This Week in Michigan Men's Golf: NCAA Franklin Regional
5/11/2016 12:00:00 AM | Men's Golf
May 11, 2016
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• Golfweek Team Ranking: 51st
THIS WEEK
Mon-Wed., May 16-18 -- at NCAA Franklin Regional (Franklin, Tenn.), 8 a.m. CDT
Live Scoring | NCAA Championships | Regional Central | Vanderbilt Legends Club
Next on the Tee: NCAA Franklin Regional
Postseason play continues! For the second straight year, the University of Michigan men's golf team will return to an NCAA regional as a team. The Wolverines will head to Franklin, Tennessee, Monday through Wednesday, May 16-18, for the NCAA Franklin Regional site. One of six regional sites, the 54-hole event, featuring 13 teams and 10 individuals, will be played at the Vanderbilt Legends Club. The regional will be played in a 5-count-4 format with the course set up for a par of 72 at 7,190 yards.
The NCAA Franklin Regional Field
There are 13 teams and 10 individuals invited to the NCAA Franklin Regional. The seeding for the event will be:
1. Texas
2. Vanderbilt
3. LSU
4. Washington
5. Virginia
6. Houston
7. Pepperdine
8. Kennesaw State
9. Michigan
10. Troy
11. East Carolina
12. UT Martin
13. Georgetown
Individuals
1. Ryan Cole, James Madison
2. Ryan Cornfield, USC Upstate
3. Matthew Lowe, Richmond
4. Jose Montaño, Xavier
5. Patrick Cover, UNC Wilmington
6. Thomas Eldridge, UNC Wilmington
7. Joey Lane, Virginia Tech
8. Jake McGlone, UNC Greensboro
9. Ryan Wenzler, Wright State
10. U Minn Woon, Fairleigh Dickinson
Additional NCAA Regional Sites
• Tuscaloosa Regional: The Ol' Colony Golf Complex in Tuscaloosa, Alabama -- hosted by Alabama
• Tucson Regional: The Gallery Golf Club in Tucson, Arizona -- hosted by Arizona
• Kohler Regional: Blackwolf Run Meadow Valley in Kohler, Wisconsin -- hosted by Marquette
• Stillwater Regional: Karsten Golf Club in Stillwater, Oklahoma -- hosted by Oklahoma State
• Albuquerque Regional: The Championship Course in Albuquerque, New Mexico -- hosted by New Mexico.
Advancing to the NCAA Finals
From each regional, the top five teams and top low individual not on a qualifying team will advance to the NCAA Finals, to be held Friday through Wednesday, May 27-June 1, at Eugene Country Club in Eugene, Oregon.
The NCAA Franklin Regional Schedule
Sunday, May 15 -- Practice Round (18), 9 a.m. CDT (tee time off No. 1)
Monday, May 16 -- First Round (18), 8:55 a.m. CDT (tee time off No. 1)
Tuesday, May 17 -- Second Round (18), 8 a.m. CDT (tee times off No. 1 and 10)
Wednesday, May 18 -- Final Round (18), 8 a.m. CDT (tee times off No. 1 and 10)
The NCAA Franklin Regional First Round Pairings (Player Order 5-1)
Tee #1 (8 a.m. CDT) -- #1 Texas, #2 Vanderbilt, #3 LSU
Tee #10 (8:20 a.m. CDT) -- #4 Washington, #5 Virginia, #6 Houston
Tee #1 (8:55 a.m. CDT) -- #7 Pepperdine, #8 Kennesaw State, #9 Michigan
Tee #10 (9:15 a.m. CDT) -- #10 Troy, #11 East Carolina, #12 UT Martin
Tee #1 (9:50 a.m. CDT) -- #13 Georgetown, Individuals
^ second-round and final-day pairings will be based on each team's position on the leaderboard.
The NCAA Franklin Regional Lineup
Michigan will have five players travel to the NCAA Franklin Regional, including sophomore Kyle Mueller, senior Chris O'Neill, freshman Nick Carlson, junior Reed Hrynewich and junior Tom Swanson.
