Michigan
Wolverine Intercollegiate (Day 2)
Top 20 Trio Helps U-M to Runner-up Finish at Home
9/17/2006 12:00:00 AM | Men's Golf
Site:Â Ann Arbor, Mich.
Course:Â U-M Golf Course (par 71, 6,704 yards)
Tournament: Wolverine Intercollegiate
U-M Finish:Â 2nd Place of 14 Teams (278-290-294/862)
Top U-M Individual:Â Tim Schaetzel, tie-8th (69-70-74/213)
Next U-M Event:Â Sat-Sun., Oct. 7-8 -- at Wolf Run Intercollegiate (Zionsville, Ind.)
ANN ARBOR, Mich. -- With three top-20 finishes from junior Tim Schaetzel (Atlanta, Ga./Pace Academy), senior Kevin Dore (Dundas, Ontario, Canada/St. Mary's) and sophomore Bill Rankin (Traverse City, Mich./Central HS), the University of Michigan men's golf team grinded out its final round to finish as the runner-up in its own tournament today (Sunday, Sept. 17) at the U-M Golf Course.
With just seven strokes separating second place from eighth in the team standings, the Maize and Blue finished with an 862 total for 54 holes after posting team rounds of six-under 278 and 290 during Saturday's first 36 holes and a 294 in today's final round. Wisconsin (285-279-278) held off any opponent rallies to win the team title with a one-under total of 851. Akron (281-290-292) finished third with an 863 total and Missouri (288-282-294) was fourth at 864.
U-M sophomore Nick Pumford (St. Charles, Mich./St. Charles HS) had a brilliant weekend playing as an individual. He finished as the medalist runner-up after tallying a career-best four-under 209 tournament total. After setting the tone early in the first round with a career-best four-under 67, he followed with back-to-back even-par rounds of 71 to earn the second-place finish. Pumford tied for the tournament lead with 13 birdies during the weekend. Oregon State's Mitch Gillis (65-70-72) took medalist honors with a six-under 207 performance, while Wisconsin's Garrett Jones (70-67-73) was third at 210.
Overall, the Wolverines starters posted three players among the top 20 with Schaetzel leading the way as he tied for eighth with an even-par 54-hole total of 213. After posting a two-under 69 in the first round, he shot 70 in the second round to close the first day of play at three under par. After starting his first nine holes in the final round at two-under, a two-stroke penalty for playing the wrong ball put him back to even par. He found some struggles putting on the back nine and closed with a three-over 74.
Like Schaetzel, Dore got off to a red hot start as he tied a career best with a three-under 68 in the first round and followed with a one-under 70 in the second to stand at four under par after 36 holes. In the final round, Dore had small mistakes cost him as he posted a five-over 76 to give him a 214 total and a tie for 13th.
After opening with back-to-back rounds of 74 during the first day of play, Rankin responded in the final round with a career-best three-under 68 to vault him into the top 20 as he tied for 17th with a 216 total. Starting on the third hole in the final round, he double bogeyed his second hole (No. 4) but had back-to-back birdies on Nos. 6 and 7 to put him even making the turn. He caught fire on the back nine, playing it four under with four birdies. A bogey on No. 1 put him back to three under where he would finish after parring his final hole.
Other finishes for the Wolverines' five-man lineup included: junior Brian Ottenweller (Grand Rapids, Mich./Catholic Central HS), tied for 41st with a 221 total (69-76-76), and senior Will Kendall (Gerrards Cross, England/Oundle School), 78th with a 232 total (72-81-79).
In addition to Pumford, five other Wolverines played as individuals. Their finishes included: senior Matt McLaughlin (Raleigh, N.C./Millbrook HS), tied for 41st with a 221 total (72-73-76); senior Brian Schielke (Dexter, Mich./Dexter HS), tied for 54th with a 225 total (77-73-75); freshman Michael Slovitt (Winnetka, Ill./New Trier HS), tied for 63rd with a 227 total (71-77-79); freshman Billy McKay (Grand Blanc, Mich./David Leadbetter Golf Academy [Bradenton, Fla.]), tied for 63rd with a 227 total (75-79-73); and freshman Ross Millman (St. Louis, Mo./Mary Institute and Saint Louis Country Day), 80th with a 244 total (83-83-78).
