Michigan
Big Ten Championships
Spring, Ito Lead Wolverines to Sixth at Big Ten Championships
4/29/2018 5:29:00 PM | Men's Golf
» Michigan used a 296 final-round team total to finish sixth at the Big Ten Championships with an 864 tournament total.
» Freshman Henry Spring led U-M in his first conference championship, tying for 10th at 214 (72-69-73).
» Sophomore Brent Ito gave U-M two Wolverines among the top 25 as he tied for 22nd at 217 (77-67-73).
» Senior Kyle Mueller was named U-M's first Les Bolstad Award winner for lowest scoring average among all Big Ten players. Mueller's 70.32 average was the third lowest in conference history and set a new U-M record.
» With a team bid unlikely, the Wolverines will wait to see if Mueller earns an individual invitation to an NCAA regional.
Site: Baltimore, Md.
Tournament: Big Ten Championships (Day 3 of 3)
Course: Baltimore Country Club (par 70, 7,181 yards)
U-M Team Standing: 6th Place of 14 Teams (291-278-296/865)
Top U-M Individual: Henry Spring, tie-10th (72-68-73/214)
Next U-M Event: Mon-Wed., May 14-16 -- at NCAA Regional, TBD (six sites)
• Photo Gallery
BALTIMORE, Md. -- Using top-25 finishes from freshman Henry Spring (T-10th)and sophomore Brent Ito (T-25th), the University of Michigan men's golf team used a 296 final-round team total today (Sunday, April 29) to post an 865 54-hole total and finish sixth at the Big Ten Championships held at the Baltimore Country Club.
Using freshman Charlie Pilon's career-best 67 (-3), the Wolverines opened the Big Ten Championships with a 291 first round tally on Friday (April 27) to finish the day in eighth place. With career-bests by Ito (67, -3) and Spring (69, -1) in Saturday's second round, U-M tied its season low with a 278 (-2) team total to move up to the sixth spot.
With a top-five finish in reach, temperatures dropped and blustery winds moved in for the final round. It would not affect Spring and Ito as the Wolverine duo paced the Maize and Blue, each closing with a 73 as the Wolverines posted a 296 final tally and stayed in the sixth position with an 865 three-day total.
"The course obviously played totally differently today for the entire field," said U-M head coach Chris Whitten. "The temperature dropped, the wind was up and the greens were the fastest they have been all week. We had a pretty good start, but the entire day felt like we were trying to hang on which was probably pretty common for a lot of the teams."
"Henry and Brent really played a solid tournament, and Charlie will have a lot of good things to take forward as well," added Whitten. "It makes me feel very good about our group coming back next year."
Spring's steady play helped him lead the Wolverines for the first time this season as he tied for 10th with a 214 (72-69-73) total. Ito followed tying for 22nd at 217 (77-67-73) as he helped U-M have two Wolverines among the top 25 individually for the fourth time in five championships.
"I am really happy to get a top 10 finish in the last tournament of year," said Spring. "This week was a step up as it was a challenging golf course. I played solid golf for the three days. The event was run like a PGA tour event, it was a great atmosphere to be a part of. Seeing Illinois lift the trophy is where I want us to be. It was a big motivator seeing them win."
After leading the tournament field after 18 holes, Pilon tied for 31st after the three days at 220 (67-71-82) while senior Kyle Mueller tied for 47th at 224 (75-75-74). Junior Nick Carlson rounded out the starting five, tying for 56th at 226 (79-71-75).
Mueller became the first Wolverine to earn the Les Bolstad Award for lowest conference scoring average with his 70.32, as Mueller lowered his U-M single-season record for the third straight season. Established in 1974, Mueller's Bolstad award average is the third lowest in conference history.
"I certainly wanted to play better this week, but the Les Bolstad award is a huge honor, and it's a good note to go out on for my Big Ten play," said Mueller. "I'm looking forward to working on my game this week and getting ready for regionals."
"Kyle has really had an incredible season and it's been fun to watch," said Whitten. "The consistency is probably been the most amazing part. It's impressive to watch, but when you see the work he has put in, you understand why he plays at that level. The best part is that he is such a great teammate and even a lot of former teammates have come back to want to support him at tournaments this year. Our team could not be more proud of him."
With a team selection unlikely, NCAA regional selections will be broadcast live on the Golf Channel on Wednesday (May 2) at 5:30 p.m. Mueller will look to get an individual invitational, which would extend the Wolverines' postseason streak to five straight years. The six regional sites begin play on Monday through Wednesday, May 14-16.
Final Team Standings
1. Illinois 281-268-287 = 836 (-4) 2. Ohio State 279-271-301 = 851 3. Iowa 288-275-296 = 859 4. Penn State 284-279-297 = 860 5. Northwestern 285-283-295 = 863 6. Michigan 291-278-296 = 865 7. Michigan State 294-281-296 = 871 8. Purdue 293-282-297 = 872 9. Maryland 287-283-304 = 874 10. Wisconsin 288-293-298 = 879 11. Nebraska 299-283-305 = 887 12. Indiana 308-286-298 = 892 13. Rutgers 296-297-301 = 894 14. Minnesota 299-292-305 = 896Top Individuals
1. Nick Hardy, Illinois 69-68-67 = 204 (-6)
2. Cole Miller, Penn State 68-65-73 = 206
3. Dylan Wu, Northwestern 69-68-73 = 210
4. Will Grimmer, Ohio State 70-69-72 = 211
5. David Kocher, Maryland 69-68-75 = 212
Bryan Baumgarten, Illinois 69-72-71 = 212
Michael Feagles, Illinois 74-64-74 = 212
8. Dylan Meyer, Illinois 69-69-75 = 213
Benton Weinberg, Iowa 72-69-72 = 213
Michigan Individuals
T10. Henry Spring 72-69-73 = 214 T22. Brent Ito 77-67-73 = 217 T31. Charlie Pilon 67-71-82 = 220 T47. Kyle Mueller 75-75-74 = 224 T56. Nick Carlson 79-71-76 = 226
Players Mentioned
