Weekly Release #12
4/20/2006 12:00:00 AM | Men's Golf
Upcoming Schedule
Fri-Sun, April 28-30 -- at Big Ten Championships (Lake Forest, Ill.)
Thu-Sat., May 18-20 -- NCAA Central Regional (Chardon, Ohio)
Next on the Tee: It's Conference Championship Time!
With the end of the regular season at hand, the University of Michigan men's golf team will shift its focus to the postseason and the upcoming 2006 Big Ten Championships, Friday through Sunday (April 28-30). With the format switching back to 72-holes, Northwestern will host the conference title, which will be decided at the Conway Farms Golf Club in Lake Forest, Ill. All 11 Big Ten teams will participate for the league title as Friday's and Sunday's rounds will begin at 8 a.m. CST with tee times off No. 1 and 10, while Saturday's round will begin with 9 a.m. CST tee times off No. 1 and 10. Conway Farms will be set up for a par 71 and 7,168 yards.
Big Ten Championships Teams
All 11 Big Ten teams will participate in the 2006 Big Ten Championships: Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Michigan, Michigan State, Minnesota, Northwestern, Ohio State, Penn State, Purdue and Wisconsin.
The Big Ten Championships Schedule
The 2006 Big Ten Championship will be 72-holes over the three days (April 28-30). The teams will play 36 holes the first day (Friday, April 28), followed by 18 holes on Saturday and Sunday. Thursday's practice round begins at 9 a.m. (no set tee times). Playing in twosomes (Friday) and threesomes (Saturday-Sunday), tee times using both No. 1 and 10 tees will be used all three days. First-round pairings will be determined by Golfstat rankings. Third- and fourth-round pairings will be determined by team scores.
| Thursday, April 27 | Practice Round | 9 a.m. CST (no set tee times for teams) |
| Friday, April 28 | First Round | 8 a.m. CST (tee times, off No. 1 and 10, twosomes) |
| | Second Round | 1 p.m. CST (tee times, off No. 1 and 10, twosomes) |
| Saturday, April 29 | Third Round | 9 a.m. CST (tee times, off No. 1 and 10, threesomes) |
| Sunday, April 30 | Final Round | 8 a.m. CST (tee times, off No. 1 and 10, threesomes) |
The Big Ten Championships Course
Conway Farms Golf Club was designed by renowned architect Tom Fazio, the course opened for play in 1991 and was rated by Golf Digest as one of the Top Five best new private clubs in the country. Fazio created a magnificent gem, with gentle rolling terrain and wonderful vistas, using existing trees, forests and wet lands. His links style course has a true "Shinnecock" feel to it. Conway Farms played host to the 1997 NCAA Division I Men's Championships. The Club also was the site of the USGA Junior Amateur Championship in 1998. Directions to Conway Farms Golf Club can be found on the Northwestern Big Ten Championship website.
The Big Ten Championships Scoring Format
Scoring for the 2006 Big Ten Championships will be five players; count the low four scores each round.
Follow the Big Ten Championships Live
Live scoring for the 2006 Big Ten Championships will be available for the championships through Golfstat Live.
Big Ten Championships Seeding
Seeding for the 2006 Big Ten Championships were determined upon the final week's regular season Golfweek/Sagarin rankings. If the tournament started today, first round seeding would be:
As of April 24, 2006 No. 1 Northwestern No. 31 (71.88) No. 2 Minnesota No. 33 (71.95) No. 3 Purdue No. 42 (72.20) No. 4 Indiana No. 47 (72.43) No. 5 Illinois No. 53 (72.64) No. 6 Michigan State No. 60 (72.76) No. 7 Michigan No. 92 (73.57) No. 8 Ohio State No. 98 (73.63) No. 9 Iowa No. 107 (73.80) No. 10 Wisconsin No. 122 (74.04) No. 11 Penn State No. 158 (74.60)
The Michigan Lineup at the Big Ten Championships
The Wolverines will carry five players for the 2006 Big Ten Championships. After qualifying was completed, the Maize and Blue five-man team for the championships will include: senior Brandon Duff (Goodrich, Mich./Powers Catholic HS); sophomore Brian Ottenweller (Grand Rapids, Mich./Catholic Central HS); junior Matt McLaughlin (Raleigh, N.C./Millbrook HS); sophomore Tim Schaetzel (Atlanta, Ga./Pace Academy) and senior Christian Vozza (Traverse City, Mich./Grand Rapids Baptist HS).
