Northwestern University Athletics
Men's Golf Heads to NCAA Championships
6/21/1999 12:00:00 AM | Men's Golf
May 27, 1999
The Northwestern men's golf team heads to the NCAA Championships, scheduled for May 31-June 5 at Hazeltine National Golf Club in Chaska, Minn. This is the third-straight season that NU has qualified for the Championships Finals, the first time that has been accomplished in school history. Northwestern is ranked No. 8 in the latest Golfstat head-to-head standings. The Wildcats also stand 12th in the Mastercard standings and 13th in the Golfweek/Sagarin rankings.
NU is coming off a second-place finish at the Central Regionals in Columbus, Ohio. The Wildcats posted a team score of four-over-par 868, three strokes behind Minnesota. The 'Cats were 14 strokes ahead of third place Nebraska. Luke Donald finished runner-up individually at three-under-par 213. It is the eighth time in 12 tournaments that Donald has finished either first or second. NU placed three individuals in the top 10, the only school to do so at the Central Regionals. David Shaffer tied for fifth at even-par 216 while Josh Habig tied for 10th place at one-over-par 217.
Northwestern's daily results along with top team standings from the NCAA Championships will be posted daily on NUSPORTS.COM.
Northwestern men's golf schedule at the NCAA Championships
Mon., May 31 -- practice round (team tees off at 11:40 a.m. CDT on hole No. 1)
Tue., June 1 -- practice round (team tees off at 8:10 a.m. CDT on hole No. 10)
Wed., June 2 -- round one (NU tees off on hole No. 1 in nine minute intervals from 1:30-2:06 p.m. CDT)
Thu., June 3 -- round two (NU tees off on hole No. 10 in nine minute intervals from 7:57-8:33 a.m. CDT)
Fri., June 4 -- round three (tee times TBD)
Sat., June 5 -- round four (tee times TBD)
Wildcats Win Big Ten Championship
The last time Northwestern visited the Twin Cities, the Wildcats captured the 1999 Big Ten Championship on May 14-16 at the Les Bolstad Golf Course in Minneapolis, coming from two strokes behind to win the tournament by three strokes over host Minnesota.
The win marked NU's fifth conference title while the 'Cats final team score of 1,131 is the lowest winning score in Big Ten Champion-ships history. The previous best was 1,138 set by Indiana in 1991.
NU led the tournament after round one (284) and round two (565), but the Gophers claimed the lead after round three (847-849). The 'Cats stormed back on Sunday, carding a two-under-par 282 to win the title. All five Wildcats finished among the top 20 individuals. Luke Donald fired a final-round 67 to tie for fourth at three-under-par 281. Jess Daley notched his fourth-straight top-10 finish by tying for sixth place at even-par 284. NU's other finishers were Erik Ciotti (t10th, 286), David Shaffer (t12th, 287) and Josh Habig (t16th, 288).
Luke Donald Named Big Ten Player of the Year
Following the conference tournament, sophomore Luke Donald was named Big Ten Player of the Year. This is the third time a Wildcat has earned the honor. Former All-American Scott Rowe won back-to-back awards in 1994 and 1995.
Donald also was given the Les Bolstad Award as the conference golfer with the lowest season stroke average, the third time a Wildcat has accomplished this feat as well. Jim Benepe did it in 1986 with an average of 72.9. Scott Rowe won in 1995 with an average of 72.2. Donald's stroke average in the seven events which counted toward the award was 70.1, the lowest in Big Ten history.
Donald and teammate Jess Daley were named to the 10-member All-Big Ten team. It is the second time Donald has earned all-conference accolades while Daley nabs the honor for the first time in his career.
Pat Goss Named Big Ten Coach of the Year
Wildcat head coach Pat Goss was named 1999 Big Ten Coach of the Year after directing NU to the conference team title, the second time in his three seasons (1997) that Goss has earned the honor.
In 1997, after taking over the head coaching duties in February, Goss directed NU to four-straight tournament titles and a seventh-place finish at the NCAA Championships. Golfweek also named Goss its National Coach of the Year in 1997.
National Player of the Year Candidate Luke Donald
Entering the NCAA Championships, sophomore Luke Donald stands as the No. 2 golfer in the country in the Golfstat Cup ratings. He is No. 3 according to the Golfweek/Sagarin standings and the Mastercard rankings. Donald has been ranked No. 1 in at least one of those polls for much of the spring.
Donald currently holds a stroke average of 70.39. He has won four events this season, including three-straight tournament titles in March and April (Aldila Collegiate Classic, Dr. Pepper Intercollegiate, Kepler Intercollegiate).
His other title came at Stanford's The Nelson tournament in late fall. At that event, Donald outdueled Stanford's Joel Kribel for the individual crown. Donald fired rounds of 67-71-67 to win the event at eight-under-par 205, one stroke better than Kribel.
