Michigan
Robert Kepler Intercollegiate
Duff Leads Michigan to Eighth at Kepler Intercollegiate
4/16/2006 12:00:00 AM | Men's Golf
DUBLIN, Ohio -- The University of Michigan men's golf team closed out its regular season tournament schedule with an eighth place team finish posting a 916 54-hole tournament total at the 2006 Robert Kepler Intercollegiate today (Sunday, April 16) at the Muirfield Village Golf Club.
After 36-holes of perfect playing conditions yesterday, the Wolverines opened with a 305 first round team total, only to improve in the second posting a 301 for a 606 total and the eighth spot on the leaderboard. As skies became overcast and temperatures cooled with spots of rain, the Wolverines closed the tournament with a 310 to remain in the eighth spot overall.
Senior Brandon Duff (Goodrich, Mich./Powers Catholic HS) led the Wolverines for the fourth time this season as he tied for ninth with a 222 54-hole total. After opening with a one-over 73, he followed with an even-par 72 to put him sixth individually. After a few missed opportunities in the final round, he carded a five-over 77 to close his tournament with his second top 10 finish of the season.
Sophomore Brian Ottenweller (Grand Rapids, Mich./Catholic Central HS) followed Duff as he descended all of his tournament rounds to finish tied for 25th with a 228 total. After opening with a five-over 77 in the first round, he lowered that by a stroke with a four-over 76. He closed the tournament with a three-over 75 to give him the 228 total.
Other Wolverine finishes include: junior Matt McLaughlin (Raleigh, N.C./Millbrook HS) tied for 30th with a 230 total (75-76-79); senior Christian Vozza (Traverse City, Mich./Grand Rapids Baptist HS) tied for 52nd with a 237 total (81-77-79) and sophomore Tim Schaetzel (Atlanta, Ga./Pace Academy) tied for 63rd with a 241 total (80-77-84).
Overall, Northwestern (298-284-296) took home the team title with a 14-over 878 tournament total, as the Wildcats held off Indiana (286-292-304), who were the runner-up with an 882. Xavier (302-301-300) was third with a 903 team total. Northwestern's Kyle Moore (68-73-74) and Indiana's Seth Brandon (67-74-74) both tied for medalist honors with one-under 215 totals. With a playoff to determine the winner, Moore took the title after he parred the second hole of the playoff while Brandon bogeyed.
With the regular season tournament schedule now completed, the Wolverines will take the next two weeks to prepare for the postseason and the 2006 Big Ten Championships, Friday through Sunday (April 28-30) at Conway Farms Country Club in Lake Forest, Ill. The 72-hole championship will be played in the format of 36-18-18 and will feature all 11 conference teams competing for the Big Ten title.
Team Standings
1. Northwestern 298-284-296 = 878 (+14) 2. Indiana 286-292-304 = 882 3. Xavier 302-301-300 = 903 4. Marshall 301-299-304 = 904 5. Purdue 302-302-305 = 909 6. Illinois 301-303-309 = 913 7. Iowa 303-305-307 = 915 8. MICHIGAN 305-301-310 = 916 9. Ball State 309-294-316 = 919 10. Akron 311-305-304 = 920 11. Toledo 306-305-311 = 922 12. Miami (Ohio) 309-308-317 = 934 13. Wisconsin 312-311-316 = 939 14. Ohio State 315-309-316 = 940 15. Penn State 316-306-320 = 942
Top Individuals
1. Kyle Moore, Northwestern 68-73-74 = 215* (-1) 2. Seth Brandon, Indiana 67-74-74 = 215 3. David Merkow, Northwestern 77-70-70 = 217 Jorge Campillo, Indiana 73-70-74 = 217 5. Trent Schambach, Marshall 72-70-76 = 218 6. Peter Richardson, Purdue 70-73-76 = 219 John Streibich, Xavier 74-74-71 = 219 8. Patrick Wilkes-Krier, Ball State 78-69-74 = 221 9. BRANDON DUFF, U-M 73-72-77 = 222 Shawn Warren, Marshall 78-71-73 = 222 * playoff winner
Other Michigan Individuals
T25. Brian Ottenweller 77-76-75 = 228 T30. Matt McLaughlin 75-76-79 = 230 T52. Christian Vozza 81-77-79 = 237 T63. Tim Schaetzel 80-77-84 = 241
Q U O T E S
With U-M coach Andrew Sapp unable to attend the tournament, assistant coach Doug Gross coached the team at this weekend's Kepler Intercollegiate in Dublin, Ohio.
Assistant coach Doug Gross
On the tournament and preparing for the upcoming Big Ten Championships ... "By looking at the scores, obviously it was a little disappointing with the way we finished. We had a great chance to beat a couple other Big Ten teams, but at the same time I think it was great preparation for us with Big Ten's coming up in a couple of weeks. They played a difficult golf course this week. It is a course where they play a (PGA) Tour event and that was definitely a treat for our guys to be able to do that. So, in a way, it was good and bad. Brandon (Duff) fortunately had a great tournament for us. He really led the way and gained some momentum going into Big Ten's. He only lost to five other Big Ten players this weekend, which is exciting for him going into the conference tournament.
"Again, I think it was encouraging for us to see that we can compete and be close to some of the other top teams in the Big Ten. With that in mind, we are fortunate that classes are ending for us in a couple of days. Yes, it will be difficult to prepare fully for Big Ten's with exams through the next few weeks, but hopefully we will be able to use our study breaks to get some good work done and be as prepared as possible being that we will be the only school that will be done with classes going into championships. It's exciting, we are excited and it should be a fun week at Big Ten's. I know Northwestern has put in a lot of work and we are looking forward to getting down there and shooting some good scores."
Senior Brandon Duff
On the tournament ... "We definitely finished a little disappointing, losing to quite a few Big Ten teams. Like coach Gross said, this weekend was just another good tournament for us and was good preparation for us going into Big Ten's. It was really cool to play Muirfield C the home of Jack Nicklaus. It had that feel of what the (PGA) Tour players have to play on a regular basis. But in spite of that, it was disappointing today for myself posting that 77 on the board. I just putted atrociously, but that is the way it goes sometimes. I still managed to get a top 10 out of it, which was exciting. This weekend will only help me going into Big Tens. We are just going to continue to work hard this week and see what we can do at the Big Ten Championships, hopefully some good things."
N O T E S
For the fourth time this season Brandon Duff has finished as the top Wolverine in a tournament. He led once in the fall and three times this spring. With his 222 54-hole total at the Kepler Intercollegiate, he has now recorded six tournaments posting 225-or-better for the three rounds.
With his second round even-par 72, Brandon Duff has taken over the team lead for rounds par or better with nine total this season. Brian Ottenweller and Christian Vozza are second on the team with eight.
Brandon Duff and Tim Schaetzel remain the only two Wolverines to have competed and started all 11 tournaments this season. With his top Wolverine finish at the Kepler Intercollegiate, Duff has retaken the team lead for top Maize and Blue finishes in a tournament with four. Schaetzel is second after leading U-M in three events this season.
Contact: Tom Wywrot (734) 763-4423
Players Mentioned
