This Week in Michigan Women's Golf: Big Ten Championships
4/19/2016 12:00:00 AM | Women's Golf
April 19, 2016
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• Golfstat Team Ranking: 51st
• Golfweek Team Ranking: 52nd
THIS WEEK
Fri-Sun., April 22-24 -- at Big Ten Championships (Indianapolis, Ind.)
Live Scoring | B1G Championship Central | The Fort Golf Course
Next on the Tee: Big Ten Championships
Postseason play is finally here! The University of Michigan women's golf team will shift its focus toward the Wolverines' second season as they travel to Indianapolis, Indiana, Friday through Sunday (April 22-24) for the 54-hole Big Ten Championships. For the fifth straight year, the conference event will be held at a neutral site as this year's conference event will be held at the Fort Golf Resort for the second consecutive championship. The conference tournament will be played in a 6-count-4 format with the Fort set up for a par of 72 at 6,221 yards.
The Big Ten Championships Field
All 14 conference schools will participate in the 2016 Big Ten Championships. The seeding (1-14) with GolfStat relative rankings (as of April 12th) include:
#1 Northwestern (6)
#2 Purdue (36)
#3 Michigan State (42)
#4 Ohio State (43)
#5 Michigan (51)
#6 Indiana (57)
#7 Minnesota (58)
#8 Illinois (59)
#9 Wisconsin (71)
#10 Iowa (75)
#11 Penn State (89)
#12 Nebraska (114)
#13 Maryland (129)
#14 Rutgers (133)
The Big Ten Championships Schedule
Thursday, April 21 -- Practice Round (18), TBD (based upon final seeding)
Thursday, April 21 -- B1G Championship Banquet 6:45 p.m.
Friday, April 22 -- First Round (18), tee times off No. 1 and No. 10, 8:30 a.m.
Saturday, April 23 -- Second Round (18), tee times off No. 1 and No. 10, 8:30 a.m.
Sunday, April 24 -- Final Round (18), tee times off No. 1 and No. 10, 8:30 a.m.
The Big Ten Championships First Day Pairings (Player Order 6-1)
Tee #1 (8:48 a.m.) --#4 Ohio State, #5 Michigan, #6 Indiana
Tee #1 (9:42 a.m.) -- #1 Northwestern, #2 Purdue, #3 Michigan State
Tee #10 (8:30 a.m.) -- #13 Maryland, #14 Rutgers
Tee #10 (9:24 a.m.) -- #Iowa, #11 Penn State, #12 Nebraska
Tee #10 (10:18 a.m.) -- #7 Minnesota, #8 Illinois, #9 Wisconsin
Second Day Pairings (Player Order 6-1)^
Tee #1 (8:48 a.m.) --#4 Team, #5 Team, #6 Team
Tee #1 (9:42 a.m.) -- #1 Team, #2 Team, #3 Team
Tee #10 (8:30 a.m.) -- #13 Team, #14 Team
Tee #10 (9:24 a.m.) -- #10 Team, #11 Team, #12 Team
Tee #10 (10:18 a.m.) -- #7 Team, #8 Team, #9 Team
Final Day Pairings (Player Order 6-1)^
Tee #1 (8:48 a.m.) -- #4 Team, #5 Team, #6 Team
Tee #1 (9:42 a.m.) -- #1 Team, #2 Team, #3 Team
Tee #10 (8:30 a.m.) -- #13 Team, #14 Team
Tee #10 (9:24 a.m.) -- # Team, #11 Team, #12 Team
Tee #10 (10:18 a.m.) -- #7 Team, #8 Team, #9 Team
^ Second-round and final-day pairings will be based on each team's position on the leaderboard.
The Big Ten Championships Lineup
Michigan will have six players travel to the conference championships, including sophomore Kathy Lim, junior Grace Choi, senior Catherine Peters, sophomore Megan Kim, sophomore Emily White and freshman Elodie Van Dievoet.
Big Ten Championships Experience
• Catherine Peters -- fourth: 2013 (tie-56th, 241), 2014 (t-37th, 235), 2015 (t-29th, 225)
• Grace Choi -- third: 2014 (t-34th, 234), 2015 (t-18th, 222)
• Kathy Lim -- second: 2015 (t-25th, 224)
• Megan Kim -- second: 2015 (t-13th, 220)
• Emily White -- second: 2015 (t-50th, 230)
Michigan at the Big Ten Championships
Michigan has nine top-five finishes at the Big Ten Championships, including a runner-up finish in 2005 and a third-place finish in 2002. The Wolverines have had three individuals close as the runner-up -- LeAnna Wicks (2002, t-2nd), Ashley Bauer (2010, 283) and Yugene Lee (2012, 2nd). Bauer holds the Big Ten single-round record with a seven-under 65 fired in the second round of the 2012 conference event held at University Ridge in Madison, Wisconsin.