Donald has the most wins this season of any player entered at the NCAA Championships. He is one of only two players in the country (Texas' David Gossett) to win four events this season. Only four other golfers have won as many as three tournaments.
In 36 competitive rounds this year, Donald has shot in the 60s 13 times, including a career-best 66 in the final round of the Dr. Pepper Intercollegiate. Twenty-eight of his 36 rounds have been played at-or-below par. Donald has not carded a score higher than 74 this year. Last year, as a freshman, Donald was named All-Big Ten and earned a spot on the GCAA's All-American third team.
Donald Winning the Head-to-Head Battles
National Player of the Year candidate Luke Donald has an excellent mark this year against the other top candidates vying for the honor as the nation's top collegiate golfer. Here is Donald's head-to-head record against those golfers along with season stroke averages:
Opponent (School) Donald Vs. Stroke Diff. Season Avg. Joel Kribel (Stanford) 2-0-1 Donald leads by 3 70.12 James McLean (Minn.) 4-2 Donald leads by 3 70.39* David Gossett (Texas) 2-1 Donald leads by 12 71.16 Bryce Molder (Ga. Tech) 1-1 Molder leads by 1 71.28 Charles Howell (Okla. St.) 1-0 Donald leads by 4 71.56 * McLean has withdrawn from two tournaments this year
Donald on the International Scene
For the second-straight year, Luke Donald will be one of 16 collegiate golfers competing in this summer's Palmer Cup, scheduled for June 12-13 at the Honors Course in Ooltewah, Tenn., a suburb of Chattanooga. The same course also hosted the 1996 NCAA Men's Golf Championships.
Donald will play for the eight-member Great Britain/Ireland team which will take on the top eight golfers from the United States. Last year, Donald won three of his four matches as his GB&I squad tied the U.S. team, 12-12.
After leading GB&I to the World Amateur Team Championship title last November in Santiago, Chile, Donald looks to be a central figure in this summer's Walker Cup as well. At the World Amateur, Donald finished in third place individually.
Quick Hits
* The Wildcats enter the NCAA Championships having finished first or second at its last seven tournaments.
* NU's second-place finish at the NCAA Regionals was the best in school history. The Wildcats' previous best was a third-place finish at the 1998 Central Regionals in San Antonio.
* In 13 tournaments this season, NU has finished either first or second 10 times. The Wildcats won four team titles and took second at six additional tournaments.
* Every Wildcat who has seen tournament action this year has finished in the top 10 at least once.
Jess Daley Named All-Big Ten
Wildcat junior Jess Daley is at the top of his game entering the NCAA Championships. Daley recorded four-straight top-10 finishes prior to the Central Regionals, including a career-best second place showing at the Wolverine Invitational.
Daley was named to the All-Big Ten team for the first time in his career as he tied for sixth place at the Big Ten Championships, shooting even-par 284. He also tied for ninth at the Kepler Intercollegiate and tied for 10th place at the Marshall Invitational. Daley set a school single-round record on Oct. 30 when he fired an opening-round 64 at Stanford's The Nelson tournament.
NU Wins Four Team Titles This Season
Northwestern has won four team tournament championships during the spring and enters the NCAA Championships having finished either first or second at its last seven events.
The Wildcats won back-to-back titles at the Marshall Invitational and Kepler Intercollegiate. Those victories were preceded by the Aldila Collegiate Classic. It marks the second time in the last three seasons that Northwestern has won four tournament championships. In the 1996-97 season, the Wildcats rattled off four-straight team titles en route to a seventh-place finish at the NCAA Championships.
Back-to-Back NCAA Top-20 Seasons
The past two seasons have marked two of the finest in Northwestern men's golf history. In 1996, Northwestern served as the host for the 100th anniversary of the NCAA Men's Golf Championships. Playing in front of the home crowd, the Wildcats brought home a seventh-place finish, the school's best national showing since 1943.
Last season, despite the loss of three members of the tournament lineup, the Wildcats again made the NCAA Championships, this time bringing home a 19th-place finish. This marked the first time since 1942-43 that Northwestern has notched back-to-back top-20 team finishes at the NCAA Championships.
The Gleacher Golf Center
On April 22, 1998, Northwestern University announced a $6.1 million gift from Eric J. Gleacher to create a state-of-the-art indoor golf facility and to endow the men's and women's golf programs. It opened in January 1999 and is available for use only by the NU men's and women's golf teams.
The $1.1 million Gleacher Golf Center is the finest indoor learning center in collegiate golf. The facility, built on the site of the University's old swimming pool in Patten Gymnasium, measures 89x62 feet and its ceilings peak at 25 feet.
The center includes a teaching area with three permanently mounted video cameras, a three-station hitting area, a 2,375 square foot pitching and putting green, a 280 square foot sand bunker and a locker area for the Wildcat players.
