Weekly Release #1
9/5/2001 12:00:00 AM | Men's Golf
Upcoming Schedule
Sat-Sun., Sept. 8-9 -- at Badger Invitational (Verona, Wis.)
Mon-Tue., Sept. 17-18 -- at PSI Net Collegiate Invitational (Minneapolis, Minn.)
Next on the Tee
The University of Michigan men's golf team will open up the 2001-02 season by heading to Verona, Wis., Saturday and Sunday (Sept. 8-9) for the University of Wisconsin Badger Invitational at University Ridge Golf Course. The 15-team Invitational field will feature seven Big Ten Conference schools as well as four District 4 teams. University Ridge will be set up for a par of 72 and 6,888 yards for the 54-hole tournament.
Invitational Teams
The Badger Invitational features 15 teams and will include: Arkansas-Little Rock, Colorado State, Duke, Illinois, Iowa, Indiana, Miami (Ohio), Michigan, Penn State, Purdue, Southeastern Louisiana, Toledo, Western Kentucky, Wisconsin and Xavier.
Invitational Schedule
The Badger Invitational will consist of 54 holes, 36 of which will be played on Saturday (Sept. 8) followed by 18 on Sunday (Sept. 9).
| Saturday, Sept. 8 | First Round | Shotgun start at 8 a.m. CDT |
| | Second Round | Shotgun start around 1 p.m. CDT |
| Sunday, Sept. 9 | Final Round | Shotgun start at 8 a.m. CDT |
Scoring Format
Scoring for the Badger Invitational will be five players, count the low four scores each round.
The Michigan Lineup
The Wolverines will carry five players for the Michigan squad at the Badger Invitational. Seniors Andy Matthews (Ada, Mich./Forest Hills Central HS), Andrew Chapman (Grand Blanc, Mich./Grand Blanc HS) and Kyle Kilcherman (Traverse City, Mich./Central HS) head up the Wolverine squad for the opening tournament. Redshirt freshman Rob Tighe (Traverse City, Mich./West HS) and sophomore David Nichols (Rochester, Mich./Adams HS) round out the five-man team.
Coach Carras Calls the 2002 Season the Final
Head coach Jim Carras has announced the 2001-02 season will be his last as head coach of the Wolverine program. The seventh coach in Michigan men's golf history, Carras has been part of the men's golf program for the past 24 years, 20 as the head coach.
Under Carras' direction, Michigan has four times placed as high as third in the Big Ten Championships (1985, '88, '95, '97). Nine times the Wolverines have finished among the top six conference teams. During the regular season, Carras' teams have won six tournament titles and been in the top three 17 times. In addition to the Big Ten success, Carras has helped guide three teams to NCAA Championship play. The 1994-95 team finished 12th at the NCAA Central Regional Championship and his 1996-97 squad finished eighth at the NCAA Central Regional Championship and advanced to the NCAA Championship, where the Wolverines finished 25th. Three years later, his 1999-2000 squad finished the season tied for 11th at the NCAA Central Regional Championship, just missing the advancing to the championship finals.
In addition to the team successes, Carras has coached nine players to All-Big Ten Conference honors, including three-time winner Michael Harris (1998, '99, 2000) and two-time award winners Dan Roberts (1983, '85) and Kyle Dobbs (1995, '97). Two Michigan players have collected Big Ten Championship medalist awards during Carras' tenure: Dobbs in 1997 and Harris in 1999. Andy Matthews became Michigan's first Big Ten Freshman of the Year award winner following his play in the 1999 conference championship. In addition, U-M golfers have earned 36 Academic All-Big Ten Conference citations under Carras since inception of the award in 1987, and six of Carras' Wolverines have been honored as National Golf Coaches Association All-America Academic Scholars.
Matthews Named Captain
Senior Andy Matthews has been named the team's captain for the 2001-02 season. The 1999 Big Ten Freshman of the Year has not missed a tournament his entire Michigan career -- a stretch of 37 consecutive tournaments. As a junior, he had a career-best 74.26 scoring average and a career-best third-place individual finish at the Wolverine South Invitational (March 3-4, 2001) and then again at the Kepler Intercollegiate (April 14-15, 2001). For his career, he is averaging 75.32 strokes per round and has fired career-best rounds of 68 four times.
The Fall Opens Opportunities for Wolverines
The 2001-02 season poses many challenges for the Wolverines as they prepare for the Big Ten Championship and a drive to NCAA's in the spring. The fall season opens with a couple of trips to Big Ten country as the season kicks off with the Badger Invitational (Sept. 8-9), followed by the PSI Net Collegiate Invitational (Sept. 17-18) in Minneapolis, Minn. The Maize and Blue then host the Wolverine Invitational (Sept. 28-30) at the U-M Golf Course before heading to Cincinnati, Ohio, and the Xavier Invitational (Oct. 8-9). The Wolverines close out the fall season with a trip to Jamaica, N.Y., and the Tillinghast Invitational (Oct. 22-23).
Matthews Caps Summer with Amateur Title, Trip to U.S. Amateur
Andy Matthews highlighted a strong off-season by defeating Brent Goik 4-and-2 in the match-play final, to win the 90th Michigan Amateur Championship at the Flint Golf Club (June 19-23, 2001). Matthews became the first Grand Rapids area golfer to win the Michigan Amateur since 1938 when Edward Flowers captured the trophy. Matthews had six birdies in the final match against Goik and was 24 under par for all eight rounds of the tournament. Following that performance, Matthews headed to Atlanta, Ga., for the the 101st U.S. Amateur (Aug. 20-26, 2001) at East Lake Golf Club and Druid Hills Golf Club. Matthews tied for 110th in stroke-play qualifying after firing rounds of 72 and 75 for a 147 total and did not qualify for match play.
Last Year in Review
The 2000-01 men's golf season saw the Wolverines continue to capitalize on the experiences they have garnered over the last three years with a strong top six battling each weekend for the Maize and Blue. Senior Scott Hayes (1998-2001) led the way for U-M all season long and kicked off the 2000-01 season in grand fashion as he won the Inverness Intercollegiate (Sept. 18-19, 2000) in a scorecard playoff to give him his first collegiate crown. He also finished the season with a team-best 73.97 stroke average, nearly two strokes better than his previous best at U-M.
Andrew Chapman helped the Wolverines open the spring season by winning his first collegiate tournament at the Wolverine South Invitational (March 3-4, 2001). His individual efforts also helped the Wolverines take home the team title as well. He finished the season by shaving nearly a stroke off of his career best stroke average (74.53). Andy Matthews continued to be rock solid for the Wolverines as he extended his consecutive tournament streak to 37 -- as he has not missed a single event since coming to Ann Arbor. He twice hit his career-best finish of third at the Wolverine South and the Kepler Intercollegiate (April 14-15, 2001). He finished the season with a 74.26 stroke average. Scott Carlton was a pleasant surprise for the Maize and Blue as he had a solid season, finishing with a 75.21 stroke average just ahead of David Nichols' 75.71. Kyle Kilcherman also had a solid season, averaging 76.21 strokes per round.
In addition to the title at the Wolverine South, Michigan finished in the top five in six of its 12 events, finishing third three times, and ended the season with a 296.32 per team round average. The Wolverines finished tied for seventh at the Big Ten Championships and just missed making the NCAA Central Regional.
Contact: Tom Wywrot (734) 763-4423
Players Mentioned