Last Year at the Big Ten Championships: Michigan Places 10th; Vozza Among Top 25
The Wolverines closed the 2005 Big Ten Championships with a 10th-place showing at Wisconsin's University Ridge Golf Course in Verona, Wis. The Wolverines finished with an 883 54-hole total after posting team rounds of 298, 286 and 299 throughout the three-day tournament. Christian Vozza finished as the top Wolverine as he tied for 24th with a 219 54-hole total (74-70-75). Former Wolverines Rob Tighe (73-72-76) and Tim Schaetzel (76-70-75) both tied for 32nd with 221 total. Kevin Dore (81-75-73) and Brian Ottenweller (75-75-78) tied for 50th with 228 totals.
Michigan State used a one-over 289 to win its first Big Ten title in 31 years. The Spartans (282-276-289) finished with a 17-under 847 54-hole total, which was five strokes better than runner-up Indiana (283-275-294) who tallied a 12-under 852. Big Ten Player of the Year Jeff Overton, of Indiana, led the conference championship from start to finish and tied the Big Ten 54-hole championship record with a 17-under 199 total. Overton posted back-to-back seven-under 65s before closing out with a three-under 69. Michigan State's Ryan Brehm, who was named the Big Ten Freshman of the Year, was the runner up with a 13-under 203 total (68-65-70).
Two Stay the Course
Brandon Duff and Tim Schaetzel continue to be the only two Wolverines to have started all 11 tournaments this season. After leading U-M at the final regular season tournament, Duff took over the team lead after having led the Maize and Blue in four tournaments this season. Schaetzel is second having led three. Both Duff and Schaetzel are averaging a career-best for stroke average with Duff's 74.56 and Schaetzel's 75.53. In addition, Duff leads the Wolverines with nine rounds of par or better.
Rolling, Rolling, Rolling in Red Numbers
Michigan continues to add up the red numbers on the scorecards. Through 11 regular season tournaments, the Wolverines have tallied 42 total rounds of par or better, 31 rounds under par with 17 total rounds under the 70-stroke mark. During the entire of the 2004-05 season, Michigan recorded 15 total rounds under par and five under the 70 strokes.
Inking the Low Numbers on the Scorecard
With his even-par 72 in the second round of the Robert Kepler Intercollegiate (April 15-16), Brandon Duff took over the team lead with his ninth round of par or better. Brian Ottenweller and Christian Vozza each have eight rounds, while Tim Schaetzel has six. As a team, Michigan has 42 total rounds par or better.
Scoreboard Race Heating Up
The race for the top spot on the Michigan scoreboard is heating up as seven Wolverines are neck-and-neck. Kevin Dore is atop the leaderboard with a 74.00 per round average, with Will Kendall second at 74.44. Brandon Duff (74.56), Nick Pumford (74.67) and give the Maize and Blue four players averaging below 75. Brian Ottenweller (75.03), Christian Vozza (75.46) and Tim Schaetzel (75.53) are just on the verge of cracking the 75 stroke barrier. As a team, the Wolverines are shooting 297.65 as a team.
Duff Keeps Season Rolling
Four times this season Brandon Duff has led Michigan in a tournament. In fact, he opened the fall and the 2005-06 season leading the Wolverines in the first event at the Hawkeye Intercollegiate (Sept. 10-11) with a career-best tie for seventh. He followed opening the spring season leading U-M at the UCF/Rio Pinar Intercollegiate (Feb. 13-14) as he tied for 18th. He continued in the very next tournament leading the Wolverines at the Puerto Rico Classic (Feb. 26-28), tying for 35th. To close out the regular season, Duff led U-M at the Robert Kepler Intercollegiate with his second top 10 finish as he tied for ninth.