The Wolverines will have the next two weekends off before heading back out to competition. Next up for the Maize and Blue will be a trip to Zionsville, Ind., Saturday and Sunday, Oct. 7-8, for the Wolf Run Intercollegiate. The 54-hole tournament, hosted by Indiana and Kentucky, will be played at Wolf Run Country Club.
Team Standings
1. Wisconsin 285-279-287 = 851 (-1)
2. MICHIGAN 278-290-294 = 862
3. Akron 281-290-292 = 863
4. Missouri 288-282-294 = 864
5. Eastern Michigan 292-282-292 = 866
Oregon State 280-290-296 = 866
7. Northern Illinois 289-290-289 = 868
8. Iowa 289-287-293 = 869
9. Kansas State 287-288-296 = 871
10. Miami (Ohio) 293-287-296 = 876
11. Penn State 291-286-300 = 877
12. Western Illinois 289-299-291 = 879
13. Ball State 298-290-292 = 880
14. Furman 292-296-300 = 888
Top Individuals
1. Mitch Gillis, Oregon State 65-70-72 = 207 (-6)
2. NICK PUMFORD, U-M* 67-71-71 = 209
3. Garrett Jones, Wisconsin 70-67-73 = 210
4. Peter Malnati, Missouri 70-67-74 = 211
5. John Kelly, Missouri 73-67-72 = 212
Dan Woltman, Wisconsin 74-70-68 = 212
Graham Hill, EMU 71-70-71 = 212
8. TIM SCHAETZEL, U-M 69-70-74 = 213
Tim Streng, Western Illinois 70-72-71 = 213
Chris Ross, EMU 69-72-72 = 213
Tyler Obermueller, Wisconsin 70-72-71 = 213
Brad Wright, Akron 71-68-74 = 213
13. KEVIN DORE, U-M 68-70-76 = 214
Robert Rohanna, Penn State 68-70-76 = 214
Other Michigan Individuals
T17. Bill Rankin 74-74-68 = 216 T41. Brian Ottenweller 69-76-76 = 221 78. Will Kendall 72-81-79 = 232 T41. Matt McLaughlin 72-73-76 = 221* T54. Brian Schielke 77-73-75 = 225* T63. Michael Slovitt 71-77-79 = 227* T63. Billy McKay 75-79-73 = 227* 80. Ross Millman 83-83-78 = 244*
* playing as individual
QUOTES
Michigan Coach Andrew Sapp
On the Wolverine Intercollegiate ... "This tournament was a good way to get our fall season kick-started after having a few setbacks last week. The guys really bounced back very well from that tournament. It would have been nice to have won, but Wisconsin played well, especially in that second round when we played poorly. Today we had some missed opportunities. It was nice to see Bill (Rankin) bounce back and have a great 68. I am super excited about Nick's (Pumford) second-place finish. That is awesome for him. There has been a lot of growth for him over the last year and it is good to see that come to fruition. I am pleased with the second place. Obviously you want to win, that is what you strive for. Our goal was to compete to win and I think our guys did a good job doing that. They hung in there. They tried to grind it out. Even though the result wasn't a win, I think they played hard. We look forward to a couple of weeks off before we get ready for our tournament in Indiana. Hopefully we can continue to play well where we are competing to win that championship."
