The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
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BIG TEN Championships: men's golf U-M Will Build On Strong Showing By Freshmen In League Tournament Michigan's men's golfers didn't have a championship to toast at the French Lick Resort, Pete Dye Course on the weekend of April 27‑28. In fact, they fin‑ ished a distant 10th among the 12 teams battling it out at the Big Ten Cham‑ pionships in former NBA great Larry Bird's home grounds. Even as the Wolverines packed the bags for home, though, they cast an eye toward the future. The solid performances by a pair of freshman competitors allowed them to dream of what can be. The duo of Chris O'Neill and Brett McIntosh finished tied for 13th and 15th, respectively, for a Michigan crew that totaled 1,223 strokes over four 18-hole rounds. Illinois won the event, with an 11-over-par team total of 1,163, while the Wolverines held off Penn State (1,224) and Wisconsin (1,232). The U-M freshmen held up well in their first league tournament action. O'Neill, out of Glen Allen, Va., shot an Chris O'Neill became the first rookie to lead even-par 72 in the opening round, the way for the Wolverines at the confer- then went 73-76-76 to close out his ence tournament since 2004, shooting a tournament at 9-over 297. McIntosh, 9-over-par 297 to finish in a tie for 13th from London, Ont., strung together rounds of 74-75-76-74 for an 11-over place. photo courtesy michigan athletic media relations score of 299. U-M head coach Chris Whitten certainly appreciates having those two as cornerstones for future efforts on the links. "They both adjusted to college golf really quickly," Whitten said. "They were able to compete right away. Coming back, I feel those guys are going to be leaders of the team because even though we are young they know what it takes to have success. They are both competitive guys, and they both want to see the program get better quickly. I think they are the guys to do it." A pair of league-champion Illinois players and one from Minnesota led the