Michigan
Wolverine Intercollegiate (Day 2)
Michigan Holds On for Wolverine Intercollegiate Title
9/21/2008 12:00:00 AM | Men's Golf
Site: Ann Arbor, Mich.
Course: U-M Golf Course (par 71, 6,704 yards)
Tournament: Wolverine Intercollegiate
U-M Standing: 1st Place of 16 Teams (282-275-284/841)
Top U-M Individual: Nick Pumford, tie-6th (66-70-73/209)
Next U-M Event: Sunday and Monday, Oct. 5-6 -- at Windon Memorial Classic
ANN ARBOR, Mich. -- The University of Michigan men's golf team held off a late charge from UC Davis and California to win its second straight tournament title of the year, capturing the 2008 Wolverine Intercollegiate today (Sept. 21) with an 841 total at the U-M Golf Course.
After Michigan started the day with a two-shot lead over UC Davis, the final round proved to be a back-and-forth battle with senior co-captain and first-day leader Nick Pumford (St. Charles, Mich./St. Charles HS) posting a final round two-over 73 and sophomore Alexander Sitompul (Jakarta, Indonesia/Bradenton Prep Academy) closing with a four-over 75.
In the end, junior Ross Millman's (St. Louis, Mo./Mary Institute and Saint Louis Country Day School) and senior co-captain Bill Rankin's (Traverse City, Mich./Central HS) one-under 70 scores added with sophomore Lion Kim's (Lake Mary, Fla./Lake Mary Prep School) even-par 71 helped the Wolverines match the Aggies' even-par 284 final-round tally to win the event by two strokes, 841 to 843 (285-274-284). California used a final-round seven-under 277 to make a final-day run, but closed third at 846 (285-274-277).
All five U-M starters closed with top-25 finishes individually to aid in the second team win of the season. After owning a one-shot lead individually, Pumford was unable to hold on for the individual lead as his final round dropped him into a tie for sixth with a career-best-tying 54-hole total of 209 (66-70-73). He has now recorded back-to-back top-10 finishes to open the year. Rankin added his second straight top-15 finish, tying for 11th at 211 (72-69-70), while Sitompul (70-68-75) and Millman (74-69-70) tied for 16th with 213 totals. Kim closed out the starter finishes, tying for 22nd at 214 (74-69-71).
Five Wolverines played as individuals in this weekend's event. Junior Michael Slovitt (Winnetka, Ill./New Trier High School) posted a career-best 212 (75-69-68) and freshman Matt Thompson (Battle Creek, Mich./Lakeview HS) made his collegiate debut, also posting a 212 (68-72-72) to tie Slovitt for 14th. Other individual scores include freshman Alex Frankel (Atlanta, Ga./Lovett School) tying for 60th at 223 (75-74-74), junior David Weisfeld (Scarsdale, N.Y./Scarsdale HS) tying for 69th at 225 (74-77-74) and junior Billy McKay (Grand Blanc, Mich./David Leadbetter Golf Academy) tying for 77th at 227 (80-74-73).
The Wolverines will take a two-weekend break before hitting the links again. Next up for U-M will be a trip to Glencoe, Ill., Sunday and Monday, Oct. 5-6, for the 2008 Windon Memorial Classic at the North Shore Country Club.
Team Standings
1. MICHIGAN 282-275-284 = 841 (-11)
2. UC Davis 285-274-284 = 843
3. California 290-279-277 = 846
4. Michigan State 286-283-279 = 848
5. Colorado State 286-282-283 = 851
6. Wisconsin 286-286-283 = 855
7. Virginia Tech 288-284-285 = 857
8. Eastern Michigan 297-278-288 = 863
9. Iowa State 290-285-295 = 870
10. Xavier 300-287-284 = 871
Toledo 280-295-296 = 871
12. Missouri 294-283-295 = 872
13. San Diego 296-289-288 = 873
14. Gardner-Webb 294-289-291 = 874
15. Oakland 300-300-299 = 899
16. Columbia 298-306-300 = 904
Top Individuals
1. Ramie Sprinkling, UC Davis 69-68-69 = 206 (-7)
2. John Murphy, California 68-71-68 = 207
3. Eric Mina, California 72-68-68 = 208
Peter Malnati, Missouri 69-69-70 = 208
Dan Woltman, Wisconsin 72-68-68 = 208
6. NICK PUMFORD, U-M 66-70-73 = 209
Drew Weaver, Virginia Tech 73-66-70 = 209
Graham Baillargeon, MSU 71-70-68 = 209
Ben Herrera, Iowa State 70-69-70 = 209
10. Danny Zimmerman, Wisconsin 67-72-71 = 210
Other Michigan Individuals
T11. Bill Rankin 72-69-70 = 211 T16. Alexander Sitompul 70-68-75 = 213 T16. Ross Millman 74-69-70 = 213 T22. Lion Kim 74-69-71 = 214 T14. Michael Slovitt 75-69-68 = 212* T14. Matt Thompson 68-72-72 = 212* T60. Alex Frankel 75-74-74 = 223* T69. David Weisfeld 74-77-74 = 225* T77. Billy McKay 80-74-73 = 227*
* played as individual
NOTES
• Michigan's second-round team total of nine-under 275 tied the U-M single-round record. The Wolverines have shot 275 on two other occasions -- the first round of the 2005 Alister MacKenzie Invitational and the second round of the 2005 Wolverine Intercollegiate.
