Michigan State's men's golf team is preparing to host an NCAA regional close to home at Eagle Eye

Michigan State's men's golf team will play in the NCAA regionals for the sixth time in the past seven years.

But this time will be a little different.

The Spartans will be the host of 12 other teams for a regional just minutes away from campus Monday through Wednesday at Eagle Eye Golf Club in Bath Township.

It's a course the MSU players are very familiar with and an event they've long awaited. MSU was originally set to host a regional at Eagle Eye in 2020 before the COVID-19 pandemic canceled the competition.

"It's something we've looked forward to for a long time, so I've been joking that it's been six years of anxiety, because just cause you bid and get to host doesn't mean you get in," MSU coach Casey Lubahn said. "Our guys played with that pressure over their head all year, even in the fall they were worried about making regionals, which is a minimum standard of excellence. Now that we are here, we're relieved and it's all upside from here."

The Spartans are led by senior Drew Hackett, a second team All-Big Ten golfer with a scoring average of 71.97 and two top-five finishes on the season. This is Hackett's first season with the Spartans after transferring in from UNC-Wilmington.

"We're excited to be out at Eagle Eye at a course we've been at all year. The greens are crazy so it's nice to have some knowledge there," Hackett said. "Confidence-wise, I've definitely progressed throughout the year, and building on that with a lot of hard work at night getting my swing right in the simulator room and trusting my abilities won't go away overnight."

Hackett was the team's top finisher in five events this year and had a career-best tie for second at the Quail Valley Collegiate Invitational. Hackett finished the event with a score of 200 (67-69-64), which is the best 54-hole score in MSU program history, and his final-round 64 tied for the best single round in program history.

Behind Hackett is sophomore Ashton McCulloch with a 72.41 scoring average and junior August Meekhof at 72.72. Fifth-year senior Troy Taylor is right after with a 72.97 average.

"We're all trending in the right direction, and this course is open, but it fits our team mojo where we all hit our drivers really straight so we'll be in the fairways almost every hole," Hackett said. "We'll be able to attack pins and get to the right spots on the greens to have uphill putts. That's our game plan, get to the fairways, the greens and hope the putter gets hot for a day."

For Taylor, the opportunity of having his last postseason run come in the friendly confines of the MSU community is a dream come true.

"Making the regionals is the first step, but getting to have a home event for us when we don't get that very often and to have the Spartan community supporting us is going to be a really special moment," Taylor said. "I've been looking forward to it. Never been able to play a home event at MSU so I'm going to soak it all in but not think it's our last stop because we want to make it to nationals."

The familiarity with Eagle Eye will be critical for the No.10-seeded Spartans in a region filled with powerhouse programs. The field includes top seed Illinois and No. 2 seed Florida, as well as recent national champions in Texas (2022, 2012) and Oregon (2017).

Kansas State, Georgia, Liberty, San Diego, Little Rock, Wisconsin, Illinois State and Purdue Fort Wayne round out the field.

"You want to beat the best and play against the best. We have a lot of strong teams, but we're going to be ready for it," Taylor said. "We're going to go out and have some fun and compete and go out and try to beat the best teams in the country."

MSU's most recent outing at the Big Ten Championships saw the Spartans finish ninth overall after more than three inches of rain overnight ended the tournament a day early. MSU fared much better on the second day of the weekend after struggling through bad weather on the first day.

Lubahn said the ninth-place finish isn't indicative of what this team is capable of doing in the postseason. And with Eagle Eye's course designed with an importance on precise approach shots to difficult greens, Lubahn thinks his guys are poised for a big weekend.

"We're a ball-striking team, but I think more than anything that the golf course is uncomfortable," Lubahn said. "Approach shots are really key, and knowing where to miss and how to miss, but having the comfort of hitting hundreds of shots around this course.

"I thought we played as good as we had all year in the Big Ten Championships. We were at the bad end of a draw and played in some conditions I didn't think were possible to play in and went from first to ninth in an hour stretch. But I think with school over and the schedule lighter, they are looking sharper and sharper."

The Eagle Eye Regional will be one of six across the country May 15-17. The top five teams — and the top individual not on a qualifying team — at each regional site will advance to the NCAA Championships May 26-31 at Grayhawk Golf Club in Scottsdale, Arizona.

Contact Nathaniel Bott at nbott@lsj.com and follow him on Twitter @Nathaniel_Bott

This article originally appeared on Lansing State Journal: Michigan State men's golf: Set to host NCAA regional at Eagle Eye