Michigan
NCAA Southwest Regional (Day 1)
U-M Finishes Day One of NCAA Southwest Regional in Seventh
5/14/2009 12:00:00 AM | Men's Golf
Site: Austin, Texas
Course: University of Texas Golf Course (par 71, 7,412 yards)
Tournament: NCAA Southwest Regional (Day 1 of 3)
U-M Standing: 7th Place of 13 Teams (301)
Top U-M Individual: Lion Kim, tie-15th (73)
Next Event: Fri-Sat., May 15-16 -- at NCAA Southwest Regional (Austin, Texas)
AUSTIN, Texas -- Paced by strong back nines from sophomore Lion Kim (Lake Mary, Fla./Lake Mary Prep School) and freshman Matt Thompson (Battle Creek, Mich./Lakeview HS), the University of Michigan men's golf team finished today's (Thursday, May 14) first round of the NCAA Southwest Regional with a 301 team total, putting the Wolverines in the seventh position at the University of Texas Golf Course. With the top five teams advancing to the NCAA Finals, the Wolverines are five shots back with 36 holes remaining.
Matt Thompson
Opening U-M's second straight regional with five bogeys in his first eight holes, Kim closed the front side with a birdie on the final hole to make the turn at four over par. Using the momentum of his red score on No. 9, Kim caught fire and played two under on the back side with birdies on Nos. 13 and 17 while parring the other seven holes to lead U-M with a two-over 73, which is good for a tie for 15th.
Right behind Kim was Thompson, who closed the first day tied for 18th after carding a three-over 74 in his first NCAA Regional action. Posting 14 total pars during his round, Thompson's only scorecard blemishes came with a bogey on No. 5 and a double bogey on No. 8 as he made the turn at three over. However, following Kim's lead, Thompson closed the back nine even par after a bogey on No. 11 was erased with a birdie on No. 15, giving him a first-round 74 and placing him among the top 20 individually.
Other scores on the first day for U-M included senior co-captain Nick Pumford (St. Charles, Mich./St. Charles HS) and sophomore Alexander Sitompul (Jakarta, Indonesia/Bradenton Prep) both posting 77s, putting them tied for 38th, and senior co-captain Bill Rankin (Traverse City, Mich./Central HS) closing with an 80 to put him tied for 57th after 18 holes.
Using a pair of one-under 70s and two even-par rounds, 17th-ranked Texas Tech took the team lead after 18 holes, tallying a two-under 282. Host and 24th-ranked Texas is nine shots back in second place after posting a 291 total on its home course, while eighth-ranked Florida is third at 293. The Longhorns' Lance Lopez and Lamar's Hugues Joannes are tied for the individual lead after firing three-under 68s in the first round. Three players are tied for third two shots back with one-under 70s.
With 18 holes in the books, the Wolverines will continue the 2009 NCAA Southwest Regional with the second round on Friday (May 15) at the University of Texas Golf Course. The Maize and Blue will be paired with Virginia Tech and Mississippi State and start on No. 10 at 10:10 a.m. CDT. The Southwest Regional will conclude on Saturday (May 16) with the final 18 holes.
Team Standings
1. Texas Tech 282 (-2)
2. Texas 291
3. Florida 293
4. Stanford 294
5. UNLV 296
Lamar 296
7. MICHIGAN 301
8. Virginia Tech 302
9. Mississippi State 305
10. California 306
11. Texas-Arlington 308
12. New Mexico State 309
13. Jackson State 335
Top Individuals
1. Hugues Joannes, Lamar 68 (-3)
Lance Lopez, Texas 68
3. Nils Floren, Texas Tech 70
Brian Scherer, Texas Tech 70
Steve Ziegler, Stanford 70
6. Zack Fischer, Texas-Arlington 71
Garrett Merrell, Texas Tech 71
Chris Ward, Texas Tech 71
9. Billy Horschel, Florida 72
Bobby Hudson, Texas 72
Eddie Olson, UNLV 72
Travis Reid, New Mexico State 72
Will Strickler, Florida 72
Drew Weaver, Virginia Tech 72
Michigan Individuals
T15. Lion Kim 39-34 = 73 T18. Matt Thompson 38-36 = 74 T38. Alexander Sitompul 36-41 = 77 T38. Nick Pumford 35-42 = 77 T57. Bill Rankin 41-39 = 80
NOTES
• Michigan is making its 23rd NCAA postseason appearance. The NCAA Southwest Regional marks the fourth modern-era, regional-formatted event for U-M and the second straight for the Wolverines. U-M also played in the 1997, 2000 and 2008 Central Regionals and advanced to the NCAA Finals in 1997. U-M won back-to-back NCAA titles in 1934 and 1935.
• Nick Pumford, Bill Rankin, Lion Kim and Alexander Sitompul are playing in their second NCAA Regional, while Matt Thompson is making his first appearance.
• With his start at the NCAA Southwest Regional, Bill Rankin has now made 36 straight and has not missed a start in the last three seasons. Nick Pumford made his 22nd straight start for the Wolverines dating back to his junior year, while Lion Kim extended his consecutive start streak to 18. All three are the only Wolverines to start all 12 events this season.
Players Mentioned