No Sophomore Slumps Here
Tim Schaetzel and Brian Ottenweller continue to prove there are no such things as a "sophomore slump." In his second season, Schaetzel has started all 11 tournaments and is averaging a career-best 75.53 strokes per round. He has led U-M in three tournaments and has posted career-best four-under 67 in the first round of the Wolverine Intercollegiate (Sept. 24-25), a career-best 167 36-hole tournament total at the Pinehurst Intercollegiate and a career-best six-under 207 54-hole tournament total at the Wolverine.
As for Ottenweller, after not playing in the first tournament of the season, he has started the last 10 straight for the Wolverines. He led the Wolverines in back-to-back fall events at the Alister MacKenzie Invitational (Oct. 10-11) and the 49er Collegiate Classic (Oct. 24-25). He has shaved nearly a stroke and a half off of his first year total as he is averaging a career-best 75.03 strokes per round. He is tied for second on the team with eight total round of par or better and set a career-best with a five-under 66 in the first round of the Alister MacKenzie Invitational, which helped lead to a career-best 207 54-hole tournament total.
Taking it Deep!
Christian Vozza's second round seven-under 64 at the Alister MacKenzie Invitational (Oct. 10-11) was a career-best by two strokes and tied the U-M record for lowest single round total. He tied All-American Michael Harris' 64 he had at the 1998 Xavier Invitational (Oct. 12-13). After bogeying the first hole, Vozza recorded an eagle and six birdies to finish the record setting round. Vozza's previous best score was a six-under 66 fired in the third round of the 2004 Landfall Tradition (Oct. 29-31).
Gaining Valuable Experience
Bill Rankin has continued to impress during his first season in Ann Arbor. He has played in seven tournaments with four starts. He is averaging 76.20 strokes per round and led the Wolverines at the rain shortened Pinehurst Intercollegiate. He shot a career-best one-under 71 in the third round of the Hawkeye Intercollegiate (Sept. 10-11).
Doing It Again
Michigan's first round of nine-under 275 at the Alister MacKenzie Invitational (Oct 10-11) tied the U-M record for the lowest team single round total. It was just two weeks earlier, when the Wolverines set the mark with a nine-under 275 team total in the second round of the 2005 Wolverine Intercollegiate (Sept. 24-25) at the U-M Golf Course.
Give Them Back-To-Back Yet Again
Two times this season, Michigan has posted back-to-back under par team rounds. The Wolverines had team rounds of nine-under 275 and four-under 280 on the first day of the Alister MacKenzie Invitational (Oct. 10-11). The Maize and Blue also had back-to-back under par rounds with a seven-under 277 and a nine-under 275 on the first day of the 2005 Wolverine Intercollegiate (Sept. 24-25) two weeks earlier.
First in Four Years is Oh So Sweet!
Michigan's victory at the 2005 Wolverine Intercollegiate (Sept. 24-25) was the first team title for the program in four years. The last time the Wolverines hoisted a team trophy was in the 2000-01 season, when the Maize and Blue won the Wolverine South Invitational (March 3-4, 2001) at the Hunter Golf Club in Savannah, Ga. The Wolverines 839 54-hole team total smashed the program's top mark for a tournament tally by 16 strokes. The previous record was an 855 total at the 1992 Stanford Invitational (Oct. 17-19).
Vozza Gives First Individual Title in Four Years
Christian Vozza used three straight under par rounds to win his first collegiate event at the 2005 Wolverine Intercollegiate. He finished with a one-shot victory with a career-best 205 total (67-69-69). The last time a Wolverine has won medalist honors in a tournament was the 2001 Wolverine South Invitational (March 3-4), when Andrew Chapman secured his first win of his collegiate career with a rain-shortened 141 (72-69) 36-hole total.
Wolverines Bid Farewell to Pair of Graduates
Michigan said farewell to fifth-year seniors Mark McIntosh and Jimmy Wisinski in December as they ended their careers after graduating from Michigan in late-December. McIntosh, who is working in Ann Arbor for a financial firm, closed out his career playing in 19 events, while averaging 76.39 per round. He fired a career-best two-under 70 once, and one-under 70 three times in his career. Wisinski, who has taken a job as an assistant golf pro in Grand Rapids, Mich., played in 12 events in his career and averaged 78.68 strokes per round. He had a career-best two under 69 at the 2002 Wolverine Invitational.
Contact: Tom Wywrot (734) 763-4423
Players Mentioned
