Post-Event Quotes: Nike Purdue Kiahuna Collegiate Invitational
11/23/2006 12:00:00 AM | Men's Golf
Michigan Head Coach Andrew Sapp
On the team's runner-up performance ... "I think it means a lot to these guys in their belief that they can play with the big boys, basically, because to beat a lot of teams ranked in the top 50 and even the No. 1- and the No. 5-ranked teams is something that we haven't done before. Really it's just it's the fruit of their hard work. Our team has worked extremely hard over the past month or so preparing for this tournament, and they really earned this. It was a lot of hard work in bad weather back home, and fortunately we had good enough weather to practice outside pretty much full-time. I'm just so proud of them because they did a great job. Even when we got here they worked really hard the three days we had prior to the tournament starting, so they really believed they could play well, which was key."
On the team's preparation for this tournament ... "After our last tournament in Charlotte we had a few what we call 'roundtable dicussion meetings' and we talked a lot about how this tournament coming up is a great opportunity because we're playing Alabama, who's ranked No. 1. We're playing Clemson, who's won a national championship. Pepperdine's won a national championship in the last 10 years. Purdue, who is one of the best teams in the Big Ten, and a lot of other excellent schools. Texas is definitely a great team. So it was at that point as we were getting ready to prepare a couple weeks prior, we just talked about how this is a great opportunity for us to work really hard, and the main thing that I told each one of these guys in individual meetings was that, yeah, we're coming to Hawaii but this is not a vacation. This is hard work, we're going to come here to try to play the best that we possibly can and prepare that way at home, and having three days here to prepare helped out a lot as well, and it paid off in the guys' scores."
On having three individuals finish in the top 10 ... "Tim (Schaetzel) has been about as solid as any player can be for us, with I think five straight top-12s and finishing third here in a really strong field. I was proud of him because this is the field that he needed to play really well in for individual rankings because he beat some top 25 and top 50 individuals, which is key as far as his ranking is concerned. Tim we kind of expected to play well, but to have Kevin (Dore) back him up really well and finishing eighth was awesome. Billy (McKay) we knew was playing well, we knew he was capable of this, and we really felt like he was getting more and more mature throughout the fall as far as his golf was concerned and really starting to come into his own, so I think having those three guys finish in the top 10 obviously was key for our team, but it was really key for them heading into the winter and getting ready for the spring season.
On if this finish will motivate the team for the spring ... "I think so, I think tremendously, because the first tournament we have in the spring we're going to see a lot of these teams again plus Georgia, Georgia Tech, Florida and Arizona State, so I think when these guys get home and realize how well they played against some of the best teams in the country they're going to work that much harder to try to repeat that in Puerto Rico at the end of February. I think they'll be extremely motivated to continue this success."
On the significance of this performance in the program's progression ... "We talked in one of our meetings between the last tournament and this tournament about wanting to be 'giant killers' this week. That's the first step, because then we want to become giants. So I think definitely being giant killers this week helped us out, so the next step is to progress to being one of the top 50 teams in the country, then top 30, then top 25. Our mantra this fall has been to play for May, because every tournament that we play in the fall counts toward qualifying for regionals, so this was a great step in that direction. There's a lot of golf left, and these guys know that and they realize that. but to finish on such a high note in the fall will really motivate them throughout the spring."
U-M Junior Tim Schaetzel
On his performance and the team's runner-up finish ... "Finishing high like this in a really strong field is always fun. It's fun to go and get some wins over some highly ranked individuals. Also, as a team, we beat two top-ranked teams in the country, including the No. 1 team in the country. We felt like we prepared really well, and with all that preparation we executed really well."
On the team's approach to the final round ... "We felt more like we were expected to not beat anybody, so the pressure was on everybody else. So our mentality going in was just, Let's go play our best, see what happens, and if we play well we felt like we could hang with anybody, but we knew no one was expecting anything out of us."
On his game ... "I felt very in control. I had a lot of opportunities for birdies that didn't fall. I didn't fell that great over my putter, so I just tried to hit really crisp, safe iron shots, make sure I at least had somewhat of a chance at birdie. I felt like I played really smart, and I kept the ball in the fairway and kept it on the green most of the time, and when you're able to do that it's easy to make a lot of pars."
On how this performance affects the team ... "It definitely boosts our confidence. We've always felt like we were a really talented team, but we felt like we were a little raw and we're still developing. We'd have great weeks and then we'd have horrendous weeks. And if there was any doubts in our minds that we could compete with people, that was erased this week. Hanging with the teams we did, beating a lot of the teams we beat, proves that when we're all playing well we can hang with anybody. That's really encouraging going into the spring because in similar-type fields in the past few years since I've been here we've not played well, and there was always the doubt of our ability, and this team now can hold its head up and say, We've beaten these good teams, and we're excited to keep working and we feel like our work is paying off."
U-M Senior Kevin Dore
On the team's performance ... "I think this tournament will be a great stepping stone for our team. We have worked extremely hard over the past month preparing for this tournament. I think that was pretty evident in the results. More than anything though, I think the confidence that we will take from beating top 10 teams will carry over into the spring and help us play solid golf every time we go out. This will definitely be something we can build on as we go into the winter."
On his eighth-place finish ... "I was pleased with how I played this week. Other than two bad holes, I played well and managed my game in some tough conditions. Overall this fall, I have played well but I haven't been able to put three rounds together. Other than one bad hole in the second round (a quadruple bogey 7 on number 3) I was able to do that. I think this will give me a lot of confidence when we see some of the same teams early in the spring."
On heading into the winter ... "I believe this tournament will help us a lot heading into the winter. It shows that our practice habits are paying off and if we continue to practice efficiently, we will play well when our spring tournaments roll around. Also, most of these top teams will be in Puerto Rico and some of the other tournaments we will play in. Competing with them and beating them will only help us when we face them again."
U-M Freshman Billy McKay
On rebounding from an early triple bogey ... "I knew I was hitting the ball well, and when some putts started to drop that's when everything started to turn around in my favor. That was really exciting."
On his final-round 69 ... "I knew I could get off to a quick start because I started on one of the par 5s, and the par 5s were playing extremely easy this week. When I birdied my first two holes that got everything going and got me real excited for the round. I was three under through most of the round until the last five holes, when I kind of struggled, but I got a birdie on the last one, so that was nice to bring it in with the under-par round for the team."
On posting his first top-10 finish ... "It's very exciting finishing our fall like this and me getting my first top-10 and our team tying our top finish for this fall. We've struggled through a couple tournaments, and to finish so highly in a very good tournament with some of the powerhouses of college golf just proves that we're doing the right things right now and we're getting to where we want to be."