NCAA Regional Experience
• Chris O'Neill -- third: 2014^ (t-20th, 225), 2015 (t-30th, 218)
• Kyle Mueller -- second: 2015# (t-2nd, 207, -9)
• Reed Hrynewich -- second: 2015 (t-39th, 221)
• Tom Swanson -- second: 2015 (t-62nd, 226)
• Nick Carlson -- first NCAA regional
^ played as invited individual, missed NCAA Finals by three shots
# advanced to NCAA Finals as individual, tying for 94th (229)
Last Year at the NCAA Regional
With his nine-under 207, Kyle Mueller finished as the NCAA Washington Regional medalist runner-up at Gold Mountain Golf Club. He advanced to the NCAA Finals, while, despite posting a regional-best five-under 283 in final round, U-M did not qualify as a team, finishing seventh with a one-under 863 (292-288-283), nine shots away from a top-five finish. [ Recap ]
Michigan at the NCAA Postseason
This year's NCAA regional selection marks U-M's 39th NCAA postseason appearance and the program's ninth team regional since the format changed to regional play in 1989. The Wolverines have participated in six Central Regionals (1995, '97, 2000, '08, '10, '11), one Southwest Regional (2009) and one Washington Regional (2015). Overall, U-M has made 22 NCAA Final appearances, winning back-to-back national titles in 1934 and 1935.
History at the NCAA Regional (as team)
1995: Central - 12th (890)
1997: Central - 8th (874)
2000: Central - t-11th (866)
2008: Central - t-12th (904)
2009: Southwest - 5th (888) - advanced to NCAA Finals
2010: Central - t-6th (848)
2011: Central - 1st (841) - advanced to NCAA Finals
2015: Washington - 7th (863)
WOLVERINE BITES
• Michigan has five top-five finishes in nine stroke-play events. U-M was the runner-up at the Windon Memorial Classic (Sept. 27-28) as well as the Desert Mountain Intercollegiate (March 5-6). The Wolverines were third at the Inverness Intercollegiate (Sept. 21-22), tied for fourth at the Big Ten Championships (April 22-24) and were fifth at The MacKenzie (Oct. 12-13). Overall, U-M has a 74-49-4 team record.
• Michigan has averaged 868.13 per 54-hole event. The Wolverines have continued to be consistent from round to round, descending each round -- first (291.78), second (290.00) and final (288.50). Overall, U-M is averaging a school-record pace of 290.15 per team round.
• Michigan posted an 867 (-3) total and tied for fourth at the Big Ten Championships (April 22-24) -- the program's best finish is six years. Kyle Mueller earned All-Big Ten Tournament honors after finishing third with a 209 (-7) and set the U-M 54-hole record at the conference tournament by five shots. Chris O'Neill earned his third career top-20 conference tournament finish as he tied for 12th with a 215 (-1). [ Recap ]
• Kyle Mueller became U-M's 17th All-Big Ten first team selection and the first since 2008. In addition, the accolade is his second straight from the conference after garnering second-team honors last season.
• Chris O'Neill was one of five finalists for the prestigious Byron Nelson Award, which is given annually to a graduating senior who excels not only on the golf course but also in the classroom and community. O'Neill was one of three B1G players up for the honor, joining Illinois' Alex Burge and Charlie Danielson. There are two major awards for collegiate golf -- the Ben Hogan Award (POY) and the Byron Nelson. The honor went to Clemson's Stephen Behr Jr.
• Chris O'Neill made his 46th consecutive start at the Big Ten Championships (April 22-24) and has yet to miss an event in his four-year career. He is expected to extend that streak this week at the NCAA Franklin Regional. Sophomore Kyle Mueller has started the first 23 tournaments of his young career.
• Chris O'Neill has continued to have a stellar final campaign, posting five top-10 finishes -- the Inverness Intercollegiate (t-6th), Desert Mountain Intercollegiate (t-8th), Windon Memorial Classic (t-9th) and the MacKenzie Invitational and Aggie Invitational (t-10th). With nine sub-par rounds -- including a season-best 66 (-5) in the first round of the MacKenzie and 66 (-6) in the first round of the Desert Mountain Intercollegiate -- he is averaging 72.31, just under a shot better than any of his three previous seasons (73.03 in 2013-14).
• Kyle Mueller, who leads U-M with a 71.54 scoring average, has nearly won three events this season -- the Inverness Intercollegiate (2nd), Windon Memorial Classic (t-3rd) and the MacKenzie Invitational (4th). Those three near victories give him six top-five career finishes in his young career of just 23 total events. Overall, Mueller has finished as the top Wolverine in five of 10 event this season. For his career, he has finished as the top Wolverine in a tournament 14 times -- 60 percent.
