Michigan
Southwestern Jones Invitational
This Week in Michigan Men's Golf: Southwestern Jones Invitational
2/23/2018 3:44:00 PM | Men's Golf
This Week
• Mon-Tue., Feb. 26-27 -- Southwestern Jones Invitational (Westlake Village, Calif.)
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• Honors & Awards: 2017-18 | Scholar Story: Kyle Mueller
Next on the Tee: Southwestern Invitational
The University of Michigan men's golf team is headed west on its annual spring-break trip, bookending the week with two tournaments. First up, the Wolverines will play in Pepperdine's Southwestern Jones Invitational, Monday and Tuesday (Feb. 26-27). The two-day, 54-hole event will be held at North Ranch Country Club in Westlake Village, California. There are 15 teams in the field with select teams allowed individuals, including the Wolverines. The event will be set up for a par 72 and 6,992 yards. After the completion of the event, U-M will head to Scottsdale, Arizona, for two days of training and hosting the Desert Mountain Intercollegiate, Saturday and Sunday (March 3-4).
The Southwestern Jones Invitational Field
There are 15 teams scheduled to play in the Southwestern Jones Invitational: Augusta, Denver, Long Beach State, Loyola Marymount, Michigan, New Mexico, Oregon State, Pepperdine, San Diego State, San Jose State, SMU, Tennessee, UC Davis, UCLA and Washington State.
The Southwestern Invitational Schedule
Saturday, Feb. 24 -- Travel Day & Practice Day
Sunday, Feb. 25 -- College Am & Practice Round, 11 a.m. PST (shotgun start)
Monday, Feb. 26 -- First Round (18), 7:30 a.m. PST (shotgun start)
Monday, Feb. 26 -- Second Round (18), continuous play following completion of first round
Tuesday, Feb. 27 -- Final Round (18), 7:45 a.m. PST (tee times off Nos. 1 and 10)
The Southwestern Jones Invitational Lineup
U-M will bring five starters and an individual for Pepperdine's event. Starting for U-M will be senior Kyle Mueller, junior Nick Carlson, senior Ian Kim and freshmen Charlie Pilon and Henry Spring. Sophomore Brent Ito will travel as the individual.
History at North Ranch Country Club
Michigan has played at North Ranch Country Club on three other occasions. U-M played in USC's Collegiate Invitational in 2011 and the North Ranch Collegiate in 2012. Last year, the Wolverines made their return to the event and finished sixth. U-M's lowest team tally was a 286 (+2) in the second round of the 2011 event.
 Michigan at North Ranch
• 2011: at USC Collegiate Invitational, 7th (289-286-296/871)
• 2012: North Ranch Collegiate, 9th (307-304-295/906)
• 2017: Southwestern Jones Invitational, 6th (289-294-296/879)
The Rest of Spring Break Schedule
Following the Southwestern Jones Invitational, the Wolverines will continue their spring break in Scottsdale, Arizona, and the Outlaw Course at the Desert Mountain Intercollegiate. After two days of practice, U-M will host the event on Saturday and Sunday (March 3-4).
Wednesday, Feb. 28 -- Practice & Play
Thursday, March 1 -- Practice & Play
Friday, March 2 -- Desert Mountain Intercollegiate, Practice Round
Saturday, March 3 -- Desert Mountain Intercollegiate, First & Second Rounds
Sunday, March 4 -- Desert Mountain Intercollegiate, Final Round
Bonus Rounds for Wolverine Duo: TMU Invitational
While the starting five will head to the Southwestern Jones Invitational, sophomore Taisei Negishi and freshman Connor Prassas will travel to Santa Clarita, California, to play in the TMU Spring Invitational, hosted by Master's University, Monday and Tuesday (Feb. 26-27) at the San Canyon Country Club.
WOLVERINE BITES
• Michigan posted three of top-five finishes in its four fall events. U-M opened the season tied for third in the rain-shortened Inverness Intercollegiate and came back to earn a fifth-place finish at the Northern Intercollegiate five days later. After an 11th place showing at Alabama's Jerry Pate National, the Wolverines rebounded with a fifth-place finish at the Royal Oaks Intercollegiate. As a team, the Wolverines are averaging 286.18 with four sub-par team totals, which included a season-best 278 (-6) in the first round at Royal Oaks.