• Michigan posted 12-of-30 individual rounds under par during the Wolverine Intercollegiate, including nine-of-12 by the starting five.
• Nick Pumford's five-under 66 in the first round is a new career best. He topped his previous best of four-under 67 which he had in the first round of the 2006 Wolverine Intercollegiate and in the third round of the 2007 Wolf Run Intercollegiate.
• Nick Pumford's four-under 209 Wolverine Intercollegiate total tied his career-best 54-hole tournament best. He equaled the 209 total he had two years ago at the 2006 Wolverine Intercollegiate. He has posted five of his last six rounds at the U-M Golf Course under par.
• Ross Millman posted a new career-best single round with his two-under 69 in the second round of the Wolverine Intercollegiate. He topped the 72 he posted last weekend in the first round at the Wolf Run Intercollegiate. Overall, he finished the home event with a new career-best 54-hole total for the second straight week. He closed with a 213 (74-69-70), surpassing his 226 at the season-opening Wolf Run Intercollegiate.
• Michael Slovitt posted a new career-best single round with his three-under 69 in the final round of the Wolverine Intercollegiate. He topped the two-under 69 had in the second round. He closed in a tied for 14th with a career-best 54-hole tournament total of 212 (75-69-68), giving him his first top-20 finish of his career.
• With his start at the Wolverine Intercollegiate, Bill Rankin has now started 26 straight tournaments and has not missed a start in the last three seasons.
• U-M men's golf alum Tim Schaetzel (2005-08), Brian Ottenweller (2005-08), Kevin Dore (2004-07) and Dave Nichols (2001-04) were among the gallery members watching the Wolverines during the tournament.
QUOTES
Michigan Head Coach Andrew Sapp
On the team earning its second straight tournament win ... "It was a lot of fun today. It was nerve-racking because UC Davis was playing well and making a charge, but the guys held on. We played solid and played well enough to come out with the victory. You have to be proud of them. Today, there was a lot of pressure. To see the guys perform the way they did at home with all the crowds, the fans and the family out there was really great."
On the team chemistry this year ... "They really believe in each other and they really care about each other. We have wonderful team chemistry right now from the starters to the guys who were not in the starting lineup. It is really neat because they are always asking how each other is doing and not really caring so much about the individual championship as much as the team championship. We want guys to compete for the individual championship and we have, but these last two wins are the first two wins that we didn't have the individual winner. They are playing well as a team. Five guys are really combining their scores together well to win these past two events as opposed to one guy just carrying us the whole time."
On Ross Millman's contributions this season ... "Ross has played tremendous for us. For a fifth-man to shoot some under-par scores has been tremendous. His confidence is high right now which is great. He has worked tremendously hard over the summer and even showed a lot of strides last spring. It is exciting to see Ross step up and play well. It is really inspiring to the rest of the guys on the team, which is even more fun to see. Ross has done a great job for us in these first two tournaments."
On if he expected to win back-to-back tournaments ... "We always expect to win on our home course. I think at Wolf Run we had a good field and did not necessarily expect to win, but expected to compete to win. We played well there last year and returned four guys that played last year, including the defending champion, so we expected to play well there this year. I am just thrilled that we started this way that's for sure. I would not say I'm shocked, but I am definitely thrilled."
U-M Senior Co-Captain Nick Pumford
On the team winning despite his personal struggles ... "It was a long day today. I hit a lot of good shots and I hit a lot of greens, but I just couldn't get the putter rolling. I can't complain. The team comes first. The better I play, the better it helps the team. Fortunately, it was enough to hold on today and it feels good to go two-for-two."
On what helped the team claim the victory ... "I think it is course experience. It was huge out there. To be able to come out on our own course, see the pin placements that we have seen before and to come out and execute it, it was huge."
U-M Senior Co-Captain Bill Rankin
On the team chemistry carrying the team ... "We are always pulling for each other out there. It is a good feeling. Yeah we are still trying to beat each other individually, but at the same time it is so much more to make sure that, like today, we held on and proved a lot to ourselves down the stretch. When we didn't have our best stuff, we still held it together and were able to get this win. I think it just makes us stronger to see Ross (Millman) shoot one-under and Lion (Kim) to finish strong down the stretch because Alex (Sitompul) and Nick (Pumford) were the go-to-guys coming into the day, and they had the two highest scores. Despite not playing well, they still fought through and played really well. We'll need them every bit as much as they'll need us the rest of the way. We are in this together and it is a good feeling knowing we will all be there for each other."
Players Mentioned