WOLVERINE BITES
• The battle for the scoring title has heated up as Grace Choi took over the lead with a 73.65 per-round average. She is ahead of Catherine Peters' 74.26 and Emily White's 74.80. In fact, U-M has four Wolverines averaging at or below 75 with the addition of Megan Kim's 75.00. All four are chasing the school record of 73.51 set by Ashley Bauer (2007-10) during the 2009-10 season.
• With the scoring race heating up, nearly every veteran Wolverine is averaging almost one-and-a-half strokes better than their single season-best scoring average. Below is a listing of the improvements.
» Emily White: 74.80 -3.11 (77.91, 2014-15)
» Catherine Peters: 74.26, -2.50 (76.76, 2014-15)
» Grace Choi: 73.65, -1.99 (75.64, 2013-14)
» Kathy Lim: 75.00, -1.88 (76.88, 2014-15)
» Megan Kim: 75.26, -0.78 (76.04, 2014-15)
• Michigan is averaging 295.26 per team round this season. This average is currently the only sub-300 team average in program history. The Wolverine record -- with a minimum of 10 total events -- is 302.53 set during the 2009-10 season -- almost 10 shots higher (9.28) per team round. This year alone, U-M has four sub-par team totals, including a U-M-record 275 (-13) in the first round of the Las Vegas Showdown (Oct. 25-27).
• Michigan set the U-M 54-hole tournament record at the Las Vegas Showdown (Oct. 25-27). With all three of U-M's team tallies -- 275 (-13), 279 (-9) and 281 (-7) -- breaking U-M's record for all-time lowest round, the Maize and Blue finished with an 835 (-29) team total to lower the U-M 54-hole record by 38 strokes. U-M crushed the previous record by 38 shots -- 873 at the 2001 Lady Northern Invitational (Sept. 21-23).
• U-M produced a 36-hole team tournament record with a 584 total at the East & West Match Play Challenge. The Wolverines were nine shots better than the previous mark of 593 (296-297) tallied at the 2013 Mercedes-Benz Collegiate Championships (Sept. 20-22). It marks just the second time in program history the Wolverines closed a 36-hole event sub-600.
• With 205 (-11) individual totals at the Las Vegas Showdown, Grace Choi and Catherine Peters both lowered the 54-hole individual record by four strokes. Choi (71-65-69) and Peters (68-68-69) topped the previous record of 209 (-4) set by Ashley Bauer (2007-10), which was tallied at the 2010 Rio Verde Invitational.
• With her 139 (-5) tally in the stroke-play qualifier of the East & West Match Play Challenge, Grace Choi shattered the U-M 36-hole tournament record by eight strokes. The previous mark was from recently departed Lauren Grogan (2012-15), who had a 147 (72-75) at the 2013 Mercedes-Benz Collegiate Championship (Sept. 20-22).
• Emily White became U-M's 28th individual medalist after defeating Clemson's Lauren Stephenson on the second playoff hole to win at the Yale Women's Intercollegiate (Oct. 9-11). It was the first time White led U-M at an event after not having finished lower than 20th in her career. The title was the first under U-M head coach Jan Dowling.
• With Emily White's win at the Yale Women's Intercollegiate, Michigan now has two Wolverines who have brought home hardware from an event this season. In the second fall event, Kathy Lim won the individual match play bracket at the East & West Match Play Challenge.
CHIPS & PUTTS
• Grace Choi leads U-M with a 73.65 scoring average.
• Choi tied a U-M record for a single round with a 65 (-7) in the second round of the Las Vegas Showdown (Oct. 26). With 11 pars, seven birdies in her bogey-free round, she equaled Ashley Bauer's (2007-10) school record of 65.
• Choi tallied a U-M-record 139 (-5) 36-hole tournament total -- East & West Match Play Challenge stroke play qualifier.
• Choi and Catherine Peters tallied a U-M-record 205 (-11) 54-hole tournament total -- Las Vegas Showdown.
• Michigan has had seven sub-par individual event totals.
• Michigan has had 16 sub-par individual rounds.
• All seven Wolverines have set a new career best for a tournament single round.
• Michigan has a record of 63-54-1 overall and 13-6 against the Big Ten this season.
• Michigan set school records for 36-hole tournament (584) and 54-hole tournament (835, -29).
• Michigan set the school record for lowest team round (275, -13) in the first round of the Las Vegas Showdown.
• Michigan is averaging 295.26 per team round, which is well below school-record pace. No U-M team has finished a season averaging below 300.
UP NEXT
Monday, April 25 -- NCAA Selection Show (Golf Channel), 6 p.m.
Thu-Sat., May 5-7 -- at NCAA Regional (NCAA selected)
Fri-Wed., May 20-25 -- at NCAA Championships (Eugene, Ore.)
Communications Contact: Tom Wywrot
Players Mentioned
