Michigan
Linger Longer Invitational
Mueller Ties for Sixth to Lead Michigan at Linger Longer Invitational
3/20/2018 6:46:00 PM | Men's Golf
» Kyle Mueller notched his seventh straight top-10 finish at the Linger Longer Invitational as he tied for sixth.
» Mueller shot 73 (+1) on the final day of the three-day tournament, followed closely by freshman Charlie Pilon's 74 on Tuesday. Pilon would finish tied for 45th.
» As a team, the Wolverines finished 13th in the 14 team field.
Site: Eatonton, Ga.
Course: Great Waters Golf Course (Par 72, 7,073 yards)
Tournament: Linger Longer Invitational
U-M Team Standing: 13th Place of 14 Teams (304-296-299/899)
Top U-M Individual: Kyle Mueller, tie-7th (68-70-73/211)
Next U-M Event: Sat-Sun., April 7-8 -- The Aggie Invitational (Bryan, Texas)
EATONTON, Ga. -- Led by a top-10 individual finish from senior Kyle Mueller, the University of Michigan men's golf team finished 15th in the standings at the Linger Longer Invitational at Great Waters Golf Course on Tuesday (March 20).
Mueller notched his seventh-straight top-10 finish as he finished the three-day tournament tied for sixth at 211 (68-70-73) after a final-day round of 73 (+1) on the par-72 course and pacing the Wolverines as they combined to score 299 on the day and 899 (304-296-299) overall.
"Kyle continued to play well and did not get as many breaks to go his way this week, but still found a way to finish in the top 10, which is great," head coach Chris Whitten said. "I'm really excited to watch him compete for the rest of the year."
With three birdies on the day and 12 pars, Mueller was solid throughout his final 18 holes as he posted the lowest score of the day for the Wolverines at 73, one stroke better than freshman Charlie Pilon at 74 (+2). Mueller recovered nicely from a double-bogey on his 13th hole and shot even-par golf for the remaining five to close out his competition. Two of his three birdies on Tuesday came on par-5 holes, on which he was among the tournament's best over the three days. He shot 7-under on his 12 times through par-five holes, a performance surpassed by just three others in the field. His 13 total birdies were four short of the tournament lead.
Though Mueller narrowly missed a under-par performance on the day, he has shot under par in 16 of 20 rounds so far this season.
Pilon got off to a quick start with a birdie on his second hole and was solid through the next nine before back-to-back bogeys on his 12th and 13th holes and another to finish his day on the 18th. His overall consistency through the weekend paid off as he shot par on 38 holes, just four off the highest total of the tournament.
"Charlie also gave us some solid golf and continues to show a lot of maturity on the course, especially for a freshman," Whitten said.
After missing the first two rounds with shoulder soreness, Nick Carlson played in the final round and carded a 75 (+3) for the day. After a bogey and double-bogey on back-to-back holes on his 13th and 14th, Carlson came back with an eagle -- he was one of 21 players with at least one eagle in the tournament -- on his 15th. He also knocked in a birdie on his ninth and posted three more bogeys, all on his front nine.
"It's unfortunate that Nick wasn't able to play the first two rounds because of injury and we missed him for sure, but we will continue to expect more depth," Whitten said.
By tournament rules, Carlson finished at the bottom of the individual leaderboard for the competition, but his round was eligible for team scoring. Sophomore Brent Ito finished the day at 77 (+5). Sitting at one over par with six holes to go, they were eventful with a pair of birdies, a pair of bogeys and a pair of double-bogeys. Senior Ian Kim turned in his best 18 holes of the tournament on Tuesday and completed the final round with a score of 79 (+7).
The Maize and Blue will take a few weeks in Ann Arbor before heading back out for Texas A&M's Aggie Invitational, Saturday and Sunday, April 7-8, at the Traditions Club in Bryan, Texas. In last year's rain-shortened event, Mueller captured the individual title with a U-M 36-hole record tally (138, -6) while U-M tied for ninth with a 594 total.
"Kyle won at Texas A&M last year and will look to defend," Whitten said. "Each tournament leading toward the Big Ten Championship will be more and more important at this point in the season. We will work hard to peak at the right time."
Final Team Standings
1. Georgia 272-286-281 = 840 (-24)
2. Alabama 277-282-284 = 842
3. Penn State  278-289-289 = 856
4. Ohio State  281-289-291 = 861
5. Virginia 286-287-292 = 865
6. UNC Greensboro 287-287-292 = 866
7. Augusta 292-284-291 = 867
8. Kennesaw State 288-300-283 = 871
9. Chattanooga 283-293-300 = 876
10. Cincinnati 287-291-299 = 877
11. Middle Tennessee State 293-290-295 = 878
12. Mercer 294-298-290 = 882
13. Charlotte 295-295-298 = 888
14. Troy 295-294-302 = 891
15. MICHIGANÂ 304-296-299 = 899
16. Akron 297-304-314 = 915
Top Individuals
1. Lee Hodges, Alabama 67-68-67 = 202 (-14)
2. Spencer Ralston, Georgia 65-72-67 = 204
3. Bryce Hendrix, UNC Greensboro 67-71-68 = 206
Davis Thompson, Georgia  63-69-74 = 206
5. Davis Riley, Alabama 69-72-69 = 210
6. KYLE MUELLER, U-M 68-70-73 = 211
Wyatt Larkin, Kennesaw State 71-73-67 = 211
Thomas Walsh, Virginia 71-69-71 = 211
Cole Miller, Penn State  65-73-73 = 211
Other Michigan Individuals
T6. Kyle Mueller 68-70-73 = 211 (-5)
T45. Charlie Pilon 78-70-74 = 222
T72. Brent Ito 78-75-77 = 230
T86. Ian Kim 80-81-79 = 240
89. Nick Carlson W-W-75 = N/A
Players Mentioned