• Aided by a U-M record-tying 64 (-7) in the second round of the MacKenzie Invitational (Oct. 12-13), Kyle Mueller became the first Wolverine to crack 200 in a 54-hole event. He closed with a 198 (69-64-65, -15) to set the new U-M standard by four shots -- 202 (-8) held by Bill Rankin at the 2008 Maxwell. For his efforts, Mueller was honored as the Big Ten Golfer of the Week for the second time in his career.
• Nick Carlson will make his 11th straight start at the NCAA Franklin Regional. In his first season, he is averaging 73.96 per round -- which is tied for the fourth-best freshman scoring average all-time. He posted a career-best 210 (-3) performance at the Windon Memorial Classic (Sept. 27-28) and set a career-best single round with a 68 (-3) in the final round of the MacKenzie Invitational (Oct. 12-13).
• Tom Swanson, who has started all 10 events this season, is averaging a half shot better than his previous best scoring average -- 74.77 compared to 75.33 (2014-15). This season, he tied his career-best single round twice with a 70 (-1) in the first round of the Windon Memorial (Sept. 27-28) and a 70 (-2) in the final round of the Desert Mountain Intercollegiate (March 5-6). He also set a career-best 54-hole tournament score with a 212 (-4) at Desert Mountain.
• Reed Hrynewich, who has started seven events this season, posted his first top-10 finish of the season with a career-best-tying 214 (-2) total at the Desert Mountain Intercollegiate (March 5-6). He followed tying for 20th at the Aggie Invitational with a 222 tally. For the season he is averaging 75.12 per round.
UP & DOWNS (INDIVIDUALS)
• Kyle Mueller leads U-M with a 71.54 scoring average. He leads with 12 total sub-par rounds, including lowest round of the season and U-M record-tying 64 (-7) in the second round of The MacKenzie (Oct. 12-13).
• Michigan has never had a player finish a season averaging below 72 per round. Currently, U-M is on pace to have two -- Mueller (71.54) and Chris O'Neill (72.31).
• Mueller tallied a team-low and U-M-record 198 (-15) 54-hole tournament total at The MacKenzie.
• Mueller has posted 10 top-20 finishes, which include six top-10 and four top-five marks.
• O'Neill has five top-10 finishes in eight 54-hole events this season.
• Seven of U-M's eight-man roster have posted a sub-par round this season; as a team U-M has 36 total.
CHIPS & PUTTS (TEAMS)
• Michigan has a record of 74-49-4 overall and 22-17-1 against the Big Ten this season.
• U-M has had three Wolverines finish a tournament among the top 20 individually three times.
• Currently, U-M is averaging a school-record-pace 290.15 per team round. The all-time mark was 290.45 per round during the 2009-10 season.
• Overall, the Wolverines have posted eight sub-par team totals this season.
• U-M posted a season-low and U-M-record 272 (-12) in the first round of The MacKenzie.
• Michigan recorded a U-M record 824 (-28) 54-hole tournament total at The MacKenzie.
• U-M has finished three of its eight 54-hole team events under par -- 845 (-7) at the Windon Memorial Classic, 824 (-28) at The MacKenzie and 851 (-13) at Desert Mountain Intercollegiate.
INTO THE RECORD BOOKS
• Kyle Mueller's 198 (-15) at The MacKenzie (Oct. 12-13) set the U-M 54-hole tournament by four shots. It is the first time a Wolverine has broken 200 in a 54-hole event. Previous mark: 202 (-8), Bill Rankin (2008 Maxwell).
• Mueller tied the U-M single-round record with a 64 (-7) in the second round of the MacKenzie Invitational with 11 pars and seven birdies. Additional 64s: Bill Rankin (2008 Bridgestone Intercollegiate, 2nd), Christian Vozza (2005 MacKenzie Invitational, 2nd) and Michael Harris (1998 Northern Intercollegiate, 2nd).
• Mueller set the U-M 54-hole Big Ten Tournament record with a 209 (-7). Previous mark: Kevin Dore (214) at the 2004 conference event. The Big Ten championship has been played as 54-holes just three times -- 2004, 2005 and 2016.
• Michigan tallied a U-M team single-round record 272 (-12) in the first round of The MacKenzie, lowering by three shots. Previous mark: 275, four times - last: 2010 Bridgestone Intercollegiate.
• Michigan posted a U-M 54-hole team tournament record 824 (-28) at The MacKenzie, lowering by 15 shots. Previous mark: 839 (-13) at the 2005 Wolverine Intercollegiate.
UP NEXT
Fri-Wed., May 27-June 1 -- NCAA Championships (Eugene, Ore.)
Communications Contact: Tom Wywrot