U-M Junior Tim Schaetzel
On the Wolverines' weekend performance ... "We got off to a great start. It was really good to come out and fire a low round to set the tone for the tournament. It was the lowest round for our team since we were in California last year. It was good to see three guys shoot in the 60s in a single round. The second round, I think we got a little tired and made a couple of mistakes. I had a couple mental mistakes. It really is a long day. But it was good keep in our rhythm and finish the day at even par. Today was a little disappointing. We had some three-putts, I hit a wrong ball, and a couple of us got off to bad starts. We just had to grind our way through it. However, we still finished second and we beat a number of teams by just a couple of shots, which shows how important it is to grind things out, even if it is for bogey or double (bogey)."
On the mindset of the team after two tournaments ... "We are definitely going in the right direction. We now have broken into the season and we feel we are a little warmed up, we are running. Now we have a little bit of time to hone a couple of things and get some time to practice what has gone wrong these last two tournaments. Hopefully with hard work we can continue to get better before we head back out."
U-M Sophomore Nick Pumford
On his weekend play and runner-up finish ... "I tell you what, it has been incredible. I played well in practice during the week but nothing spectacular. But I knew I had it in me. Coach (Andrew Sapp) has been supportive. Everyone on the team has been supportive. Coach (Chris) Whitten and I have been working on my short game, and that has helped tremendously. You know, I really did just catch fire. To get 12 birdies in the first day, I would have never expected that. All weekend, I hit my wedges close and made a lot of putts."
On if playing at the U-M Golf Course gave him more confidence ... "I think it would be okay to say it was nice to have a little home course advantage. It has taken me a year to read these greens. Now I finally have a little understanding of how these greens are going to break. That helped a lot. It's definitely a help to play here every day."
On what he says to people who were surprised by his performance ... "I cannot say that I am surprised. I know I surprised a lot of people. I played well this summer. I played well in the Michigan Open. So truthfully it isn't a surprise to myself. I knew I had it in me and I really put it all together for a weekend."
NOTES
• Michigan's starting lineup at the Wolverine Intercollegiate included Kevin Dore, Brian Ottenweller, Tim Schaetzel, Bill Rankin and Will Kendall. Playing as individuals were Matt McLaughlin, Nick Pumford, Brian Schielke, Billy McKay, Michael Slovitt and Ross Millman.
• Freshmen Billy McKay, Ross Millman and Michael Slovitt each made his collegiate debut by playing in the Wolverine Intercollegiate. All three played as individuals.
• With a six-under 278 team total in the first round of the Wolverine Intercollegiate, Michigan posted its fourth all-time team round under 280. The 278 ranks as the fourth best team total all-time. In fact, of the top three all-time rounds under 280, three have been played at the U-M Golf Course.
• Despite playing as an individual and in just his second collegiate event, sophomore Nick Pumford set career bests throughout the entire weekend. He had a career-best finish with his runner-up showing, a career-best 54-hole tournament total at four-under 209, and a career-best four-under 67 single-round tally in the first round.
• Nick Pumford's four-under 67 in the first round at the Wolverine Intercollegiate is a career-best single-round tally. He smashed his previous best mark of two-over 73 shot in the second round of the 2005 Wolverine Intercollegiate (Sept. 24-25).
• Senior Kevin Dore's first-round three-under 68 at the Wolverine Intercollegiate tied his career-best round. He equaled his three-under 68 he had in the third round of the 2004 Big Ten Championships (May 8-9) at the U-M Golf Course.
• Sophomore Bill Rankin's three-under 68 in the final round at the Wolverine Intercollegiate is a career best. He erased his previous best mark of one-under 71 shot in the third round of the 2005 Hawkeye Intercollegiate (Sept. 10-11).
• With the start at the Wolverine Intercollegiate, Tim Schaetzel has started the last 18 tournaments for the Maize and Blue. In 21 career tournaments, he has 20 starts.
TOURNAMENT NOTES
• Oregon State's Mitch Gillis recorded a six-under 65 in the first round, which ties him for the second best single-round tally all-time at the U-M Golf Course. He became the ninth player to record a round score of 65. Minnesota's James McLean holds the all-time mark with a 63.
Players Mentioned
