Men's Golf Goes for Third-Straight Big Ten Title
4/30/2009 12:00:00 AM | Men's Golf
April 30, 2009
EAST LANSING, Mich. - The Michigan State men's golf team begins postseason action this weekend as they travel to University Park, Pa. for the 2009 Big Ten Championship, hosted at Penn State's Blue Course. The Spartans, winners of three of the last four Big Ten Championships, will look to become the first program since Northwestern (1999-2001) to win three-straight titles. Play begins on Friday with 36 holes, followed by 18 holes on both Saturday and Sunday.
Michigan State enters the weekend fresh off its victory at the Fossum Invitational. The Spartans, ranked No. 31 in the latest Golfweek/Sagarin rankings, have finished among the top-four in nine of their 11 events this season, including wins at the Spartan Classic to begin the year and the Fossum this past weekend. Four different MSU golfers have also earned medalist honors this season.
Sophomore Payne Gniewek enters the Big Ten Championship as MSU's hottest golfer, fresh off his medalist finish at the Fossum. Gniewek's win was his second of the season, also placing first at the UNCG Bridgestone at the end of the fall. He has also placed in the top-20 in seven of his 10 stroke play events. Gniewek, who earned Big Ten Men's Golfer of the Week on Wednesday, is second on the team with a 73.16 stroke average, which is currently on pace to finish in the MSU single-season top-10. He finished in a tie for 22nd in his Big Ten debut last season.
Junior Jack Newman leads the team with a 72.47 stroke average this season, which currently is the second best single-season mark in program history. Newman, who became the first Spartan to compete in the Masters a few weeks ago, has four top-five finishes and five top-10 placements in his 10 stroke play tournaments this season. He ranks No. 50 in the Golfweek/Sagarin national rankings. Newman has historically had great success at the Big Tens, tying for 12th as a freshman, then tying for fifth last season, earning his All-Championship honors and a place on the All-Big Ten Second Team.
Sophomore Graham Baillargeon joins Gniewek and Newman as the only three Spartans to compete in all 11 events this season. Baillargeon has been steady all season, posting a 74.11 stroke average and four top-10 finishes, including a win at the Spartan Classic to begin the season. He tied for 41st at last season's Big Tens.
Two Spartans will be making their Big Ten Championship debuts this weekend - junior Andrew Ladwig and freshman Jimmy Dewling.
Ladwig will be appearing in only his third event of the season and fourth as a member of MSU, after transferring from Bowling Green after the 2007 fall semester. Through three events this season, he holds a 72.82 stroke average, capped by a third place finish this weekend at the Fossum.
Dewling made his collegiate debut at the Fossum, earning a spot in the Big Ten Championship lineup with a fifth place finish.
Michigan State has won four Big Ten titles in its history (1969, 2005, 2007, 2008) and has one medalist finish (Eric Jorgensen in 2002).
This year's field will very strong with every Big Ten school currently ranked in the top-100 of the Golfweek/Sagarin rankings, including eight of the 11 in the top-60. Indiana leads the way at 13th, followed closely by Illinois in 14th. MSU at No. 31 is followed by Michigan (No. 45), Ohio State (No. 52), Northwestern (No. 56), Penn State (No. 59), Iowa (No. 60), Minnesota (No. 68), Purdue (No. 80) and Wisconsin (No. 81).
Individually, five Big Ten golfers are in Golfweek/Sagarain's top-50, while nine are among the top-100. Indiana senior Jorge Campillo enters the weekend as the favorite, ranking No. 2 in the country. Illinois' Scott Langley (No. 25), Ohio State's Bo Hoag (No. 33), Penn State's Kevin Foley (No. 36) and Newman (No. 50) round out the conference golfers in the top-50 nationally.
Live results and statistics throughout the Big Ten Championship can be viewed by clicking here.
For the second-consecutive season, the Big Ten Network will be airing coverage of the Big Ten Men's Golf Championships. The event will broadcast on a delayed basis on Sunday, May 24 at 3 p.m.
Players Mentioned