• With his expected start in the Southwestern Jones Invitational, Kyle Mueller will have started 44 straight tournaments -- not missing an event in his career. He played in 13 events as a freshman, 11 as a sophomore and 13 as a junior. In addition, Nick Carlson has yet to miss a tournament in three seasons, starting 30 consecutive events.
• Saying Mueller's final season has started off right would be an understatement. After leading U-M in three of the four fall events with four sub-par performances, he is averaging 69.18 per round average. In fact, eight of his 11 rounds have been under-par with six sub-70 rounds -- including a U-M record 63 (-7) carded in the second round of the Jerry Pate National Intercollegiate. Mueller has recorded 49 sub-par scores in 110 rounds (44.5 percent).
• Adding to his list of records at Michigan, Mueller became the first Wolverine to shoot 63 (-7) snapping the record of 64 held by four Wolverines, including Mueller himself. All five of U-M's top rounds of all time were recorded in the fall as well as in the second round of each event. 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.
U-M's Top 5 Single Rounds
63 (-7), Kyle Mueller at 2017 Jerry Pate National Intercollegiate (Oct. 9-10)
64 (-7), Kyle Mueller at 2015 Alister MacKenzie Invitational (Oct. 12-13)
64 (-8), Bill Rankin at 2008 Bridgestone Intercollegiate (Oct. 27-28)
64 (-7), Christian Vozza at 2005 Alister MacKenzie Invitational (Oct. 10-11)
64 (-7), Michael Harris at 1998 Northern Intercollegiate (Sept. 18-19)
• The list of Mueller's honors at Michigan continues to grow. With his latest record of U-M's top single-round tally of 63 (-7) he now holds eight outright records in the annals of Michigan golf history.
Mueller's List of Michigan Records
• U-M single season scoring: 71.36 (2016-17); only Wolverine in history to post sub-72 average
• U-M season scoring (by class): freshman (72.56), sophomore (71.72) and junior (71.36)
• U-M single-round: 63 (-7) in the second round at the 2017 Jerry Pate National Intercollegiate (Oct. 9-10)
• U-M 36-hole tournament: 135 (68-67, -7) at the 2017 Inverness Intercollegiate (Sept. 18-19)
• U-M 54-hole tournament: 198 (69-64-65, -15) at 2015 The MacKenzie (Oct. 12-13); first Wolverine to post sub-200 tournament total
• U-M 54-hole Big Ten Tournament: 209 (-7) at the 2016 conference championships
• Like a repeating scene, Michigan was led by Mueller and Carlson all four fall events. In the three seasons together, the Maize and Blue duo has finished as the top two in 12 of 28 events. So far this season, Mueller has led U-M in three events, with Carlson adding one. Mueller has four straight top-12 finishes after he tied for third (135, -7) at the Inverness Intercollegiate, tied for eighth (212, -4) at the Northern Intercollegiate, finished fifth (203, -7) at the Jerry Pate National Intercollegiate and tied for 12th (211, -2) at the Royal Oaks.
• After Mueller and Carlson, the Wolverines are jam-packed with five Wolverines all averaging within a half-stroke of each other. Henry Spring leads the pack with a 74.13 average, while Brent Ito (74.22), Ian Kim (74.36), Charlie Pilon (74.75) and Connor Prassas (74.75) are just behind.
INSIDE THE MAIZE AND BLUE
• Michigan made its third straight NCAA regional appearance as a team in 2016-17, finishing 10th at the Washington Regional. Kyle Mueller led the Wolverines, tied for eighth individually and missed advancing to his second NCAA Finals by a single shot.
• Mueller earned his third straight All-Big Ten selection and second first-team accolade in 2016-17. He became the second Wolverine in program history to earn three All-Big Ten honors, joining Michael Harris, who was a three-time first teamer (1998-2000). Mueller has second-team honors as a freshman (2015) and back-to-back years of first-team selections (2016, 2017).
• In addition to his Big Ten honor, Mueller garnered PING All-America honorable mention from the Golf Coaches Association of America, becoming the 10th Wolverine to earn an All-America accolade and the first in six years (2011).
• Mueller and Carlson competed at the 2017 U.S. Amateur in California. Mueller made his third straight appearance and advanced to match play for the second time, reaching the round of 32. Carlson made his second straight trip after his remarkable run to the Final Four in 2016.
UP NEXT
• Sat-Sun., March 3-4 -- Host, Desert Mountain Intercollegiate (Scottsdale, Ariz.)
• Sun-Tue., March 18-20 -- Linger Longer Invitational (Eatonton, Ga.)
Players Mentioned
