Michigan
Desert Mountain Intercollegiate
Mueller, Pilon Earn Share of Desert Mountain Intercollegiate Individual Title
3/4/2018 6:57:00 PM | Men's Golf
» Kyle Mueller and Charlie Pilon were among three players who shared the Desert Mountain Intercollegiate individual title.
» Mueller earned his fifth career victory -- he also won the Southwestern Jones Invitational earlier this week -- while Pilon picked up the first win of his freshman season.
» Mueller broke par each round, shooting 71-70-71, and now has 14 sub-par scores in 17 rounds this season.
» Michigan tied with Purdue for second place, 21 shots behind runaway winner Kansas.
Site: Scottsdale, Ariz.
Course: Desert Mountain Outlaw Course (Par 72, 7,107 yards)
Tournament: Desert Mountain Intercollegiate (Day 2 of 2)
U-M Team Standing: Tie-2nd Place of 12 Teams (286-289-299/874)
Top U-M Individual: Kyle Mueller (71-70-71) and Charlie Pilon (69-73-70), tie-1st (212, -4)
Next U-M Event: Mon-Tue., March 18-20 -- at Linger Longer Invitational (Eatonton, Ga.)
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SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. -- There was one familiar face and one not-so-familiar name atop the leaderboard for the University of Michigan men's golf team at the Desert Mountain Intercollegiate after the 12-team, 54-hole men's golf tournament concluded Sunday (March 4) at Desert Mountain's Outlaw Course.
Senior Kyle Mueller, who was a medalist earlier this week at the Southwestern Jones Invitational, secured his fifth career victory at Desert Mountain and was joined at the top by freshman teammate Charlie Pilon, a first-time winner whose previous best was a tie for 46th just five days prior. San Diego's Dalton Hankamer also shared the title as the trio all finished at 212, four under par.
Mueller was in a tie for 16th after his opening-round one-under 71, but his second-round 70 moved him into a tie for eighth and he completed his ascent with a final-round 71 that was bettered by just two players. With three under-par rounds this event, Mueller has bettered par in 14 of his 17 rounds this season.
"We knew that Kyle would be around the leaders all day today," said Michigan head coach Chris Whitten. "I was thrilled to see him get co-medalist honors for the back-to-back wins. He is playing at such a high level and is leading our team in every possible way."
After pacing the Wolverines in the first round with a career-best 69 that included eight birdies, Pilon shot 73 in the second round and sat in a tie for 10th. But he made five birdies and two bogeys for a closing 70 that lifted him to a share of the individual title.
"Charlie was probably a surprise to a lot of people in the field this week, but not to his coaches and teammates," observed Whitten. "He's been hitting the ball beautifully and has such a great competitive attitude on the course. This should give him a lot of confidence for the rest of the spring season."
The 69-player field battled windy conditions during Saturday's (March 3) second round of a planned 36-hole day, and darkness halted play with less the half of the field completing its rounds. Chilly and breezy conditions Sunday provided challenging scoring conditions, but wire-to-wire leader Kansas closed out the win at 11-under 853 (280-284-289), 21 shots clear of Michigan (286-289-299) and Purdue (281-296-297) in second at 874.
Junior Nick Carlson fired a two-under 70 in the second round to help the Wolverines post the second-best team score of the round and vault U-M from fifth to second. He finished in a tie for 23rd at 223 (73-70-80). Sophomore Brent Ito tied for 35th at 227 (73-76-78), as did senior Ian Kim (72-77-78), who led Michigan's trio of individual competitors.
"The wind really made Outlaw play difficult this week," said Whitten, "and it took a lot of commitment and grit out there. I was happy to see both of those things for our team this week. I think we're getting better at managing the golf course. This tournament forced us to do that."
This marks the fourth straight year Michigan has hosted the Desert Mountain Intercollegiate during the Wolverines' spring break trip. Michigan has placed in the top two each year, and has earned a team victory (2017), a solo runner-up finish (2016) and two shared second-place showings (2015, '18).
Final Team Standings
1. Kansas 280-284-289 = 853 (-11)
2. MICHIGAN 286-289-299 = 874
Purdue 281-296-297 = 874
4. Washington State 290-299-288 = 877
5. St. Mary's (Calif.) 281-298-300 = 879
Utah 282-303-294 = 879
7. Oregon State 291-304-288 = 883
8. Miami (Ohio) 297-304-300 = 901
9. Fresno State 294-304-305 = 903
10. Lipscomb 305-303-306 = 914
11. San Diego 306-302-309 = 917
12. Nebraska 304-313-304 = 921
Top Individuals
1. KYLE MUELLER, U-M 71-70-71 = 212 (-4)
CHARLIE PILON, U-M 69-73-70 = 212
Dalton Hankamer, San Diego 71-68-73 = 212
4. Blake Tomlinson, Utah 64-75-74 = 213
Andy Spencer, Kansas 70-69-74 = 213
Perry Cohen, St. Mary's 66-73-74 = 213
Brian Carlson, Purdue 68-71-74 = 213
8. Daniel Hudson, Kansas 71-70-73 = 214
Charlie Hillier, Kansas 69-74-71 = 214
10. Pavan Sagoo, St. Mary's 67-72-76 = 215
Other Michigan Individuals
T23. Nick Carlson 73-70-80 = 223 T35. Brent Ito 73-76-78 = 227 T64. Connor Prassas 77-85-80 = 242 T35. Ian Kim 72-77-78 = 227* T55. Henry Spring 77-83-73 = 233* 68. Taisei Negishi 86-83-83 = 252*
* playing as individual
Players Mentioned
