Season Review: 2017-18 Michigan Men's Golf
6/15/2018 9:20:00 AM | Men's Golf
• Seniors: Ian Kim and Kyle Mueller
• Record: 94-185-7 overall, 14-16-1 Big Ten Conference
• Big Ten Tournament: 6th (865)
• NCAA Regional: Kyle Mueller, medalist (208, -5)
• NCAA Championships: Kyle Mueller, t-117th (229)
"As I look back on the 2017-18 season, mostly I think of how many of our guys grew into new roles. Kyle (Mueller) and Ian (Kim) were really outstanding as senior leaders, and many of the other guys took on much more responsibility. The team worked extremely hard and they are determined to improve. Charlie (Pilon), Henry (Spring) and Brent (Ito) all came on strong in the spring season which gives us a lot to look forward to heading into next year." -- Wolverines head coach Chris Whitten
Led by the record-breaking season of senior Kyle Mueller, the University of Michigan men's golf team continued to grow throughout the 2017-18 season, posting four top-five team finishes, bringing home four individual titles and earning a fourth straight trip to the NCAA postseason.
Team Highlights
• Michigan posted four top-five finishes during the regular season, including a season-best runner-up finish hosting the Desert Mountain Intercollegiate (March 3-4). The Wolverines finished with a 292.25 scoring average, which is the fifth lowest in program history.
• After three straight team selections, Mueller helped the Wolverines' NCAA postseason streak reach four years with his individual invitation to the regional at the Scarlet Course in Columbus, Ohio. Using a final-round 66 (-5), he became the second Wolverine to claim a regional title and advance to his second NCAA Finals. Battling weather and hot temperatures, Mueller posted a 229 tally to tie for 117th at the national championships.
• Using a career-best tally (214) and finish (tie for 10th) from freshman Henry Spring, U-M finished sixth at the Big Ten Championships held at the Baltimore Country Club. Sophomore Brent Ito added to the conference tournament success as his career-best 67 (-3) in the second round led to a career-best 217 tally to tie for 22nd. Freshman Charlie Pilon, who led after the first day, posted a career-best 67 in the first round.
Individual Highlights
• Saying Mueller's final season was special would be an understatement. Leading U-M in 10 of 13 events with 10 sub-par performances and winning three individual titles, he averaged a 70.76 per-round average -- setting the Wolverine single-season record for the third straight season. He earned his fourth All-Big Ten selection with a first team nod that made him the first Wolverine to receive the conference accolade in four straight years.
• Mueller was the recipient of the David Toms Overcoming Adversity Award in 2017 and added finalist honors for two of college golfs top awards -- the Byron Nelson Award Golf and the Haskins Award for the nation's top golfer. [ Release ]
• Mueller became the first Wolverine to earn the Big Ten's Les Bolstad Award for conference lowest scoring average. In fact, his average ranks as the third lowest in Big Ten history, trailing Indiana's Jeff Overton's record of 69.87 (2005) and Northwestern's Dylan Wu's 70.27 average in 2017.
• Adding to his list of records, Mueller set the U-M record for a single-round tally with his 63 (-7) in the second round of the Jerry Pate National Intercollegiate (Oct. 9-10, 2017) snapping the record of 64 held by four Wolverines, including Mueller himself. In Mueller's record round, he recorded eight birdies, one bogey and nine pars which saw a final-round 10-foot birdie putt for the record.
• Brent Ito started eight of 10 events in his second season and averaged 75.81 per round. He led the Wolverines at the Big Ten Match Play Championships (Feb. 9-10) with a 2-1-1 record. He highlighted his season in his final event of the season with a career-low 67 (-3) in the second round and 217 54-hole tournament total at the Big Ten Championships.
• The "Down Under Duo" of Charlie Pilon and Henry Spring gained valuable experience in their first year with the Wolverines. Pilon started nine of 10 events and was third on the Wolverines with a 74.24 per-round average. He won his first collegiate event, tying with Mueller at the Desert Mountain Intercollegiate. Spring started seven of his nine events and sported a 75.41 average. He closed his season with a career-best tie for 10th at the Big Ten Championships.
• Battling a right shoulder injury most of the season, Nick Carlson continued to be a solid force for the Wolverines. He finished with a 73.35 strokes-per-round average -- second on the team -- and started 10 events. He posted a career-best 36-hole tournament total (138) at the Inverness Intercollegiate and added a new career-low for a 54-hole event with a 207 (-6) at the Royal Oaks Intercollegiate, where he posted a season-best tie for third individual finish.
Honors and Awards
Kyle
Mueller
Ian
Kim
Charlie
Pilon
Nick
Carlson
Connor
Prassas
National Awards
David Toms Overcoming Adversity Award: Kyle Mueller
Byron Nelson Award Finalist: Kyle Mueller
Haskins Award Finalist: Kyle Mueller
Golfweek All-America: Kyle Mueller (second team)
PING All-Midwest Region: Kyle Mueller (first 4x U-M golfer in program history)
Conference Awards
All-Big Ten: Kyle Mueller (first team; second 3x first team selection and first 4x all-conference team)
Les Bolstad Award: Kyle Mueller (first U-M golfer to win conference stroke average award)
Big Ten Sportsmanship Award: Kyle Mueller
Big Ten Golfer of the Week: Kyle Mueller (Feb. 28, 2018)
Preseason Big Ten Golfers to Watch: Kyle Mueller, Ian Kim & Nick Carlson
Academic Awards
Academic All-Big Ten
Kyle Mueller, Sr., Sport Management
U-M Academic Achievement
Kyle Mueller
Charlie Pilon
Connor Prassas
Team Awards
U-M's Bert Katzenmeyer Award (Low Scoring Average): Kyle Mueller, 70.76 (U-M single season record)
U-M's Tom Trueblood Award (Most Improved): Kyle Mueller
U-M's Jim Carras Award (Development throughout Season): Charlie Pilon
Players Mentioned
