiate, Friday-Saturday, Sept. 15-16, in Albuquerque, N.M., on the University of New Mexico Championship Golf Course.

Next Event

Players Mentioned

Charlie Box

Tim Chan

Joshua Hess

Rory McDonald-O'Brien

Leo Mihaich

Robby Turnbull

Eastern Michigan Athletics