Michigan
Virtues Intercollegiate
Two Medalists, Four in Top Eight, Pace U-M to Dominating Win at Virtues Intercollegiate
9/26/2023 6:54:00 PM | Men's Golf
» With three straight team tallies at -10 or better, Michigan used a season-low 830 (-34) total to post a 23-shot victory and earn its second team title of the fall at the Virtues Intercollegiate at the Virtues Golf Club.
» U-M's 830 (-34) total is the second lowest 54-hole team total in program history.
» With 207 (-9) tallies by Ben Hoagland and Yuqi Liu, they joined Ohio's Will Kates as tri-medalists. It marked the first individual titles for both Hoagland and Liu. Overall, U-M had four Wolverines among the top eight after Hunter Thomson tied for fourth (208, -8) and Will Anderson was eighth (209, -7).
» With 13 recorded at the Virtues, U-M now has 32 of 45 individual rounds at-or-below par this season, while seven of its nine team totals have been below par.
Site: Nashport, Ohio
Tournament: Virtues Intercollegiate
Course: Virtues Golf Club (par 72, 7,243 yards)
U-M Team Standing: 1st Place of 17 (274-278-278/830, -34)
Top U-M Individual: Ben Hoagland (68-73-66), Yuqi Liu (70-68-69), tie-1st (207, -9)
Next U-M Event: Mon-Tue., Oct. 16-17 -- at Little Rock Invitational (Little Rock, Ark.)
NASHPORT, Ohio -- With two medalists, four Wolverines among the top eight and an 830 (-34) team total, the University of Michigan men's golf team dominated the inaugural Virtues Intercollegiate from start to finish and won its second team title in three fall events Tuesday (Sept. 26) by 23 shots at the Virtues Golf Club.
Producing totals of 207 (-9), redshirt-junior Ben Hoagland (68-73-66) and junior Yuqi Liu (70-68-69), who tallied a new career-low, tied with Ohio's Will Kates (69-69-69) for medalist honors. The shared title is the first for both Hoagland and Liu. The last time the Maize and Blue had two individual winners was during the 2018 Desert Mountain Intercollegiate, when Kyle Mueller and Charlie Pilon shared the top spot/
Overall, four Wolverines finished among the top eight with junior Hunter Thomson (67-69-72) tallying a third straight sub-par 54-hole total and second top-five finish after he tied for fourth at 208 (-8), while senior Will Anderson used three straight sub-par rounds (69-69-71) to record his sixth sub-par 54-hole total of his career at 209 (-7) and close eighth.
The last time Michigan had four Wolverines finish among the top eight was 10 years ago at the 2013 Detroit Golf Club Invitational, but that was a 36-hole event. The last 54-hole event was the 1987 Wolverine Invitational.
Getting off to a red-hot start Monday (Sept. 25), U-M used 21 birdies and four sub-par tallies to post a 274 (-14) in the first round to take a four-shot lead into the second 18 of the day. With 21 more birdies and three more sub-par rounds, Michigan followed with a 278 (-10) to extend its lead to 10 after 36-holes.
Capitalizing on 18 birdies and three eagles -- two from Liu -- over the final 18 holes, the Wolverines closed with a second straight 278 (-10) to tally a season-low 830 (-34) total and posted a 23-shot win over runners-up James Madison and George Washington, who finished at 853 (-11). With two wins in three fall events, U-M coach Zach Barlow has doubled his career win total with the Maize and Blue at four.
Playing as an individual for the second time this fall, freshman Jason Gordon used his first collegiate sub-par tally of 70 (-2) to set a new career-low 54-hole total of 218 (+2), as he tied for 36th.
Returning to Ann Arbor for a few weeks of training, the Wolverines will return to action heading to Little Rock, Ark., for the Little Rock Invitational, Monday and Tuesday, Oct. 16-17. The two-day, 54-hole event will be played at the Chenal Country Club. Last year, U-M posted an eighth-place team finish after Thomson paced the Maize and Blue tying for sixth (215, -1).
Final Team Standings
1. MICHIGAN 274-278-278 = 830 (-34) 2. James Madison 279-292-282 = 853 George Washington 280-287-286 = 853 4. Marshall 278-284-292 = 854 Miami (Ohio) 284-286-284 = 854 6. Wright State 289-281-287 = 857 7. Longwood 290-282-286 = 858 8. Butler 290-288-282 = 860 9. Purdue Fort Wayne 291-287-290 = 868 10. Northern Kentucky 293-284-300 = 877 11. Eastern Kentucky 295-286-297 = 878 12. Ohio 290-299-293 = 882 13. Robert Morris 288-294-301 = 883 Youngstown State 290-299-294 = 883 15. Central Michigan 290-292-302 = 884 16. Bowling Green 292-297-297 = 886 17. Cleveland State 295-294-300 = 889
Top Individuals
1. BEN HOAGLAND, U-M 68-73-66 = 207 (-9) YUQI LIU, U-M 70-68-69 = 207 Will Kates Ohio 69-69-69 = 207 4. HUNTER THOMSON, U-M 67-69-72 = 208 Will Horne Butler 75-66-67 = 208 Justin Larue Longwood 72-67-69 = 208 Ryan Bilby, Marshall 64-70-74 = 208 8. WILL ANDERSON, U-M 69-69-71 = 209 9. Rodrigo Barahona, George Washington 68-72-70 = 210 Jed Dy George, Washington 67-71-72 = 210
Other Michigan Individuals
T48. Jack O'Donnell 76-72-73 = 221 T36. Jason Gordon 73-70-75 = 218* played as individual
